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22 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This Movie Gave Me the Creeps!!!, July 1, 2009
1986 was a pretty good year for horror films. There were stellar, undeniable classic releases like ALIENS and The Fly. Gore soaked goodies such as From Beyond and Demons. And then there was a severely underrated gem called Night of the Creeps.
A skin crawling tale about parasitic alien slugs accidentally unleashed from a cryogenic state of suspended animation, wrecking havoc on a college campus by way of invading the student bodies bodies through the mouth, effectively turning them into kill-happy zombies. The infesting parasites incubate in the brain long enough to spawn another generation. When the alien slugs are born, the host's top pops!
This is a endearing homage to everything from 50's B-movies, George Andrew Romero's zombies, silly teen/early twentysomething movies, slasher flicks and much more, wonderfully directed by Fred Dekker.
If you enjoy watching college frat boy wannabes screaming like banshees, a cool, catch phrase spewing detective settle old vendettas with an ax wielding reanimated corpse, gratuitous scenes of slugs violently and graphically erupting from peoples heads, and a little T&A to arouse your eyes...well this movie's for you. I know it's certainly for me. I've seen it so many times(lost the exact count)and it never losses it's appeal. The biggest draw in this movie is unquestionably venerable character actor Tom Atkins performance of a lifetime as Detective Cameron. Trust me you will hang on every word Atkins utters.
If you have not yet viewed this cult fave stop for a moment and give this one the chance to creep up on 'ya!
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16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Thrill me! I give this an extra star for it's extra content and reuniting the stars for this release!, October 27, 2009
"In the words of Detective Cameron..."Thrill Me!" And for 23-years, this film has continued to thrill fans and has literally become a film that has achieved cult status. Director Frank Dekker gets his wish for a release of a Director's Cut with his original intended ending and fans of the film are treated to a reunion by the original cast 23-years later and also a tribute to the career of Tom Atkins. Definitely an enjoyable DVD release and a great tribute to one of the more hilarious comedy horror films ever created. Highly recommended!"
In 1986, a horror/zombie film called "Night of the Creeps" became a cult hit among fans due to the film's comedic nature but also how it pays homage to the horror genre.
The film is written and directed by Fred Dekker ("The Monster Squad", "RoboCop 3, "Enterprise"), produced by Charles Gordon ("Field of Dreams", "Die Hard", "Hitman"), music by Barry De Vorzon ("The Twilight Zone", "Tatoo", "Private Benjamin) and cinematography by Robert C. New ("So Weird", "Blade: The Series").
Although never considered a scary, horror film, "Night of the Creeps" was a film that caught attention for its screenplay, its special effects and its campiness but it was one of those 80's films that continues to be a fan favorite and for many years, many fans have waited for the film to be released on DVD. On Oct. 27th, the film via a director's cut receives a DVD and also a Blu-ray HD treatment and comes with the ending that Fred Dekker originally wanted and also a reunion of the cast 23 years later.
The film kicks off in a space ship where two aliens hunt down one of their own who has stolen an experiment. The alien in pursuit manages to rid of the canister and launches it out into space.
The film then transitions to 1959 where a sorority girl goes out on a date with a guy and the two go out to a make out point. The two are warned by a police officer, a young Ray Cameron (who dated the sorority girl) that a man has escaped from a mental ward and has hacked a few people with an ax. The two ignore the officer but then see a falling star which crashes near them. The guy and the girl drive to the area of where the meteorite may have crashed and the guy leaves the girl in the car. The guy discovers a canister and a slug from the canister jumps into his mouth. Meanwhile, the girl left alone in the car hears reports that the killer is headed towards their direction. While screaming for the guy to get back into the car, she is unaware that the killer is about to slaughter her.
