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Tammy and the T-Rex
R0 - America - MVD Visual Review written by and copyright: Eric Cotenas (24th June 2025). |
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The Film
 Tammy (Wild Things' Denise Richards) is a pretty and popular high school cheerleader, but all is not as it seems. Although she should have the world at her feet, she is the victim of abuse from possessive ex-boyfriend Billy (Timemaster's George Pilgrim) that prevents her from even imagining happiness with handsome and kind Michael (Joyride's Paul Walker) in spite of encouragement from flamingly gay best friend Byron (Street Knight's Theo Forsett). When Tammy one night asks Michael to come over and keep her company, jealous Wendy (Leprechaun 2's Shevonne Durkin) squeals to Billy who barges into Tammy's house with his gang (including The People Under The Stairs' Sean Whalen). They chase Michael down and brutally beat him, leaving him for dead in a wildlife park where he is then mauled by a lion. Michael is left in a coma and easy prey for mad Dr. Wachenstein (Friday the 13th, Part VII: The New Blood's Terry Kiser) who is searching for a brain to give life to his robotic Tyrannosaurus Rex to give it autonomy from its computer programming. Wachenstein fakes Michael's death and makes off with his body with the help of dominatrix assistant Helga (Napoleon Dynamite's Ellen Dubin) and transplants Michael's brain into the beast with plans to lobotomize it later for complete control; however, Michael's conscience remains in the brain and he kills Wachenstein's assistants (Children of the Corn's John Franklin and Mr. Jones' John Edmondson) before escaping the mad doctor's lab. After running amuck and crashing a teenage party with much bloodshed, Michael reconnects with Tammy who becomes determined to find a way to get his brain back in his body, unaware that Wachenstein and Helga have realized that she is the key to getting the dinosaur back. Meanwhile, Byron tries to convince his sheriff father (House Party's J. Jay Saunders) and bumbling deputies (They Live's George "Buck" Flower and Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth's Ken Carpenter) just whose side they should be on. An oddity that could only have come from the nineties, Tammy and the T-Rex was not just butchered for an R-rating but eviscerated into a PG-13 direct-to-video comedy where the head-chomping, face-squishing, gut-disemboweling dinosaur became the "coolest pet in town." Even unexpurgated, the film is impossible to pigeonhole, and it is difficult to determine how it would have been sold had it been more successful and widely seen. The performances are mostly over-the-top with the exception of Richards and Walker who surprisingly manage to anchor the film emotionally. Much of the proceedings are played for laughs but the abusive ex element and Michael's beating are far from family friendly. Although even the original version cuts away from some of the violence, the torso-squishing, disemboweling, and head-ripping on display – courtesy of John Carl Buechler (Troll) – may not have been enough to engage older audiences theatrically. Subsequently, the film acquired a bit of a cult following due to the presences of Richards and the late Walker, and that audience is perhaps more suited to it in either cut. Former Hollywood animal trainer turned director Stewart Raffill had previously helmed bigger budget fare like The Ice Pirates, The Philadelphia Experiment, and Mannequin: On the Move. 
Video
Released direct to video in a cut-down PG-13 rated edition from Imperial Entertainment with the better-known Tammy and the T-Rex – replacing the original "Tanny and the Teenage T-Rex" title on the original cut in which Richards' onscreen credit is indeed "Tanny" and was also altered for the new cut – the film's rights ended up with Moonstone Entertainment. This odd film was an equally bizarre choice for Vinegar Syndrome to debut as one of their early 4K UltraHD/Blu-ray combo editions (along with a Blu-ray/DVD combo edition when it went to general retail). MVD's anamorphic 1.78:1 widescreen DVD comes from the same 4K master of the original 35mm camera negative which turned out to be the eight minute-longer director's cut. The film looks very much a nineties product with some bright and colorful sunny California settings exteriors and period wardrobe as well as blue-tinged night sequences. Close-ups of the dinosaur fare far better than the effects prosthetics which seems to be as much an issue with the lighting of the effects as the materials (you can tell Buechler was hyperfocused on the T-Rex itself). The DVD does a good job of representing the HD master in standard def and has a retail price that should be compensation for the curious who missed out on the HD releases or just want to check out the hype. 
Audio
The Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo soundtrack boasts clear dialogue throughout and some directional rumblings and roars of the monster while the atmosphere calls attention to how little there is of the background sound design. Optional English SDH subtitles are included. 
Extras
MVD was not able to include any of the Vinegar Syndrome extras – including a new interview with Richards – but they were able to source a video trailer (2:02) which gives an idea of how the distributors tried to market the film. 
Overall
An oddity that could only have come from the nineties, Tammy and the T-Rex was not just butchered for an R-rating but eviscerated into a PG-13 direct-to-video comedy where the head-chomping, face-squishing, gut-disemboweling dinosaur became the "coolest pet in town."
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