KILLER KLOWNS FROM OUTER SPACE (1988)
Tagline: Step right up and see the Greatest Show in the Galaxy! Admission is free...Will you survive?
(Horror, Comedy, Just Klowning Around) [PG-13]
It was a space ship. And there was these things, these killer clowns, and they shot popcorn at us! We barely got away!
It was a space ship. And there was these things, these killer clowns, and they shot popcorn at us! We barely got away!
Of all the wacky horror flicks that came out of the 80s KILLER KLOWNS FROM OUTER SPACE has to be somewhere in the top 20 or even the top 10 craziest. The film features everything from crawling popcorn to shadow puppets that can eat people. Yeah, I just wrote that. This movie was produced by Chiodo Brothers Productions who is also known for “ELF” and the first 4 CRITTERS movies.
In this one, a group of Killer Klowns land in a circus tent in the middle of a forest (as you might have guessed) and decide to invade a small town called “Crescent Cove”. The Killer Klowns don’t talk, so we can only guess that they are just here for food. Using a cotton candy-looking substance they capture people and “vampire” them for later consumption, like blood-sucking fiends from beyond the cosmos. These clowns look pretty creepy and even though we do get some computer graphics, about 90% of this thing is practical effects.
In this one, a group of Killer Klowns land in a circus tent in the middle of a forest (as you might have guessed) and decide to invade a small town called “Crescent Cove”. The Killer Klowns don’t talk, so we can only guess that they are just here for food. Using a cotton candy-looking substance they capture people and “vampire” them for later consumption, like blood-sucking fiends from beyond the cosmos. These clowns look pretty creepy and even though we do get some computer graphics, about 90% of this thing is practical effects.
John Massari does an amazing job in this one choosing the music which includes the title cut “Killer Klowns From Outer Space” by The Dickies. I mean this freakin movie is basically one of the quintessential campy 80’s horror flicks complete with corny over-the-top anti-PC jokes and ridiculously bad dialog and plot holes you can drive a truck through. It’s also got a few very creepy moments even for a horror comedy in its day. In other words, it’s pretty nuts.
Overall this thing isn’t mind-blowing, but it does possess the outlandish vibe that puts it in a horror comedy league of its own. The acting for a movie like this is actually pretty decent. You dislike the characters you are supposed to and most of the cast is actually trying throughout. The conflict between Mike Tobacco (played by Grant Cramer) and Dave Hansen (played by John Allen Nelson) is credible and decently written. The movie also featured veteran horror actress Suzanne Snyder (NIGHT OF THE CREEPS, RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD PART II) as Debbie Stone.
If you are looking for something “out there”, this is your movie and at the time of this review, it’s not hard to come by on streaming services. Because it’s a movie I don’t think I’d have to own, this one gets a 5 out of 7 boarding on a 4 out of 7.
If you are looking for something “out there”, this is your movie and at the time of this review, it’s not hard to come by on streaming services. Because it’s a movie I don’t think I’d have to own, this one gets a 5 out of 7 boarding on a 4 out of 7.
GRAPHICS ARE THE PROPERTY OF CHIODO BROTHERS PRODUCTIONS AND ARE USED FOR REVIEW PURPOSES ONLY.
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