Ghoulies IV

This movie is really stupid and very boring most of the time. There are almost no "ghoulies" in it at all. There is nothing good about this movie on any level. Just more bad actors pathetically attempting to make a movie so they can get enough money to eat. Avoid at all costs.

Ghoulies IV (1994)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Detective Jonathan Graves (Pete Liapis) is investigating a warehouse robbery and he's convinced that things aren't adding up. It turns out that a dark secret from his past is now taking form. You see, previously he practiced black magic with a girlfriend who is now connected to Faust and she plans on getting Jonathan back into the darkness so that Faust can come to life.

Yes, that plot belongs to GHOULIES IV, although, as you can tell, it almost seems like this was originally meant to be a completely different film but the producers decided to try and cash in on the GHOULIES name. There are a couple ghoulie creatures thrown in but these here are basically just very minor supporting characters who are there for comic relief.

Director Jim Wynorski has created some very fun "B" pictures and for my money I enjoy watching his films because he seems to know what fans want. This here isn't a CITIZEN KANE type of film so one shouldn't be expecting that. What the director does offer up are some funny situations, a decent low-rent story and he at least makes it fun throughout. Yes, this isn't really a GHOULIES movie but I still found plenty to enjoy here.

I thought the whole banter between the Detective and his new partner/former lover was a lot of fun. I thought Liapis and Barbara Alyn Woods had some fun chemistry that added to some entertainment. I also thought the ghoulies themselves were fun here. There are only two of them and they're basically playing an Abbott and Costello like performance where they back talk each other and slap each other around like The Three Stooges. There's even a funny spoof of The Honeymooners with a couple other characters who are only here because it made for a funny homage.

As I said, it's somewhat hard to count this as a GOULIES film but it's certainly better than the previous three movies. The film moves at a nice pace, contains some fun straight-to-VHS type of action and the story is decent enough for this type of movie.

This movie didn't compare to the earlier Ghoulies, especially the first one.

In fact, it hardly seemed like a Ghoulies movie.

It was a totally different kind of movie, in which the only interesting character was the villainness.

Despite its departure from prior Ghoulies movies, this one could actually have become a slam-dunk cult classic had they given the villainess a more developed role.

The writers had the right set-up for it -- a contrast between her and the helpless guy she was holding in her clutches.

She's hardly a good actress, but think Rocky Horror Picture Show and it's easy to picture what they could have done.

Then it could have become a cult classic.

This fourth instalment in the Ghoulies saga keeps the greatness of the series alive. This film is funny (both intentionally and unintentionally), Cheesy, and just plain FUN! It involves a sexy Satan-worshiping babe trying to invoke the evil side of her goody-goody ex-boyfriend in the flesh by killing innocent people in strange black-magic rituals (if that makes sense).

Her ex just happens to be the hero from part 1. During one of her rituals, she accidently raises a pair of Ghoulies (named "Lite" and "Dark"). These two have the same wise-cracking personas of the Ghoulies from part 3, but there is a little twist here. In Ghoulies 4, the Ghoulies are the good guys, and they set out to stop the Satan-Worshiping babe's evil plans.

Terence Malick. Stanley Kubrick. Stephen Speilberg. Great directors all, and yet none have come close to the genius that is Ghoulies IV. The man by the name of Jim Winorski, created this masterpiece that deserves a place alongside the great films of our time. And I thought no movie could be worse than Troll 2. Well let me tell you, Troll 2 is to Ghooulies IV what Gone with the Wind is to Heaven's Gate. There are no actors, only people trying to act. And their attempts are beyond the pathetic. The creature on the box isn't even the same as in the movie!! Absolutely the most amateurish film I've ever seen - I could do better with a videocamera and no script. Ugh. I didn't even find it bad enough to be able to enjoy it for camp (like Ed Wood) - it's JUST BAD. The worst film I've ever seen.