KILLER KLOWNS FROM OUTER SPACE (1988) Review
Basically, the Chiodo Brothers’ 1988 horror/comedy Killer Klowns from Outer Space is the quintessential 80s horror cheese-fest. Boasting a central concept that’s every bit as batshit ridiculous and hilariously silly as its title would suggest, bolstered by the ever-impressive practical effects that one would expect from the people behind the Critters in Critters, and elevated by a weirdly engaging and surprisingly mature love-triangle storyline that’s way better handled than you would think. Plus, the titular alien monsters keep their victims in candy-floss cocoons, and that’s as hilarious as you think it is.
I first saw Killer Klowns as a youngster; the video box art screamed to me. I’ve never suffered from a fear of clowns, but there was something about the idea of murderous clowns from some distant planet (alternate title?) that captured my attention. For weeks my mum refused to allow me to rent it, and in those weeks I had conjured up the vision of a movie that I was pretty sure wasn’t ever going to exist. In my mind, the film saw these Killer Klowns (as my eight-year-old son pointed out to me, they’re called Klowns with a ‘K’, not clowns with a ‘C’, because that’s the species name… MIND. BLOWN!) come to earth in a tiny car spaceship in which a dozen or so of them impossibly fit, where they proceeded to murder a group of under-developed victims in hilariously clown-esque ways. Spraying acid in someone’s face, juggling decapitated heads, pulling the chair away just as someone is about to sit down, and so on… in the end, I watched it because a babysitter didn’t realize it wasn’t a kids’ movie, and let us get the video for the weekend. None of the madcap things I had imagined take place, but the general idea is much the same, and despite the film not featuring the aforementioned tiny car, juggling, or chair gag, it does pretty much deliver on every other level.
As a kid, the film was pretty much just a blast because of its ridiculous premise, freaking hilarious and creepy villains, and inventive death sequences. It’s not scary, and it’s not particularly gory (all things considered…), which kinda makes it the perfect entry-level horror movie for youngsters keen to watch something they’re not supposed to and discover the wonders of practical effects and clever, in-camera trickery (as I’m sure my son, who does have a slight fear of clowns, would agree after viewing! He loved it!). There’s also an absolutely banging theme song — why don’t movies have theme songs anymore??? — that I was pleasantly surprised to find my kids singing to themselves after viewing the film in much the same way me and my friends did back in the day.
As an adult, however, I’m sorta more interested in the character dynamics, all of which are far more developed than they have absolutely any right to be. Look, I’m not claiming that this is engaging drama or that deep within Killer Klowns from Outer Space lay some Ari Aster-like, proto-A24 complex human drama, but for a movie that could basically get away with coasting along on nothing more than a series of silly murder gags, there’s something to be said about the way it introduces and explores certain character relationships and whatnot with more time and effort that it really needs to. That we’re given a set-up of a love triangle that could so easily fall into soap-opera shenanigans, but ultimately results in the major players essentially going “fuck all that! There are Killer Klowns on the lose!” is weirdly sensible and kinda nice to see. Moreover, it’s always a joy to see the biggest piece of shit in the room get their comeuppance, and Killer Klowns has an absolute blast setting up what is possibly the world’s worst police officer (a hefty feat in and of itself… wink, wink), before offing him with glee!
Yes, it’s silly, cheesy, nonsensical trash, but I defy anyone without a crippling fear of clowns to sit down and not enjoy the absurd 88-minute ride that this movie offers up. I hear rumblings of a supposed sequel, and it fills me with a sense of concern, because so much of what makes this little cult treat a joy is its undeniably nostalgic 80s view of 50s B-Movies, and it’s knowing, winking, silly nature, which it so happily runs with without the need to resort to… well, literally any explanation whatsoever. If you need your movies to be a little more… ‘prestigious’, this ain’t gonna float your boat. However, if you, like me, are willing to switch your brain off and enjoy some (literal) popcorn trash, Killer Klowns from Outer Space is right up your street. Grab the candyfloss and settle in. 4/5.
