Another year, another “cult classic” that I have neglected for far too long is watched. It’s only fitting I watched this one days before heading to the State Fair.
While on top of the local “makeout point” Mike and Debbie witness what appears to be a meteorite crash just a ways from where they are. Debbie wants to go check it out but Mike is more hesitant. At the same time, a nearby farmer sees the same thing and thinks that if it’s on his land people will flock to see what he things is Halley’s Comet. Farmer Green reaches the area where it landed first but discovers that there isn’t a rock and a smoking crater but rather a circus tent. Upon further investigation he and his dog Pooh Bear are captured by whatever is residing inside. When Mike and Debbie reach the same mysterious circus tent they go inside to discover what is going on. What they find is that the tent is much larger and full of what appear to be alien clowns that have killed some of the townspeople.
Mike and Debbie escape the tent after being chased by one of these “Killer Klowns” and report to their friend Dave who is a police deputy in town. Dave is hesitant to believe them, but his partner, a crotchety grissled cop named Mooney, thinks the kids are just “pulling a prank”. Dave agrees to take them at their word and investigate the location and their claims of dead people. When they get to where the tent used to be Mike and Dave only find a giant gaping hole. Dave thinks he has been tricked as well until they are leaving and they discover evidence to back up the kid’s stories. Now Mike and Dave have to do what they can to save themselves as well as the rest of the town… maybe the world.
Killer Klowns From Outer Space is the epitome of a “cult classic”. It’s a weird mix of ridiculous plot, decent to good special effects, and good enough casting and writing. As I was talking to a co-worker who loves the film, I had a hard time deciding if I would buy into the movie as being a good cult classic or not. It sits oddly in the middle of bad it’s good, but not bad enough to be bad. I really enjoyed the movie for what it was and the stupidity of what it was trying to make into a movie though. It’s weird to have a B-movie have and (obvious) decent budget to spend on costumes, sets, and special effects. What saves Killer Klowns is that they just go for it.
At no moment during the movie does it ever try to undermine the seriousness of what is going on. While the premiss is stupid to the core, the movie never once does anything to show that the characters think it’s stupid. They play it straight. Actors aren’t looking at the camera, there aren’t any asides made to allude that they know how dumb this whole thing is. I respect that. As I said, I think that is what saves the movie from just being overly comedic and thus tanking the film on all fronts. I may never watch Killer Klowns From Outer Space again, but if I stumble upon it surfing for something to watch late one night I won’t turn it off either.
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