The Cellar

I had the opportunity of sitting down today, in 2021, and watch the 1989 horror movie "The Cellar". I remember having seen it back in my teenage years, after having sat through it again today. But it was a movie that I had fully and wholeheartedly forgotten all about. So as I stumbled upon the movie in 2021, of course I took the time to sit down and watch it.

It should be said that "The Cellar" is definitely everything you'd expect from a late 1980s horror movie, for better or worse. I grew up watching a heap of horror movies in the 1980s, so this was definitely right up my alley. And I must admit that I actually enjoyed "The Cellar" from writers John Woodward and Darryl Wimberley.

The storyline told in this movie, as directed by Kevin Tenney, is pretty straight forward. And it follows that very unique formula that was being used over and over back in the time when it was made. But I found it to be enjoyable and watchable. It was definitely a trip back in time for me to watch "The Cellar". Sure there were plot holes and aspects to the storyline that just made zero sense, but hey, it is a movie after all.

The acting in the movie was adequate. Nothing outstanding here actually. But don't get me wrong, because it wasn't as if people were doing poor jobs or anything. Not at all. But it was just fairly standard acting performances for a late 1980s horror movie of this caliber.

Now, I will say that the creature effects were actually quite good. And still were passable even today. So the visual effects, special effects, make-up and props departments really delivered in this movie.

"The Cellar" is a movie that is well-worth taking the time to sit down and watch. And should you be presented with the opportunity to do so, I would recommend that you do it.

My rating of "The Cellar" lands on a well-deserved six out of ten stars.

In THE CELLAR, a boy finds a monster / demon living in the cellar of his dad's new house. It seems that the local natives put a curse on the land many moons ago. Of course, no one believes junior, even when people start vanishing.

The story is clunky, the characters are rather lifeless, and the monster is only shown for about 30 seconds. Still, the creature is just cheeeze-tacular enough to make the rest endurable.

If you enjoy the schlocky horror of the 1980's, then this is a must-see...

Ther Cellar isn't brilliant but it does have its good points. It starts off very slowly and for the most part of the first half, it's boring. Things start looking up in the second half though, as we are introduced to the monster. The cellar setting is very effective, as are the tunnels where the monster lives. There is a suspenseful scene close to the end where the father locks his son in the kitchen to prove that "there's no monster". Of course, the monster comes out to attack the boy.

I wouldn't urge anyone to seek this out, but fans of cheap 80's horror might want to add it to their collection.

So the film was an okay B-budget horror movie, not one of the best from the 80s but certainly not one of the worst. However, the main reason for me writing my first ever review on imdb is because an error needs to be corrected. The young actor that plays the character of the little boy Willy is listed on imdb as Chris Miller, born in 1968, the guy who does voice performances and directs such animated films as Shrek and The Penguins of Madagascar. In actual fact Willy is played by Chris J. Miller who was born in 1983, a child actor. The fact that this error has been made is really quite unforgivable considering that if it was the Chris Miller listed on imdb he would have been 21 yeaes of age when he appeared in this film, the character of Willy is quite clearly not 21!

Never had a proper release on DVD or Blu Ray, it's outthere, on renatl VHS so a bit hard to find nowadays but if you want to see it, it's a rather bad and cheesy flick.

It takes until the mast 10 minutes before the creature really shows its face and attacks. But by then it's to late. It's all blah blah about Indian rituals and cemeteries. Of course one comes in contact with the creature, no one beleifs it until the end of this flick. And what about the ending, explain it please.

Not frightening, a bit boring and a creature that doesn't look frightening at all except it jaws.

The Cellar, still a hunt for many due Kevin Tenny took over direction from John Woodward

Gore 0/5 Nudity 0/5 Effects 1/5 Story 2/5 Comedy 0/5