The Deadly Spawn

For some it's probably criminally easy to dismiss a movie like this just because of it's low budget, but "The Deadly Spawn" was somewhat of a cult-hit in it's day and it's easy to see why. The make-up-effects are quite good for a movie this cheap (reportedly it cost just $ 20,000 and ended up making millions), and writer/director Douglas McKeown actually takes time building characters before he lets them die gory deaths (moahahaha).

The monsters are quite effective, at least those small eel-like buggers reminiscent of the chest-burster that ruined everyone's breakfast in "Alien" (1979). It also deserves kudos for - in the end - painting a realistic picture of the traumatizing effects something like this would have on those who survive.

If you like alien-invasion-movies in general, or just love the charm of horror on a shoestring-budget, this might be your cup of tea.

I saw this movie in the mid '80s, renting it for a high-school slumber-party I dubbed `Dusk to Dawn' (a marathon of B-movie horror flicks). My jaw dropped - this was intense stuff! I recently watched it again and was extremely impressed by the imaginative film-making by everyone involved. First off, I don't this utterly fantastic piece of low-budget film-making should be referred to as a rip-off of `Alien.' Just because both films share `something' that comes from another world with sharp teeth and kills people doesn't mean they're in the same ball-park! If anything, this film owes a lot more to old Corman pieces and stuff like `Trilogy of Terror,' `Don't Look In The Basement,' the early Raimi pieces, and the reprehensible `Rabid,' starring Marilyn Chambers. If there's any connection, real or feigned, it comes from the distributors, who, hoping to cash in on the rumor of a sequel to `Alien' gave `Deadly Spawn' another theatrical as `The Return Of The Aliens: The Deadly Spawn' (hence the odd title), or `Return of the Alien's Deadly Spawn' (if you like Continental's mis-print).

I enjoy this film because it's gritty and real, shot in 16mm over weekends only, filled with the normalcy of everyday life - people prepare breakfast and lunch, they feed the cat, they worry about tests, they talk about plaster giraffes. The director gives us a glimpse into a normal middle-class family with a penchant for hard-work and education, then shows us how they and a surrounding circle of people react (based on their backgrounds). For example, the brainy older brother wants to dissect one of the alien brood; the uncle wants to help his nephew by psychoanalyzing him a little; the younger, imaginative brother wants to defeat the entire pack as a horror-film defender; the little old ladies fight back dynamically - hell, aliens are nothing next to the Depression-era vermin they might have faced! Simply put, this is top-notch amateur acting with a dose of actuality! By film's end, you feel at home in their house, despite the nastiness!

That said, almost all of the actors here are great! `Boring' Uncle Herb (played by John Schmerling) must be where the character of Dr. Frazier Crane (Kelsey Grammar) came from, 'cause he's on the money! Other MVPs include Ethel Michelson as the progressive Aunt Millie, and Judith Mayes as her off-the-wall new-age mother, Bunny. And, unlike the array of idiot characters you get in most horror flicks, these characters seem pretty smart, especially Charlie (played by Charles George Hildebrandt), who comes to breakfast reading a copy of `Famous Monsters') and his scientist brother Pete (Michael Robert Coleman). I like the way director Douglas McKeown juxtaposes their two disciplines (outlooks on life - left brain, right brain) against one another. in the end, science and imagination triumph together in sheer MacGyver genius!

This is an independent film, much like `Evil Dead I/II,' with the same tongue-in-cheek approach, plenty of point-of-view shots, the same good editing (though certainly not as tight), and loads of staggeringly elaborate alien and gore effects (that would make Tom Savini proud). The adult alien is much like Audrey, the blood thirsty plant from `The Little Shop of Horrors,' but has thousands of teeth and an almost-leering grin, while the offspring are part piranha, part mealworm, part eel, part phallus - they like look like something you'd see in a Gwar stageshow or film. None ever seem like puppets! Like Raimi's film, this one has an energy and spirit that surpass the gore-and-horror paint-by-numbers. In fact, while McKeown (with screenwriters Ted Bohus and John Dods) isn't as effective as Raimi in the humor department here, he brings a much deeper social and truth-seeking criticism to the table. He pokes fun at vegetarians amidst man-eating aliens and ends the film in a 'black humor' finale.

A charming film, `Deadly Spawn' overcame some serious distribution problems (imagine that) and eventually grossed something like $320,000 in one weekend (?). Made for less than $20,000, it's since gone on to make several million dollars (wonder who got the dough?). Hooray for the little man!

This low-budget indie flick shows its roots with production values that seem about 10 years or so out of date, including a muddled sound design and fuzzy image quality. Despite bursting out of the gate at the start, the plot often struggles with pacing; the direction often comes off as weak and lethargic. In fairness, this seems to be the first of only two credits in any regard for filmmaker Douglas McKeown - and for that matter, most everyone in the cast or crew have few if any other credits to their name. It shouldn't be too surprising, then, that the dialogue tends to be gauche; that acting is at many times stilted, unnatural, and less than completely believable; that the picture has problems with internal consistency (a character is covered in blood in one moment, and in the next, they're barely touched). Funnily enough, it's effects supervisor John Dods who seems to have the most experience of anyone involved, and it should be said that the contributions of Dods and his collaborators are without question the most outwardly successful aspect of 'The deadly spawn.' The creatures and all the blood and gore are unmistakably fake, yes, but at that, all the nastiness looks fantastic (in accordance with suspension of disbelief), and should scratch the itch of any fan of monster movies.

