Stitches - Böser Clown

I have to admit, I never had heard of the comedian Ross Noble before I watched this movie. And I wouldn't have been that intrigued by him, if I hadn't seen him perform live. Actually that means he opened the Frightfest and introduced Stitches a day later to the audience. The fact that he was talking about his movie made me believe he was the director. He got me fooled (met the real director too, a really nice guy) and maybe some others too.

But back to this movie, that is a real fun little horror movie, that plays with the fear of clowns. Some have a real phobia, those shouldn't watch this movie of course. Or if you are easily offended (be it by violence or nonpolitical correctness) - don't watch. Everyone else: Jump on the the train and have fun during the trip.

The clumsy and unfunny clown Richard "Stitches" Grindle (Ross Noble) goes to the birthday party of little Tom (Tommy Knight) and the boy and his friends play a prank with Stitches, tying his shoelaces. Stitches slips, falls and dies. Six years later, Tom gives a birthday party for his friends at home and the clown revives to haunt the teenagers and revenge his death.

"Stitches" is an unfunny and gore movie with a terrible storyline. I was curious to see an Irish horror movie for the first time, but the result is disappointing, despite the good special effects. My vote is four.

Title (Brazil): "O Retorno do Palhaço Assassino" ("The Return of the Killer Clown")

I watched 'Stitches' mainly because, as well as loving horror, I'm also a big Ross Noble fan and was interested to see how his stand-up would transfer to acting. To be fair, he doesn't have much to do in the way of acting.

His 'unconventional' (sorry, Ross) looks make it easy for the make-up department to transform him into an evil, undead clown, hell-bent on seeking bloodthirsty revenge on the party of children who caused his death in the first place.

In short, Ross Noble steals every scene he's in. Sadly, he's not in it enough. He doesn't really come into it (proper) until midway through and, by then, you've been forced to watch your usual 'teen drama.' As this is a British film, I was hoping for something a little more original than 'uber-geek falls in love with beautiful girl who just so happens to be going out with an arrogant jock.' Sadly, that's all we get. All the (non undead clown) characters are total stereotypes. You'll know exactly who'll die the moment you see them.

And die they do. That's where the film excels. I'm guessing it had quite a small budget, but it really makes the most of the gore. Some of the death scenes are truly disgusting (and hilarious in their over-the-topness).

Stitches is worth watching if you like horror and Ross Noble. He provides all the comedy and gore which will satisfy you. However, sadly the film can never truly be a classic, as the first half is pretty bland and the second half is only ever really alive when the (dead) Ross Nobel is on-screen.

It's a good film that's (sadly) wrapped up in the oldest movie cliché going.

I love Ross Noble! So we jumped at the chance to see this as the closing film to Grimmfest this year! Im very glad i did! Stitches is a very funny take on the slasher genre, using comedy and horror combined, it reminded me of the latter Elm Street movies, where the villain has to use a comic gag to kill his victim! Ross noble seemed to revel in the role and proving to be a very convincing killer clown! He even went onto say in the Q & A about wanting sequels made, do we have a British Jason/Freddy in our midst! Maybe with a bit more budget and a stronger supporting cast and a little better writing, Stitches could become the UKs' very own slasher icon!

I went to the cinema to see 'Sinister', but it was full, so we went and saw Stitches instead. I'm so glad we did! This film was classic! I expected a horror, but I wasn't at all prepared for how much it'd make me smile. Ross does a brilliant job bringing his character to life, and the story and kids wrapped around the concept are just tacky enough to reek of stereotype, but just different enough to keep you entertained and smiling (such as Bulger doing the splits at the gym, or the 'bully' actually being the only character in a stable, functional relationship).

Brilliant film, a lovely surprise to what would have otherwise been a disappointing evening!