We are then taken to 1986 where two nerdy college students: Chris (played by Jason Lively, "Mancuso, FBI", "Maximum Force", "Monday Morning) and J.C. (played by Steve Marshall, "Night Heat", "Sleeping in a Dream") are walking around the fraternity and sorority section and see a girl across the street that captures his attention. Chris is the silent type while his best friend and roommate J.C. (who has a disability and walks with crutches) is a lively jokester and tries to get the girl's attention for his buddy.
Because Chris is so shy, J.C. manages to introduce the girl named Cynthia (played by Jill Whitlow, "Mask", "Thunder Run", "Twice Dead") to his friend. But she happens to be dating a frat guy and thus, Chris's hopes are dash. Chris comes up with an idea that they should join a frat and when they try, in order to join, they are told to take a body from the science lab and drop it in the front porch of another frat.
When Chris and J.C. go to the lab to retrieve the body and releases it from its incubator, the body (which happens to be the guy who discovered the cannister back in 1959) has awaken. Startled by the body moving, Chris and J.C. run away in fear.
Meanwhile the scientist in charge of maintaining the body is killed by the zombie man and immediately, the zombie walks to the sorority where he went to visit the girl he was dating back in 1959 (the room of the girl is where Cynthia is now staying in). Immediately, the man's head blows up and slugs are released into the public. The slugs tend to possess a person's body, kills them from the inside and takes over their brain where they can breed and make more of their kind and continue the process of finding a body to breed in.
With murders happening on campus, detective Ray Cameron (played by Tom Atkins, "Halloween 3, "The Fog", "Bruiser") remembers back in 1959 of how his girlfriend was hacked into pieces by the axe murderer who was never caught and worries that these killings may be the work of the killer. He has suffered nightmares in which he sees a skeleton or zombie murdering his ex-girlfriend and with news from Chris and J.C. that the body inside the incubator moved, he worries about what is going on.
With zombie infestations now happening, the friendship of Chris and J.C. is tested, and Chris and Cynthia are brought closer together. But will they be able to survive the onslaught of the zombies during the night of the big dance?
It's important to note that "Night of the Creeps" is a Director's Cut version and that it features the original ending that Director Fred Dekker wanted (the reason why it wasn't used was because Dekker who was a new director at the time, showed an incomplete test screening to an audience and execs without the special effects and the audience and execs wanted a new ending). The original theatrical ending is included on the DVD.
VIDEO & AUDIO:
"Night of the Creeps" is featured in 1L85:1 Anamorphic Widescreen. For a 1986 film, I have to say that the picture quality is pretty good and I didn't see any major compressions or massive warping. I can only comment on the DVD version but it doesn't look like Sony Pictures Home Entertainment used any major Digital Noise Reduction in the release, so I wonder how nice the Blu-ray transfer may have been. But for the DVD itself, fans should be happy to know that this 23-year-old film looks good.
As for the audio, the audio is presented in English 5.1 Dolby Digital. I was noticing mainly front and center channel dialogue and the music but nothing that caught my attention via the surrounds. So, I ended up switching the audio to "Stereo on All Channels" on my receiver for a more immersive sound. But for the most part, dialogue was clear and understandable and that 80's new wave electronic music is clear as well.
Subtitles are presented only in English.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
Fans of "Night of the Creeps: Director's Cut" will definitely enjoy the special features included on the DVD. Included are the following:
* Commentary with Writer/Director Fred Dekker - An audio commentary with Michael, the DVD producer and Writer/Director Fred Dekker. Dekker gives a more technical insight about the film and how certain cuts were made. Especially certain scenes that Dekker enjoyed.
* Cast commentary (Jasone Lively, Steve Marshall, Jill Whitlow and Tom Atkins) - A lively, hilarious and insightful commentary by the four talent of the film. What's even more interesting is to hear the cast see the original Fred Dekker ending for the first time.
* Original Theatrical Ending - (:30) The original theatrical ending. Which one do you think is better? It's important to note that the Director's Cut ending was shown on television while those who saw the original theatrical cut, own the VHS and LD saw this ending.