Of course the film pales in comparison to most any other horror sci-fi flick one could name, that rather goes without saying. Yet if one recognizes the nature of the production - the lack of major financial backing, the inexperience of those involved, the earnest desire nonetheless to craft a violent romp of a genre flick - then this isn't half bad, and it even becomes kind of fascinating. There's no denying that it still has problems, but a great deal of sincerity and hard work went into making this, and for all the indelicacies and inelegance, the result is much better than not. Why, it's definitely far better than many genre flicks, even major studio projects, that have followed in the years since. Again, Dods' effects absolutely stand out, not least at the climax. Apart from the dialogue, McKeown's screenplay is reasonably solid; the scene writing and narrative are straightforward, but completely, compelling, and fun. (Ah, that ending!) While a little heavy-handed and club-footed, McKeown's direction is decent enough, and the cast put in fine effort. It's clear everyone on hand just wanted to have a good time, and they quite succeed in passing that on to the audience; what more could one want?

Even with faltering audio, the sound effects are executed well; the original score teeters on the fine line between "enjoyable and lending atmosphere" and "blunt and over the top," but like so many other aspects here comes across as more capable than not. At no point could one make any mistake about what they're watching; at its worst and at its best, it shines through what level 'The deadly spawn' is operating on. Faults and all, however, this is ultimately entertaining, and its deficiencies just become part of the tapestry. I'd hardly say this is essential, but if you have the chance to watch it, 'The deadly spawn' is a good way to pass 80 minutes. Recommendable particularly for fans of creature features.

This is one of the best alien/monster slaughtering and splattering movies I've ever seen! It is so funny and creative as the monsters are something I hadn't seen before. They are ugly, disgusting, hungry and have about 7000 teeth! They can also move, but pretty slowly. How they did those monsters with the low budget? They look so fantastic and scary as they actually have nothing but huge mouths and hundreds of sharp teeth in them.

Some alien stone comes from the space and crushes into the Earth with these nasty visitors. Soon they find a new home in a cellar of one apartment, and then the "fun" begins. There is one slow sequence in the middle of the film and it is boring to sit through, but fortunately for most of the time, there is always something going on.

The effects and overall look of the film is so 80's and low budgeted and nostalgic and it really makes to miss those golden days when these were made. Nasty slashers, stupid Conan rip offs, alien clones etc. Those were the legendary days that produced us these gems, that we can now track down and enjoy. The Deadly Spawn is recommended HIGHLY for all fans of marginal cinema and especially monster cinema, because these babies are something new! They bite in a way that no other monster has ever bitten before! They appear also in a form of slithery worms, and it only raises the puke-o-meter and fun-o-meter, but only for those who understand these rare pieces of gold. Others will only feel sick watching these!

This film earns at least 7 ultra gory stars out of ten, and these films will NEVER die, no matter how many stupid mainstream efforts or "modern horror films" are made!

This movie has a bigger cult following than many might think, and I am proud to say I am part of it. I see this film in the ballpark of "The Evil Dead", "Re-Animator", "Bad Taste", and many other classics of splatter legend. I don't feel the need to criticize the acting (unless you count the first two hapless victims), and this is because this movie does what most movies don't with their characters: it makes them REAL people. The fantastic elements blend beautifully with the boring, frustrating mess of most people's everyday life. Still, this is a fun b-movie, which means instead of depressing us with the real-life stuff, it puts some humorous spins on it. The gore and creature FX are amazing. Don't let that R rating fool you, this is one HARD R, so those with weak stomachs need not apply. The creature FX I was amazed by most of all. I would love to know how they did this with such a low budget! Everything in this looks extremely vivid and real (with the exception of some amateurish backgrounds at the beginning and end that are obviously pictures somebody painted or whatever). Even the computer cartoons of "Jurassic Park" do not hold a candle to these creature FX in the least. This is definitely one of the greatest indie/sci-fi/horror/splatter films ever, and I do wonder why it hasn't got the kind of recognition that movies like "Evil Dead" have (no big-budget sequels maybe?). As for those who call "Parasite" a sequel to this, I don't get it. Not only is this a film far more superior to "Parasite" and was seemingly made by totally different people, there is absolutely no way to connect them unless you're talking genre-wise. "Parasite" is in the far-off future, this one's in the present. "Parasite" is about genetically engineered creatures, this one's about space aliens. This one has a sense of humor. "Parasite" doesn't. In any case, I love "Return of the Aliens: The Deadly Spawn" (no matter what title it's under) for it is the classic that "Parasite" should have been and much, much more.