La Nuit des clowns

If you love your slashers bloody, self-aware, and just a little bit unhinged, 'Clown in a Cornfield' is an absolute must-watch. It delivers that nostalgic, small-town horror vibe straight out of an '80s nightmare, but with a modern edge that keeps things fresh and fun. Frendo the clown is instantly iconic - equal parts terrifying and absurd - and the kills? Gory, creative, and satisfyingly brutal.

What really surprised me, though, was how funny this film is. It doesn't take itself too seriously, leaning into the ridiculousness of its premise in a way that totally works. The script is sharp, the characters are likable enough to root for (or scream at), and there's a surprising amount of heart buried beneath the bloodshed.

By the time the credits rolled, I was already googling the books. If they're anything like the movie, I'm in for a wild ride. Easily my favorite slasher of 2025 so far.

I was expecting something great here because of the hype here scoring this movie so high. Didn't read anything about it because I have watched hundreds of slashers. So, consequently there are only a few movies that are really fresh or innovates in the genre. Not this movie.

First, if you have watched similar movies you can predict almost everything. Usual script of a bunch of kids ready to be slaughtered by some clowns. The problem here is that acting is horrendous so consequently you want that everybody dies as soon as possible.

Second, gory parts are great. It doesn't look cheap at all. Good for the fx's and make up team.

Last, the ending ruins everything. Wants to be clever, modern and cool. Not for me.

So, if you were born after 2005 this movie can be for you. If you have watched similar ones, this one is just another clown movie.

This flick was based off on recent horror related young adult fiction by Adam Cesare and was just average. It offers some good practical and cgi gore effects, full of tongue-in-cheek humor.

It offers an inclusive grouping of characters probably that the current administration wouldn't approve of. One of the characters kinda looks like Elon Musk!

The only that original is the intergenerational jokes between older and younger characters. Things like a rotary dial phone, etc. Comes off pretty funny. The clowns were not a creepy as many reviewers have claimed.

The acting chops were not above average, but not horrible. The film is most likely coming at a time where producers are responding to clown with extreme violence like the recent success of Damian Leone's "Terrifier" franchise.

This film has probably got popularity of a new generation of filmgoers trying to feel the 80s/90s straight to gore films. In the way, their new interest is probably to chase folk horror and more subtle horror like "Midsummer" and "The Witch" away

I guess this film by Eli Craig should be indebt to "Terrifier"-crowd funders and independent horror supporters. It's need to be said that Craig is also a trendsetter with horror comedy like "Tucker and Dale vs Evil" (obviously inspired by "Evil Dead" franchise).

Clown in a Cornfield (2025) is garbage. Sure, it's well directed-but it's well directed garbage. It's like they brought in a professional filmmaker to shoot a high school play starring only the jocks and cheerleaders. The acting is stiff, the dialogue is cringey, and the characters are so thin you forget their names before they die. The kills are lazy, the tension never builds, and the whole thing feels like a stitched-together checklist of slasher clichés. It wants to be a throwback, but brings nothing new and doesn't even do the old stuff well. It's all style, no soul, and not a shred of wit or originality. I gave it a 3/10. If you value your time, skip it.

Rating - 7.2: Overall, a pretty good slasher movie that infuses comedy to make the film genre-bending and unique; while there are many moments that are stereotypical of other low-budget slasher movies, "Clown in a Cornfield" does a pretty good job subverting expectations or calling out and making fun of its stereotypes in a meta way to make the experience entertaining and fun.

Direction - Pretty Good: The direction on a macroscale is pretty good as they do a good job blending slasher with comedy, making this an entertaining experience; the direction on a microscale feels very similar to other low-budget teenage horror to start with, but the movie really starts to get into its groove towards the 30-minute mark as it begins to subvert stereotypes and blend humor with horror; the storytelling is decent as it uses the stereotypical teenage slasher movie to lay the groundwork for the plot, then either subverts these expectations or calls out and makes fun of its stereotypes in a meta way; they build tension decently well, but it is a bit formulaic at times as it builds up to horror moments

Story - Decent to Pretty Good: The concept is your typical clown slasher movie, but mixed with comedic elements to make the movie bend what genre it is; the plot structure is pretty standard for a slasher movie; character writing is surprisingly pretty good, as while the movie does have its fair share of stereotypical tropes that it calls out, these characters grow in ways that surprise the audience

Screenplay - Pretty Good: The dialogue is filled with corny dialogue you would expect from low-budget, teen slasher movies; but the dialogue definitely gets better as the movie goes on; the humor is an integral part of this movie as it helps prevent the movie from being a straight slasher movie, being meta at times and making the movie feel pretty unique; the symbolism is present and somewhat profound; the foreshadowing is present and helps lay crumbs for how the story will transpire

Acting - Decent to Pretty Good: Katie Douglas - Pretty Good (Even though she starts the movie off with many stereotypical teen horror scream-queen mannerisms, she grows into her own and has good stage presence by the end of the movie; she has decent chemistry with the rest of the cast, especially Abrams), Aaron Abrams - Decent to Pretty Good (Plays the fatherly figure pretty well, despite his corny moments; he has pretty good chemistry with Douglas), Carson MacCormac - Decent (He plays his role decently well, especially as more weight is lifted off his shoulders as the movie goes on; he has decent chemistry with the rest of the cast), Kevin Durand - Decent to Pretty Good (Has a presence on screen that is felt; has decent chemistry with the rest of the cast), Will Sasso - Pretty Good (Uses his comedic presence to make his character both funny yet Machiavellian), Rest of the cast - Decent (While the movie is filled with stereotypical teenage slasher performances, they do a decent job with what they are given and definitely get better as the movie goes on; they help support building tension and the main cast decently well)

Score - Decent: Feels a little similar to other horror movies; very over-the-top in how it builds suspense for the horror moments

Cinematography - Decent: Typical of other low-budget slasher movies

Editing - Decent: Typical of other low-budget horror movies

Sound - Decent to Pretty Good: Helps build suspense and tension similar to other low-budget slasher movies

Visual Effects - Pretty Good: Good use of practical effects because this is what you want from a slasher movie

Production Design - Decent: Sets the cornfield for "Clown in a Cornfield"

Makeup - Decent to Pretty Good: It helps display the blood and gore for the kills; it helps paint the clowns

Costumes - Pretty Good: Helps dress the clown for "Clown in a Cornfield"

Pacing - Pacing is slow at the beginning and then very fast once the conflict is introduced, so basically, every slasher movie

Climax - The climax is pretty good and brings everything together but is somewhat predictable considering where the movie was heading

Tone - Tone is not your typical low-budget clown slasher movie; the movie sprinkles in comedy throughout to bend the genre and make the movie unique

Final Notes - Saw the world premiere at SXSW.