Killer Klowns from Outer Space (1988)

Not as Good as I Remember

I know there are plenty of people who love this movie and I remember seeing it when I was young. It was not scary then and its not scary now. It is good cheesy fun though with a lot of bad acting and a plot to not even care about. I liked it enough to set through once again in my older years now and I have to say my movie tastes have changed enough to where this movie isn't worth a second watch. Special features aren't great at all even though they are there for people who care. Picture quality is good and so is audio but other than that not much going for it. I know its a cult favorite and that's fine for most fans if you like it that much but its not really going to be for everyone. That is usually the way it goes for cult favorites though it is usually love or hate. It is good to watch again if you haven't seen it for a while but other than that not much here anymore. January 8, 2009

Sci-fi classics

The ultimate sci-fi "B" classic movie. It you are a fan of the classics, this is one to add to your collection. Perfect Saturday morning flick. Some blood, so maybe keep very small children away. October 29, 2008

Naughty, Naughty Klowns

[This review is part of my 31 days of Halloween series.]

When I first saw this movie it was on TV so the formatting issue isn't as important to me as it appears to be to other reviewers (check out the single star reviews.) I suppose it could benefit by letterbox reformatting. As for other "poor" rating reviews, come on, guys--its called KILLER KLOWNS FROM OUTER SPACE, not FROM HERE TO ETERNITY.

Anyway, I liked it.

The movie definitely has all the "B" level hallmarks--less than stellar acting (except by the Klowns who are perfect), a script full of holes, etc. But somehow, the film works almost in spite of itself. The art direction was great, particularly in the use of color--and, again, the look of the Klowns who are perfect. They had huge goofy heads & sets of really nasty looking, evil teeth. The "tricks" they play on the unaware towns people are a treat to watch.

For the price, you can't miss--and it's Kid Friendly.

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WHAT IF TIM BURTON MADE THE BLOB?! 4 1/2 STARS!

A rare occurrence, when a film this silly turns out to be so great! 'Killer Klowns From Outer Space' is a wonderful homage to the Sci-Fi and monster movies of the 50's. While watching this ultra campy "Cult Classic" you can't help, but think of 'The Blob' film from 1958. The story pretty much follows the same basic story line except no blob, just really sinister looking space klowns!

The clown make-up is fantastic and the sets look like Pee Wee's Playhouse on acid! Clever use of all known Klown props including funny little car, balloon animals, puppets, shadow puppets, popcorn, cotton candy, pie throwing and the big top itself....you name it's in here! Although the Klown make-up is quite creepy, the film is played purely for laughs.

It would have been interesting if this film had a couple of really good scares in it! I think they missed a golden opportunity there.....anyone remember 'Night Of The Creeps'? Another campy Horror comedy from the 80's, but that one had some tension and scares in between the laughs. That is why I deduct half a star. The DVD transfer is excellent and this release has a nice amount of extras including commentary, making of, FX, Klown concepts, trailer,deleted scenes and much more!

Thanks "C" for reminding me to watch this one! Happy Shocktober! October 2, 2008

THE QUEEN MOTHER OF ALL CAMPY-CULT FILMS.

'Killer Klowns From Outer Space' is a 1988 movie written, produced, and directed by the Chiodo Brothers. It stars Grant Cramer, Susanne Snyder, John Allen Nelson, and John Vernon.

Our story starts off on a quiet night in the small town of Cresent Crove. After a brief introduction to officer Mooney(Vernon; see if you can spot Christopher Titus), We are introduced to Mike(Cramer)and Debbie(Snyder), two young adults spending time together at the local make-out spot. Their night out is interupted by a giant fireball in the sky. They let their curiosity get the best of them, and decide to investigate. the next cut shows the fireball is actually a spaceship that oddly resembles a circus tent. Unfortunatly, the local town drunk stumbles upon it to a bad consequence. After a quick cut that further introduces Moony and Hanson(Nelson), Mike and Debbie have found the ship(tent). Again they let their curiosity get the better of them, and they learn the terrible truth; A spaceship full of aliens that resemble clowns has landed to harvest humans as food!!

What can I say, I like off-beat humor, and this movie has LOADS of it!! Cult films span all types of genres; When it comes to horror/comedy this film is on par with 'Dead Alive' and 'The Evil Dead II'. The plot is obviously straight forward, and is meant in a satyrical way.

The acting and dialoge is just awesomely bad!! It's acted and played rather serious, but is balanced really well with the ridiculuos plot. The contrast in the serious acting and goofy plot will have you grinning in the first ten minutes! Even today, most of the actors remain obscure, but play the parts ssssoooo well!

The editing is good. The movie runs 86 minutes and never drags. The 'Klowns' are breifly shown in the beggining and as the movie progresses, we see more of the klowns and their anticts. The film has an escalating tension(reletively speaking). In the beggining, see little of the klowns, but the movie progresses to show the full human harvest.

The cinematography is suprisingly great for a low-budjet flick. The movie is really sharp and doesn't suffer from the 'gritty' look, and even the shots at night are clear and lit well.

The effects are sssssooooo great, and compliment the movie sssooo well. The klowns themselves to look quite bizarre; kind of a schizophrenic, distorted, scarier version of circus clowns. The klowns look so twisted they would fit nicely in a 'Silent Hill' game. Toy ray-guns, shadow puppets, balloon dogs, and cotton candy coccoons are some of the unique, and silly instruments of genocide. Don't let the goofiness fool you, this movie does have its fair share of blood and disturbing imagery(It's killer klowns after all).

The DVD comes with some cool extras. Deleted scenes, commentary, 5 featurettes, and two easter-eggs(the popcorn in the special features sub-menu)are included with the DVD.

I was 14 when I first saw this, and all these years later, this movie still makes me giggle. I still watch it and find LOADS of entertainment value in it. If you like horror/cult-comedies, then this is a MUST HAVE!! September 30, 2008

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