Tremors
1990 · Directed by Ron Underwood
Original language: English
- comedy
- horror
- science fiction
The story
Val McKee and Earl Bassett are in a fight for their lives when they discover that their desolate town has been infested with gigantic, man-eating creatures that live below the ground.
What it’s like
Dusty desert light and wide, sun-bleached Nevada vistas, with the small town's low wooden buildings baking under a flat, cloudless sky, give this creature comedy a bright, lived-in look rather than a gloomy one. Ron Underwood's camera stays fairly conventional, favoring steady medium shots, open landscapes and the occasional sweeping crane over the valley, while the practical creature effects and rubbery tentacles have a tactile, old-fashioned weight. The score is bouncy and western-tinged, and the soundscape is full of rumbling earth, rifle cracks and wisecracks. The vibe is rowdy, sun-drenched and goofy, a Saturday-afternoon adventure with a wink. It suits a lazy weekend, a comfort rewatch or a group movie night. The pacing is brisk, with the tension often punctured by slapstick and deadpan banter, and the emotional register stays light: two drifting handymen grudgingly become a team against the odds. Violence is frequent but cartoonish, with monsters devouring people in sudden, bloody-tinged bursts that are more startling than gory, and some peril and mild profanity throughout. It's for viewers who enjoy monster movies with humor and want suspense without real dread.
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