Some days, a hard-working student wants to watch a thought-provoking film with a great script, talented actors, great special effects and high production value. Other days, students need to kick back and enjoy a purely entertaining or offensive film. On those more prurient days, the perfect way to celebrate cinematic gratuity is to view a Troma Film.

Troma Films is an independent film company based in New York City's so-called Hell's Kitchen. The company began when two Yale students, Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz, started producing violent and erotic low-budget comedies such as "Squeeze Play!," "Waitress!" and several other films (with titles ending in an exclamation points) produced in the early '70s.

Troma Films are characterized by their extremely low budgets and production values. They are best known, however, for their over-the-top attitude toward on-screen sex and violence. A typical Troma release will contain scores of topless women, exploding heads, blood, guns, gore, toxic waste and loud punk rock music.

Troma Films scored a fiscal and critical success in 1984 with the release of "The Toxic Avenger." The film recounts the exploits of a humble health club mop boy who is transformed by toxic waste into a hideously deformed crime fighter with superhuman strength and powers. While fighting evil with his mop, "Toxie" falls in love with a blind woman. They live happily ever after.

The '80s also yielded Troma hits in the form of such Generation-X classics as the "Class of Nuke `Em High" trilogy, "Surf Nazis Must Die," "Sgt. Kabukiman NYPD" and the sequels to the original "Toxic Avenger."

The mission of Troma Films is to keep independent films truly independent and to push the envelope regarding what can and can't be shown on film. The films it creates and produces are an attempt to give independent filmmaking back to the people by encouraging young artists to make films without the help of major studios and financiers.

Fans of the early Troma films have gone on to major Hollywood success and include such directors as Quentin Tarantino, Kevin Smith and "South Park" creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone.

Troma Films continued their mission of giving the medium of film back to the people in January 2000 with the creation of the Tromadance Film Festival. The Festival, hosted every year in Park City, Utah, has no entry fees for potential films, offers free tickets to all patrons and throws a gala concert/party with no admission charge. Since its inception, Tromadance has grown in popularity and has drawn some of Hollywood's elite away from the nearby Sundance Film Festival.

Troma Films are not for everyone. Compare them to the shock comedies of John Waters or the Italian horror films of Lucio Fulci and Dario Argento. They are extremely violent and often blatantly offensive. Kaufman and Herz's intention to show that "Art ain't always pretty" comes across clearly. The Troma answer is best described by a fan in one of its recent flicks "Terror Firmer."

When asked, "How can you like this offensive garbage?"

The fan responded, "I like it because it's offensive garbage."

Not all Troma films are alike; although each film attempts to demolish or parody cinematic convention, there are distinct categories within the Troma production group. Comedies like "Cannibal! The Musical" and "Teenage Cat Girls in Heat" vary greatly from horror films like "Sergio Lapel's Drawing Blood" and "Parts of the Family." The Troma Team also produces action films like "Wizard of the Demon Sword" and the infamous "Toxic Avenger" series.

Troma's forays into television include the "Toxic Crusaders Animated Series" and "Edge TV," both ill-fated attempts at targeting mainstream television audiences.

Viewers interested in beginning their Tromatic experience should begin with one of the more accessible films. "The Toxic Avenger" and "Sgt. Kabukiman, NYPD" offer a good starting point. They are ridiculous without being overly offensive. "Kabukiman" is an undercover cop in New York City until he is possesed by an ancient Japanese spirit and is transformed into a superhuman crime fighter armed with an awesome array of antique Chinese weapons. Viewers also get to hear the classic line, "I can't believe this. I'm eating a smelly dead fish and I'm loving it."

If Tromaheads have the stomach for those two, they could consider moving on to gorier subject matter. "Cannibal! the Musical" is probably the most easily digested of the Troma Films. It recounts the true story of Alfred Packer, the only American ever convicted of cannibalism in the United States. After incompetently leading a group of miners on their way to Breckenridge, Colo., from Provo, Utah, he and his group of latter-day travelers encounter harsh conditions in the wild Rocky Mountains. In order to survive, they resort to horrible acts of violence and truly original musical numbers.

