Night of the Creeps: Murray Futterman is Back!

What else can I say about Night of the Creeps other than it's a delightful treat filled with squirmies, hilariously bad aliens, and Rusty from National Lampoons European Vacation? I guess I covered everything- except wait no- there's a crippled best friend sidekick who gets interrupted by creeps during pooping AND Murray Futterman makes another fantastic cameo. The positives are endless. Another fantastic 80s treat that I just can't get enough of.

As the saying goes- they just don't make em' like they used to. And I have to say it's true. The only problem is people think they can make them like they used to- so they end up remaking all the wonderful cheesy 80s horror movies and completely failing! The simple fact is that 80s cheese does not translate well to the current era of horror. People just confuse it with the fact that they think it's a bad movie- when it's suppose to be a bad movie. A GOOD bad movie. The same can be said for some not 80s cheese fests like Wild Things and Showgirls (the two greatest bad movies on the block in my opinion) but are these movies commonly referred to as good bad movies? No they as just referred to as crap! Depressing idea in my opinion.

So back to the creeps. Night of the Creeps gives us a couple of different eras here. We begin in space as a band of aliens are failing to keep an experiment inside the ship. The experiment falls to earth and is picked up by a 50s frat brother- while his date is hacked to bits by an axe wielding psycho. Next we go to the wonderful 80s- where Rusty and his crippled friend JC decide that the only way to get Rusty a woman is to join a Frat. The frat brothers are repulsed by these two and make up an impossible prank for them to pull if they want entry. Guess what the prank is? Stealing a corpse from the medical lab and leaving it on a sorority houses front steps! Seriously what is up with frats getting a hold of corpses and suggesting them so frequently as pranks?! Who are these people??! Anyways- they stumble upon a cryogenically frozen guy from the 50s- yes the same guy and let him loose. He immediately comes back alive- tries to get them- the kids run- the zombie whatever guy is on the loose and once his head is split open the creepy slug thingys let loose. These creeps are what turn people into Creeps! They enter through the mouth. It's no surprise then that the small college population of douche bags soon become creeps- and all havoc breaks loose!

Other than the really hilarious concept of the puppet aliens running through their space ship- and all the hilarious lines and cheese- I did find that the moment of regeneration was particularly frightening. And I mean specifically when David Paymer gets off the autopsy table with a pair of scissor still stuck in his chest.

The fact that those scissors are half inside his skin and half out is terrifying looking. Plus he's just walking around like that! I truly found it to be a completely surprising moment of fear hidden in this comedic masterpiece! Also notable- is the scene where all the frat brothers emerge from the crashed bus! What a waste of a bunch of good tuxes. But honestly talk about it's cheese all you want- but Night of the Creeps has some decent moments of horror fo realz.

This may just be me but I really enjoyed the part where JC was trying to take a crap and all the creeps were squirming around. When he lights one on fire- it curls up and looks exactly like a inflamed turd! My maturity is startling I know.

What else what else? I loved how Cynthia didn't curl up and die when she saw that they were being stalked by an endless amount of frat douche bags. She picked up that flamethrower and really became an important asset to the team. Then of course the ultimate bad ass scene of Detective Cameron in the basement counting down from 20 to the moment of sparking? Classic! What a great character. Sure we've all heard the "Your dates are here but they're dead" line about a million times- but that scene is too classic for it to become cliche and outplayed. It's great. I love when he just grabs the hairspray and sticks his cigarette in front of it- so resourceful in times of crises!

I must also point out that I kind of loved the beginning when the girl is in the car while the frat guy goes searching for the shooting star. She hears the radio report about the escaped mental institution patient and then realizes she's in the exact place where he has been seen! And that last shot of the guy approaching the car with the axe- and even better- the detective's flashback- and the reunion moment in the alley with the axe murderer! Pretty darn creepy.

The concept of the slithery creepies was great- it's not your typical take on a zombie movie and it really makes the movie more interesting. Those great shots of the heads splitting open and the squirmies flying out- then being torched with the flame thrower was such an interesting The Thing shout out. Flame throwers are always the best- and what better man to get them from than Murray Futterman??!

God I love this man.

So I'm sure I don't need to tell you to watch this- as most of you have probably seen it. But in case you haven't-- please watch it. (It's on Youtube!) Since it is done by the same guy who did the Monster Squad there's not doubt that it's pretty amazing. And if you don't like The Monster Squad then just get the hell out. You deserve a zombie cat right in the face!

Buy Night of the Creeps at Horror Movie Empire!