* Deleted Scenes - (7:45) Seven deleted scenes: The Girls Meet Johnny, J.C.'s Positive Thinking, Cameron vs. Raimi, Making cookies, Raimi Follows Protocol, Cameron Spies Spanky, Chris Stays Behind
* Birth of the Creeps - (10:43) Director Frank Dekker, the Cast and crew talk about Frank Dekker and how the film became a reality.
* Cast of the Creeps - (15:56) Featuring a reunion of the cast (Jason Lively, Steve Marshall, Jill Whitlow and Tom Atkins) who talk about their involvement in the film and working with each other.
* Creating the Creeps - (10:31) How the special make-up FX was created and interviews with David B. Miller (Special Make-Up FX Supervisor), Howard Berger and Robert Kurtzman (Special Make-Up FX Creator) talk about their involvement of the film, the challenges due to the short pre-production schedule and more.
* Escape of the Creeps - (11:35) Charles Gordon (Producer), Michael Knue (Editor) and Director Frank Dekker talk about how the film became a hit with fans. But also why the ending was changed and how they didn't like the ending the execs wanted.
* Legend of the Creeps - (10:59) How over 23-years later, the film has a cult following and Director Frank Dekker and the cast talk about why they think the film has done so well with the fans. Fans talk about why they love the film. And how this film is so different from today's horror films.
* Tom Atkins: Man of Action - (19:53) A celebration of Tom Atkins career and talking about his film career and tidbits of the talent he worked with in various films. And how fans love to ask him questions about "Night of the Creeps".
* Trivia Track - Fans can watch the film via trivia utilizing subtitles.
* Original Theatrical Trailer - (1:32) The original theatrical trailer
JUDGMENT CALL:
"Night of the Creeps: Director's Cut" is a film that has become a cult phenomenon. Over 23-years later and fans continue to enjoy this classic zombie/horror film and it hearkens back to the days when horror films were allowed to have its share of humor and not always were created to frighten the viewer. One of the things that I enjoyed about the film is for the fact that it's hilarious, campy but I feel that in this day and age, horror films have become more or less studio...
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18 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Ultimate Horror Comedy, July 1, 2009
It all starts out with a beautiful black & white prologue at Corman (nudge nudge) University in 1959. Some "creeps" (disgusting little things) come to Earth and attack a young man (they get in through your mouth, turn you into a zombie and plant other "creepers" that shot out of the mouth to infect people). He is caught and frozen solid and (for some reason) kept at the university. Then, in 1986, two friends Chris Romero (nudge, nudge)(Jason Lively) and J.C. (Steve Marshall) unwittingly revive him. He wakes up and attacks the university. Soon, it's overrun by the things--it's up Chris, J.C., Cynthia Cronenberg (nudge nudge) and Detective Cameron (nudge nudge) to battle them.
As you can see this movie doesn't take itself seriously for one moment. Heck, there's even a cameo from Dick Miller! And it IS very funny (especially some of J.C.'s lines). But it doesn't shy away from blood and gore--there's PLENTY of that. And it is creepy (sorry) more than once. They even break one of the rules of horror films--POSSIBLE SPOILER AHEAD--a sympathetic character (I won't say who) dies and it's actually one of the film's more unpleasant moments (you don't see it but you HEAR it). As 83 minutes it doesn't overstay it's welcome and ends with an all out massacre (I'm REALLY surprised--and pleased--that this got an R rating). There are some gaps in the plot (things happen way too quickly and characters just automatically correctly guess what's going on) but this is a small quibble.
I saw this back on video in 1986 after Fangoria magazine raved about it. I loved it--then it disappeared. I never even saw it again until today! Here's another great movie awaiting rediscovery. From what I heard Sony owns the rights--hopefully we'll see the DVD someday.
A fun, scary, gory movie. A 10 all the way! "The good news is that your dates are here. The bad news is they're dead!"
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