Along their journey, they meet greaser-like trappers and a very Chinese tribe of native Americans. Created by Trey Parker and starring Matt Stone, "Cannibal! The Musical" is like "Grapes of Wrath" meets "West Side Story" meets "Bloodsucking Freaks."

If a more erotic or comedic Troma experience is what you seek, "Teenage Catgirls in Heat" or "Nymphoid Barbarian in Dinosaur Hell" is the answer. "Catgirls" is the story of a town about to be overrun by an evil Egyptian cat goddess and her litter of nubile and very naked teenage beauties, all risen from the ashes of suicidal cats. The towns only hope lies in the hands of a hitchhiking teenager and the town's deranged "cat catcher."

"Nymphoid Barbarian in Dinosaur Hell" is a Tromatic throw-back to the claymation dinosaur films of the '50s. It features a B-movie feel complete with cheesy latex gore with a kind of "Mysterious Island" dinosaur charm. "Nymphoid Barbarian" is a good example of Troma's attempt to use titillating titles to market their product.

After sampling these tamer offerings, the Troma viewer is ready for the most offensive offerings of the production company. Released just last year, "Terror Firmer" is among the most bloody and ridiculous of the Troma line. Directed by and starring Lloyd Kaufman himself, "Firmer" is the story of a serial murderer stalking a Troma film set. Among its most offensive moments are a man being beaten to death with his own severed leg, a man being sucked into an escalator and a man being crushed by a falling sedan.

"Terror Firmer" is the most self-aware of the Troma films. It melds offensive material and jokes about censorship into its already excessive scenes of violence and sex. Kaufman drops his movie persona to interrupt the film at its most graphic points making hysterical comments about the problems the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) had with rating the film. Cameos by various underground celebrities, including a particularly gory appearance by former adult film star Ron Jeremy, and an all-star punk and metal soundtrack complement the already audacious screen shocker.

If viewers are willing to sacrifice even the minimal production value of the rest of the Troma line, they can view the most offensive of the Troma films. Shot in another country and badly dubbed into English, "Maniac Nurses Find Ecstasy" is far and away the most offensive thing Troma has ever produced. The film revolves around a group of insane nurses and their sadistic head surgeon, Ilsa, as they strive for entertainment in an abandoned hospital.

If you choose to view this film expect to see rampant drug use, sado-masochism, cannibalism, amputations, live dissections and plenty of exploding heads. A particularly memorable scene involves an innocent gardener getting shot in the forehead and then impaling himself on a garden gnome.

The significance of Troma films does not lie entirely in their extremely entertaining feats of cinematic obscenity, but in the effect that they have had on the rest of film culture. Several critics cite Troma Films as the inspiration for such cult hits as "Cecil B. Demented" and "Scary Movie." It is a common opinion that raunchy blockbusters such as "There's Something About Mary," "Me, Myself, and Irene" and "Kingpin" would not have been possible if Troma had not been pushing the envelope of acceptability for the last three decades.

The punk rock feel of Troma Films exudes the kind of youthful energy that was traditionally reserved for hard core rock-and-roll and alternative fiction. Troma has emerged as the voice of people who are tired of films like "Titanic" and "Pearl Harbor." Troma fans are those who can't stand to see another preachy, lofty, themed film pontificate about the goodness of mankind.

The minimalist budget and planning of the films along with their in-your-face attitude represent the do-it-yourself ethos of the punk movement. Kaufman compares it to the art exhibit "Sensations" which recently made its appearance at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. The exhibit featured a shark suspended in formaldehyde and a cow cut into foot-thick slabs and then suspended in glass. It is not art that is designed to please the eye. It is designed to affect you on a more primal level. The effect may be nausea, but the art will be preserved in the manner intended by the artist no matter how graphic.

So, if its one of those days when "Memento" just sounds a little too heavy or you are afraid you'll fall asleep before the end of "Wings of the Dove" or you've seen "Office Space" one too many times, Troma is the solution. Get a bucket of popcorn, snuggle up next to your roommate and watch a cinematic atrocity. Your Tromatic experience may not be pleasant, but it is guaranteed to be an enlightening experience you will never forget.

Contact Matt Holmes at holmes.16@nd.edu.

• Tromatic Cinema