Director Ron Underwood's Tremors stars Kevin Bacon and Fred Ward as two natives from a tremendously isolated desert valley between mountains and a cliff edge. Valentine (Bacon) and Earl (Ward) often spend there days riding around cutting up on the job. This day, however, isn't filled with as many laughs due to mysterious findings of deceased natives. Puzzled and aghast, the wild country duo frantically fled to a nearby convenience store to warn the locals of these eerie findings. Meanwhile a new set of legs in town, Rhonda (Finn Carter)- a seismologist- is observing some sketchy reads of seismic activity under this isolated valley. Before they know it, the whole gang is gathered on roofs, avoiding monstrous worms that seem to be the reason for the demise of the town people. Tremors is a classic cheesy tale of man vs. beast that honestly gets the job done as far as entertaining goes. Though it is certainly no work of Hitchcock or Spielberg, if Psycho prevented you from showering, and Jaws deterred you from the ocean, Tremors will keep you from resting in the deserts of Nevada. The film delivers both thrills and laughter, earning itself a position in both horror and comedy. The acting may be sub-par, but a film of this caliber does not require Oscar-worthy performances. One phenomenal element of Tremors- much similar to Robert Rodriguez projects and early James Cameron films- is its use of complex puppets, machines, and make-up as its beasts rather than CGI. There is nothing worse than becoming attached to the characters of a film and then being snatched right out of the atmosphere when a monster similar in comparison to a Nintendo 64 character bursts from the ground. Such effects create a state of realism that only adds to the fear and excitement. Though the film is far from perfect, it delivers nothing less than what it promises. Tremors is a fun-filled, thrill ride of a man vs. beast stand off that is nothing less than 96 entertaining minutes, earning it a solid 3 stars.Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Reviews from the Vault: Tremors (1990)
Director Ron Underwood's Tremors stars Kevin Bacon and Fred Ward as two natives from a tremendously isolated desert valley between mountains and a cliff edge. Valentine (Bacon) and Earl (Ward) often spend there days riding around cutting up on the job. This day, however, isn't filled with as many laughs due to mysterious findings of deceased natives. Puzzled and aghast, the wild country duo frantically fled to a nearby convenience store to warn the locals of these eerie findings. Meanwhile a new set of legs in town, Rhonda (Finn Carter)- a seismologist- is observing some sketchy reads of seismic activity under this isolated valley. Before they know it, the whole gang is gathered on roofs, avoiding monstrous worms that seem to be the reason for the demise of the town people. Tremors is a classic cheesy tale of man vs. beast that honestly gets the job done as far as entertaining goes. Though it is certainly no work of Hitchcock or Spielberg, if Psycho prevented you from showering, and Jaws deterred you from the ocean, Tremors will keep you from resting in the deserts of Nevada. The film delivers both thrills and laughter, earning itself a position in both horror and comedy. The acting may be sub-par, but a film of this caliber does not require Oscar-worthy performances. One phenomenal element of Tremors- much similar to Robert Rodriguez projects and early James Cameron films- is its use of complex puppets, machines, and make-up as its beasts rather than CGI. There is nothing worse than becoming attached to the characters of a film and then being snatched right out of the atmosphere when a monster similar in comparison to a Nintendo 64 character bursts from the ground. Such effects create a state of realism that only adds to the fear and excitement. Though the film is far from perfect, it delivers nothing less than what it promises. Tremors is a fun-filled, thrill ride of a man vs. beast stand off that is nothing less than 96 entertaining minutes, earning it a solid 3 stars.
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I still have a hard time even after 22 years of thinking of Tremors as a horror movie. I mean yes, people do die, and there is blood, and monsters. To me though, the overwhelming comedy in the movie wins it over, and the horror side almost becomes comical in itself, like the guy up the power pole, or the holes with a bloody spot where sheep used to be. There was a good cheese level in this movie, but that is expected in some movies, and if the one was cheesy, have you seen the next three? Literally, the Cheese factor went up 10 fold with each one of them. I found Tremors on the Cinemax page on DISH Online last weekend, so I had to stop and watch it, still as funny as I remember it. This is one of the only movies I can agree with the self proclaimed movie nerd I work with at DISH, he hasn’t put up one con to me about the movie, which he always has something bad to say about every movie.
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