Product Details

• Actors: Michael David Simms
• Directors: William Wesley
• Format: Color, DVD, Full Screen, Widescreen, NTSC
• Language: English, Spanish, French
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: Unrated
• Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
• DVD Release Date: September 11, 2007
• Run Time: 83 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (48 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000UGBOTA
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #25,911 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Though perhaps not worthy of classic status, William Wesley's Scarecrows recalls some epic 1980s-era slasher films, with its liberal blood gushing and semi-New Wave art and costume design. Set in a haunted cornfield, a group of military criminals are stranded after trying to escape to Mexico with $3 million in stolen cash. Dressed in Terminator or Alien-like solider of fortune gear, the group combs the dark field while sporting headphones and night goggles, lending the many shots from their points of view an eerie, green glow. While Roxanne (Kristina Sanborn) guards a hostage, other team members Corbin (Ted Vernon), Jack (Richard Vidan), and Curry (Michael David Simms), each die at the hands of murderous scarecrows coming to life after stepping off their crosses. Great shadowy segments show the scarecrows' burlap masks undulating slightly due their zombie breathing. It doesn't quite matter that the viewer never learns why these scarecrows seek revenge on the living, because the most fascinating and disturbing scenes occur when the dead soldiers return to their friends in attempts to trick them into an unholy alliance. In the first grisly sequence of this sort, one recoils to discover a man whose innards have been replaced with money. Worse, his friends cut him up to extract some blood-soaked cash. As body parts fly, blood puddles up, and zombies face the camera up-close, Scarecrows looks increasingly like Hellraiser, though it lacks a needle-poked, iconic anti-hero. Scarecrows' slow pacing is frustrating but 80s horror fans will be all too willing to excuse some corny plot digressions for a glimpse of truly stylized nightmare. —Trinie Dalton

Product Description
Studio: Tcfhe/mgm Release Date: 09/09/2008

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Creepy, atmospheric and great 80's horror film ., May 26, 2008

By	Puzzle box "smockey_421" (Kuwait) - See all my reviews

At first I was a bit apprehensive when it came to Scarecrows thinking that it was a cheap and very lame 80's horror flick and the fact that some of the reviews were saying that it was dull turned me off for a while but I'm glad that I finally got a copy of Scarecrows and I was actually surprised that the film turned out to be quite impressive it was also great fun. The film is low budget so don't expect it to be like any of those modern horror flicks with tons of CGI in them, the atmosphere was very dark and eerie and it also has a good storyline it's about a bunch of mercenaries who get attacked and killed by a bunch of supernatural and psychotic scarecrows I know it doesn't sound like much but trust me this film was fantastic and you'll like this especially if you have a particular fondness for 80's cult horror films. A group of mercenaries hijack a plane after a robbery as their heading off to Mexico but they soon get double crossed by one of their partners who decides to steal the money for himself and parachutes off near a cornfield by an abandoned farmhouse, the cornfield is filed with creepy looking scarecrows that have the ability to imitate their victim's voices and they are not that easily killed off they also have an advantage of sneaking up on their victims in the dark. The rest of the team go chasing after their partner who has betrayed them but they don't suspect that they are being stalked and killed by these scarecrows, the makeup on these scarecrows looks really good and menacing I thought it might be cheesy but it wasn't it really does work and the gore scenes were neat theres a decapitation, a hand slowly being sawed off and a body stuffed with money so it was impressive and the farmers were devil worshipers which explains why the scarecrows are able to move. The only criticism I have is that the acting was bad especially from the pilot's daughter who was looking for her dog, her dialogue was unintentionally hilarious but its not really awful I've seen much worse, director William Wesley did a terrific job with this film despite having some low budget constraints. This MGM dvd has a great transfer and the picture quality was great but there aren't any special features in it not even a lousy trailer but I still thought it was worth it so make sure that you don't miss this film.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "IF I WERE A CROW I'D BE SOMEWHERE ELSE!", September 8, 2007

By	D. Wilson "SonRisedInTheEast" (NY by way of Cali) - See all my reviews

Fantastic lost horror gem of the 80's finally gets its due on DVD! Previously only available on beat-up VHS tape or an overpriced full-screen German import titled Paratrooper, MGM has blessed the horror masses with a definitive version for our collections! The movie has a refreshingly original plot, which drops a group of ex-military robbers and murderers into the wrong field in search of their missing bounty. A great unique script and really good acting (except the pilots daughter who is AWFUL) always makes me wonder why this film sat in obscurity for so long? Although our main characters are all villians they have individual personalities and believable dialogue that keeps us interested in them and their plight. Of course atmosphere, jump scares, and a generous and well done amount of gore is also included for our viewing pleasure (including a brutal face stabbing)! If you are new to horror or are a horror buff starving for a truly enjoyable horror film (especially in these times of remakes and direct-to-DVD dreck) this is a can't miss. Also make sure to pick up MGMs upcoming releases of the 80's classics From Beyond and The Burning. For horror fans... Christmas comes early this year!

15 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another lost gem of 80's horror exhumed, August 10, 2007

By	the amazing maltzi "charismatic cult leader" (the belly of the beast) - See all my reviews

When direct-to-video horror films were a legitimate market in the 80's and early to mid nineties, thousands upon thousands of low or modestly budgeted movies flooded the market and squeezed themselves onto local mom and pop and mainstream movie rental stores. More than often, these films would be all promise and no delivery, with glitzy artwork and enticing taunts from the ads and synopsis claiming that these films were full of true terror and unrelentling carnage. About 80% of the time they were totally misleading. Time after time we would be duped into watching some boring and/or heavily edited time-wasters with so much left to be desired. Then a movie like William Wesleys Scarecrows peeks out from behind the usual "Satan's _______ whatever" and the countless Slumber/Sorrority party slash and stalk. So being jaded by the usual selection, I took a chance so many years ago and found a truly underscovered gem of fright flick. William Wesley isn't an auteur by any means. In fact his only other directorial credit to my knowledge is the passable Route 666 starring a washed-up Lou Diamond Phillips. But Route 666 aside, with Scarecrows, Wesley does know how to deliver a straight forward horror tale with enough action, gore, suspense, and clever creature design on a low but not impoverished budget. They just make them like this anymore. Oh and i forgot to mention that I liked this film so much that I kept the vhs copy I rented back in the day and just payed the full ammount because I knew i would never be able to find another copy. I have shown this film to my friends countless times over the years and my tape is in pretty bad shape, so I am more than overjoyed that MGM is releasing it. Check it out if you're a fan of old-school 80's horror.