NIGHT OF THE CREEPS (1986)—Directed by Fred Dekker. Stars Jason Lively, Steve Marshall, Jill Whitlow, Tom Atkins. Zombies, slugs, spacemen, exploding heads, flamethrowers, and Tom Atkins (THE FOG) playing a badass, no-nonsense, pulp-reading police detective—what more could you ask from an amusing and affectionate paean to 1950s sci-fi movies? Writer/director Dekker, who made the similarly themed MONSTER SQUAD a year later, throws everything into the stew as though he were afraid he’d never be able to make another film, starting with a b&w prologue set in 1959 featuring E.T.s on a spaceship and a deranged axe murderer.
The film proper finds college nerds Chris (Lively) and J.C. (Marshall) pledging a frat in 1986 and attempting to steal a corpse from the university morgue. They chicken out, but not before reanimating a body infected by an alien parasite that then stalks the campus turning the student body into dripping zombies. Before long, only the two nerds, cute sorority girl Cindy (Whitlow), and Atkins’ cop are left to defend mankind from the rampaging horde.
If the younger actors had been able to perform with the same zeal as Atkins (“It’s Miller time!”), CREEPS might have been a real classic, rather than fondly remembered fluff. Dekker’s love of the genre is evident (the characters are named after famous horror directors), and there’s wry humor both above and below the surface (his equation of fraternity life and zombieism isn’t deep, but it’s witty). Direction is not slick, but it’s effective, showcasing some slippery special effects on a low budget and capturing a spirit of old-fashioned fun missing from most modern zombie flicks. Like MONSTER SQUAD, it’s easy to see why NIGHT OF THE CREEPS captured a rabid cult audience. Also with Wally Taylor, Bruce Solomon, Allan Kaysar, June Harris, Dick Miller (!), and David Paymer. Music by Barry DeVorzon.
Sony has packaged NIGHT OF THE CREEPS as a deluxe DVD and Blu-ray with plenty of extras to make fans happy. Almost everyone, including the makeup effects guys and composer DeVorzon, is interviewed in the hour-long documentary about the making of the film, which also details its disappointing release by Tri-Star and its revised studio-mandated ending. Dekker has put his original ending back onto the film—the first time it’s been released in this manner—but the theatrical ending is available as an extras, as well as the trailer. Tom Atkins receives his own 20-minute documentary, which is a fun profile of a fan favorite and apparently a nice guy. Wrapping up the extra features are a pair of audio commentaries—one with Dekker and moderator Michael Felsher (definitely worth listening to) and another reuniting Atkins, Lively, Marshall, and Whitlow.
I picked this up too and just finished the hour long making-of documentary. Really great stuff if you are a fan of the CREEPS as everyone is on hand and relay some great stories.
I also grabbed this for the Halloween season. Maybe not quite a classic, but a perfect party movie. It plummets a bit from the wonderful prologue to a bad rehash of every stupid 80s T&A college comedy, but quickly regains its feet for a rousing second and third act ("Get out of the house, NOW!!!"). I liked how J.C. was initially just the usual frat comedy wise-cracking friend ("Listen, Brother Bradskeller!") but then deepened both his character and the friendship between the two leads with two pretty terrific monologues. Atkins is clearly having the time of his life with Detective Ray "Thrill me!" Cameron and the movie benefits. Loved the great moment involving Tor Johnson and an axe. And quite a surprise to see a decades-younger Paymer right after re-watching Drag Me To Hell.
MILD SPOILERS
Atkins' last close-up in the original ending could easily gain new cult life as an anti-smoking ad!