Critters (1986)

Carnivorous aliens who feed on human flesh invade Earth. Starring Dee Wallace-Stone and M. Emmet Walsh. Year: 1986 Director: Stephen Herek Starring: Dee Wallace-Stone, M. Emmet Walsh, Billy Green Bush

These Fatal Fuzz-Balls Are Ferocious!...

CRITTERS is my favorite movie of it's type. I like it even more than GREMLINS (which I love), and far more than any of the other "puppet-monster" movies that came out (Ghoulies, Hobgoblins, etc.). CRITTERS takes us to the tiny town of Grovers Mill, Kansas, the site of an alien invasion. It seems that a renegade bunch of crites ( little, furry, carnivorous space monsters) have escaped from intergalactic prison, and headed straight toward earth for a snack (us)! This leads to a night of horror and hilarity, when the rolly creatures arrive and begin eating any / all flesh in sight! Two extraterrestrial bounty hunters are dispatched to hunt down and destroy the crites before they can fully satisfy their insatiable appetites. The bounty hunters are hilarious, as they can make themselves look like anyone they encounter, which means that one of them looks like a then-current (1986) MTV-type rock star, while his cohort winds up being the sheriff's deputy, the town preacher, and a farm-hand! Now, THAT'S comedy! Most of the CRITTER action takes place at the Brown family farm, where the lovely, legendary Dee Wallace (The Hills Have Eyes, The Howling, Cujo, The Frighteners, etc.) plays Mrs. Brown, trying to survive the alien onslaught w/ her husband and kids. M. Emmet Walsh (Blood Simple) is the sheriff, and a young, pony-tailed (!!) Billy Zane (Dead Calm, Memory) is the ill-fated boyfriend of the Brown's teenage daughter. CRITTERS is a fun, semi-scary movie w/ cute lil' fur-balls that have huge mouths full of razor-sharp, flesh-ripping teeth! Enjoy... August 3, 2008

"They have weapons???? F##&!!!!"

B-movies seem to have a special place in my heart. This was no excpetion. Another one of those 80's campy sci-fi movies that makes you wonder why you like this movie and how come you haven't changed the channel, lol.

Basically, this is about interstellar furballs known as the Crites. They are pure eating machines. They also have porcupine like spines on their backs that they can shoot out and paralyze anything or anyone. Bounty Hunters from another world chase the Crites throughout the galaxy and locate them on Earth. These bounty hunters are like shape-shifters. They come to earth with no face and they can copy whoever they look at. One in particular copies the face of a rockstar it sees on the T.V. Another copies the town drunk; Charlie. The Crites eventually terrorize the quiet farm town and the Brown family on their farm. The Bounty Hunters in the meantime blow up anything that moves (not including people) in there search for the Crites. How times do you hear them say," We want the Crites!"

All in all this is a good movie. You gotta love those cute little critters! One time (not at bandcamp) they join together like transformers and create this huge critter. It's also funny to watch them communicate with each other. Apparently their language can be translated to english :)

The DVD comes with an alternate ending as well as widescreen and full screen formats. Another great addition to the DVD library.

My favorite part is when the Critters terrorize the Brown family on their farm. When the Critters have them trapped in a bedroom and Jay Brown (Billy Green Bush from Jason Goes to Hell) fires a shotgun, they Critters seem shocked and one says," They have guns?" Another say no, and another shot is fired by the father and kills one of the Critters. That same Critter that wondered, then said a expeditive that I can't repeat. Lets just say it's the curse on the top of the list, lol. April 9, 2008

classic, but...

This is a classic and after watching it on DVD its not hard to see why. Original concept, believable actors and acting, decent script. Compared to the sequels and remakes coming out of hollywood today, its stands tall. However, after seeing the DVD version, the film needs restored. Thats why i only gave it 4 stars, the film is so dark now that its hard to see whats going on as most of the action is at night. The colors need restored, it all seems like the master copy was not taken care of. Not surprising, but some effort could have been made to clean it up before transfering to DVD. November 21, 2007

Sci-Fi/Horror for the entire family... yes, even Grandma down there in the basement!

Critters is one of those rare crossover movies that's just as entertaining and fun for the adults as it is for it's targeted younger audience (PG-13). Think Monster Squad, The Gate, or House and you get a pretty good idea at how the movie is structured with enough of an edge to get some actual tension and jumps out of you without having to develop into a terrifying bloodbath. The story revolves around alien creatures (think 80's toy Popples with big teeth) who end up on earth with an insatiable appetite and ready to eat anything and everything in sight. Horror vet Dee Wallace Stone (The Howling, Cujo, Halloween remake) heads up a cast of likeable and believable characters trying to find a way to survive and repel the invasion. The "Critters" themselves are charming and funny while still being vicious and threatening and steal the screen everytime they show up. This is more like a 3.5 star movie (for what it is) but is worth rounding up do to tha ability to enjoy it with your kids (especially around Halloween). Steer clear of the lousy sequels that were cranked out after this movies success. October 17, 2007

Primitive special effects + Bad acting = Worthless movie

The special effects in this movie are jokes. The creatures look exactly like furry puppets. The video quality is a shame. It's faded and grainy. The acting is like that of a bad movie show. The Gremlins is more exciting, interesting and entertaining. I regret I bought it even though it cost me only $10. May 24, 2007

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