1986 Directed by Fred Dekker
In 1959, an alien experiment crashes to earth and infects a fraternity member. They freeze the body, but in the modern day, two geeks pledging a fraternity accidentally thaw the corpse, which proceeds to infect the campus with parasites that transform their hosts into killer zombies.
Jason Lively Steve Marshall Jill Whitlow Tom Atkins Wally Taylor Allan Kayser Bruce Solomon Vic Polizos Dick Miller Ken Heron Alice Cadogan June Harris David Paymer David Oliver Evelyne Smith Leslie Ryan Suzanne Snyder Elizabeth Cox John J. York Robert Kerman Earl Ellis Robert Kurtzman Howard Berger Daniel Frishman Gregory Nicotero
Ночь кошмаров, El Terror Llama a su Puerta, La Nuit des sangsues, Die Nacht der Creeps, 变尸虫, クリープス, Extra Sangsues
Horror, the undead and monster classics Monsters, aliens, sci-fi and the apocalypse zombies, undead, horror, gory or flesh horror, gory, scary, killing or slasher creature, aliens, monster, sci-fi or scary horror, scientist, monster, doctor or experiment comedy, horror, funny, humor or spooky Show All…
A perfect midnight movie mixture of sci-fi, horror, and comedy—the kind of pulpy B-movie homage hybrid swill with enough heart that never breaks its integrity or descends into spoofy mediocrity—basically the perfect alien slasher zombie slug nightmare.
Like Return of the Living Dead or Night of the Comet, Night of the Creeps is always a perfect choice whenever I watch it... and I can’t help but think about the countless nights during the 90’s/early 2000’s where I popped in this movie late at night just to make the passing time more enjoyable. This goes from a Cannon-esque alien intro to a 50's black & white axe murderer segment, then hits us with some emotional weight before going full on cigarette noir Atkins zombie frat/sorority slug nightmare.
All of that is right the hell up my alley—I adore this movie.
Screaming like banshees!!!!!
A precursor to “Slither” this cult classic is good cheesy fun. Great quotable lines, a fine performance from Tom “Thrill me!” Atkins and from the man who brought us “Monster Squad”. What’s not to like? I always put this on around this time of year and it makes me Scream like a Banshee!
Viewed on Crackle
Hoop-Tober #15
Criteria:
- Country: USA
- Decade: 1980's
Where has Night Of The Creeps (1986) been all my life? I loved it!
There are more one-liners than you can shake a stick at...and I'm not even sure what that means.
I've must have seen this cover thousands of times and always wanted to see it and then forgot about, then seeing the cover again and remembering again that I wanted to see it. THAT is a vicious cycle.
This is an instant favourite.
It has a classic eighties theme that a lot of 80's films had of looking back at the 50's. It has Russ #2 from the Vacation films. It has David Paymer. It has Tom Atkins. It has Dick Miller. It has space slugs.
It has many male actors with salon quality hair.
What more could you ask for?
I'm sure that if I grate off all the eighties cheese this film is covered in I could criticise the hell out of it.
I just don't want to. I love slimy alien slugs that turn people into killer zombies which were dropped on earth by alien fetuses carrying laser guns.
I'm weird that way.
Maybe one of my favorite annual Halloween viewing movies. The level of craft, especially the editing, is almost too good for a “goofy” 80’s horror/sci-Fi/comedy hybrid, but that’s Fred Dekker for ya!
“Thrill me!”
Spooktober II: To Hell With the 80s
Among the films that paid homage to the B movies of the 50s and 60s, especially in the 80s, few stand out like this film. Not only does it blend the two decades and their tropes perfectly, it also plays with them in a way that feels both like a tribute and original at the same time.
The story about a town being invaded by creatures that turn their hosts into this sort of undead is not a new concept, however Dekker's script makes it a great movie with its witty dialogue, humorous characters like JC, superbly played by Steve Marshall, that leave me almost in stitches for much of the movie. Add…
Night of the Creeps is a lovingly crafted tribute to B-movie sci-fi horror with an eighties teen comedy twist. The film lays it's cards on the table right from the off, with a wonderfully goofy space alien scene, which then moves into a black and white sequence set in 1959, before settling into the main plot which focuses on a couple of daft college kids that accidently unleash an alien experiment on campus. The main influences are obviously zombie horror movies and Invasion of the Body Snatchers style sci-fi. It's all weaved together nicely and offset by some great practical effects - I particularly like the Shivers style brain invading slug things! The two halves of the film - teen…
An entertaining update on the cheesie '50s B-movie formula, with plenty of cheap fx, awesome one-liners, a great score and Tom Atkins. It is definitely a fun watch (especially when watched with an awesome watch partner*), but I can't help feel that this would have had a lot more impact on me, had I seen this growing up.
*I actually watched this with the president of the Tom Atkins fanclub, who just adores him and his moustache.
So much fun!
Alien slugs, an alcoholic bitter policeman, a nerd who has a crush on the popular girl, a flamethrower and zombies.
I was entertained. A pleasant last entry for hoop-tober.
i have a weird crush on Tom Atkins and this movie is kind of why. (i can't quite explain this. he's just like REALLY charismatic?)
i also like gay subtexts & girls with flamethrowers & axe killer zombies & alien slug invasions. Fred Dekker makes the best horror tributes -- they just make me really happy.
they...thrill me.
and even though the movie kind of disposes of its disabled, i'm-reading-him-as-gay best friend to reify a heteronormative straight coupling, i still like the way it overall satirizes Reaganite bro / incipient Yuppie culture, by zombifying all of the fraternity dudes.
53
The broad, self-referential style of Night of the Creeps didn't do much for me, feeling stuck in 80s territory when it could've utilized more tonal shifts of the 50s sci-fi it imitates. And yet, Tom Atkins saves the day.
What is this? A homicide, or a bad B-movie?
-Detective Cameron
The only thing that could possibly make this a better cult film is if Tom Atkins had an even bigger part in it. Everything that comes out of his mouth is pure Golden cheese (yes that's a thing, cuz I said it was) while never cracking a smile.
I just want to spend the next few days walking around the house acting like him and annoy the shit out of my spouse. Answer the phone with "Thrill me" from now on. Shout "It's Miller Time!" when something is about to go down. Find someway to work this gem into a conversation:
Detective Cameron: I got good news and bad…
