Movie Review: The Blob (1988)

Directed by: Chuck Russell

IMDb listing

Pros: some genuine scares, suspenseful music, decent special effects

Cons: attempted date rape, some gore

A crashed meteorite unleashes a blob that begins amalgamating people from a small town. Some teenagers trying to find out what’s happening while a government agency arrives to get the situation under control.

This was a surprisingly good 80s horror film. While it starts off following the ‘plot’ of the 1950s film, it quickly veers off into its own thing, with a different explanation of where the blob comes from.

The movie makes great use of suspense, with a lot of foggy night scenes and some mood music. After the second death I realized I didn’t know where the film was going and that ramped up the horror factor.

The creature is genuinely terrifying at times, reaching out with fleshy arms to grab people. There were a few green screen moments that looked terrible, but on the whole the special effects were pretty good. I was legitimately surprised by how many people died and who some of those people were. Some of the deaths are pretty gruesome, so if you’re squeamish this won’t be for you.

A few character building scenes from the beginning come back at the end as being important plot points, which was kind of fun.

One of the football players gets frisky with his passed out date, in a scene I could have done without. The rape never happens and the scene manages to avoid nudity, making it feel less from a ‘male gaze’ than similar horror film scenes of its age. It’s played for horror, not titillation.

The ending was a rather exciting action scene, where the main girl and guy play important roles. If you’ve never seen it and like 80s horror, I highly recommend it.

Movie Review: The Blob (1958)

Directed by Irvin Yeaworth, Jr. (and Russell Doughten Jr.)
IMDb listing

Pros: good acting

Cons: kind of boring, cheesy monster

A crashed meteorite unleashes a blob that begins amalgamating people from a small town, while a group of teenagers try to warn them.

Steve McQueen stars in his first role, as a teenager who witnesses a death by the blob but no one believes him. It’s a strange movie with very little plot. The teenagers are all played by actors who are clearly in their late 20s and early 30s. Similarly, the actor who plays Jane’s younger brother was 6 but seems to be playing a much younger child, which just feels bizarre.

When Steve finally does convince a couple more teens that there is danger, I was left unsure whey they believed him. There’s one scene where a guy has to call the cops because they won’t listen to Steve anymore, and he complains he doesn’t know what to say. Because he hasn’t seen a monster or any trace of a monster.

The monster looks comical rather than scary, not helped by the fact that all the deaths are off screen. A character comments towards the end that the monster must have killed 40 or 50 people, but only 4 or 5 people are shown vanished and presumed eaten. I guess we’re supposed to assume a lot of people got eaten at the movie theatre.

The ending is rather exciting, with some tense moments. Spoiler warning: We’re left with the creature - unable to handle cold - sent to the arctic with the message that so long as it stays frozen humanity is safe. The film ends with a question mark on the screen. Makes you wonder if the director, or someone involved in the project, was already aware of the effects of global warming.

If you’re interested in 1950 SF/horror films there are much better ones out there (Invasion of the Body Snatchers is brilliant). If you want a good Blob movie, check the one from the 80s, which is surprisingly well done.