When Tremors premiered on January 19, 1990, Universal was hoping for a smash hit, what they got was a mediocre success that didn't blow audiences out of the water. However, here is a film that 21 years later has 3 direct to video sequels and a TV series. How did this little movie get such a cult following?
The way this blog works is that if you haven't seen the movie, go ahead and watch it first, because I'm going to assume that you have. The way I review is I watch the trailer, if there's one available, then I watch the movie non-stop. It's the closest way to experiencing it in the theater is to watch the movie non-stop. No mood-lighting will help the theatrical effect if you pause the film and disrupt the flow.
Tremors had a very bizarre ad campaign. Let's start with the obvious: the creature on the poster looks NOTHING like the creature in the movie. It seems like they designed the poster before they designed the creature. The trailers are just as confusing. One of them advertises the film with an ominous score that makes it appear like a terrifying creature feature. This trailer seems more in tone with the actual film. Although they advertised it like they advertised JAWS and let's face it...Tremors is no JAWS. The second trailer had comedic music running throughout it. How bizarre is that? Yes, I know that people claim it's truly comedic, but the comedy never got in the way of the creature. That's what makes it a creature feature as opposed to parody. If people saw both trailers before they saw the film, I'm sure they were deeply confused as to what type of film it truly was.
The film itself is something else entirely. On a whole, the film works really well. It's not too grim to not attract a large audience. It's not too jokey to be mocked by the audience. It's equal parts funny and horrific. Like I stated before, the film is funny, it's got a great sense of humor, but the humor never gets in the way of the creature, which is, let's face it, the primary appeal of the film...sorry Kevin Bacon.
The film uses the typical creature feature fake-out that Alien used. You see a small creature in the first part of the film, only later on do you realize it's just one tentacle from it's mouth. Upon first viewing, if you don't know what the creature looks like (and if you're basing your view of it on the poster, well you'll be a great audience member) this gimmick is very affective. Upon repeat viewings however, it gets old really fast and the small part of the creature is overall not very impressive looking like a sock puppet in multiple sequences.
The creature itself in all it's huge glory is fantastic and is a major selling point of the film. I'm extremely thankful that they didn't over exploit this creature in the sequels. The creature is just as impressive today as it was during early 1990. The name is really stupid. Graboid takes out any terror from the awesome creature in their film. Luckily enough, the film doesn't dwell too long on the naming of the creature and plays it off more of an annoyance to the characters than essential...like in the third film.
The actors in this do their best with the material and really make a mediocre script a special watch. The best character by far is Burt Gummer. He's quirky and fascinating. It's a shame that he's completely overexposed in later sequels because the way he is in the first film is all we need.
The movie itself has two parallels. In the opening scene the way that Valentine wakes up Earl from his sleep is by screaming about a stampede. The way that Valentine kills the creature in the end is by recreating a stampede by the same exact cliff that he and Earl slept by in the very beginning. The entrance of a female grad student starts the film off. Valentine is obsessed with a girl who obviously dumped him because he can't get over her. He's disappointed by the fact that this grad student looks nothing like the girl he used to be with. By the end he's together with her and they leave together. His leaving the town with another girl signifies his letting go of the girl that was holding him back for what seemed like years.
You can't ask questions during the movie...if you do the film won't work for you. Why is the town so small? Where do the kids go to school? If the creatures have been there all along (one of many theories presented in the film) how come we've never noticed them, or disappeared one by one by them until now? Just don't ask questions during the film and you'll be able to get wrapped up in the creature and the jokey nature of it all.
What makes the film work is it's blend between comedy and horror. I can't emphasize enough the importance of not letting the comedy come in the way of the horror, a mistake too many films make. The comedy in this film is character quirks. Thankfully all of the characters stay in character in this film. There's no bizarre moments where you feel like a character is completely going against what was set up previously. They fit a mold and it works well, but without the creature it's nothing special. It's a formula we've seen before and something we're all well on to.
On a budget of $11 million, the film made only $16.6 million in the USA. Overseas however, the film made $43 million. The film failed to gain an audience in the USA. However, the film got a very loyal cult following on video and six years after the release of the first film, a direct-to-video sequel was released.
Tremors is a fun film. Don't expect to be scared, don't expect to bust out laughing by the jokes in the film. You'll be able to have a good time if you let a lot of things go over the course of viewing the film. Tremors is a great watch, but is not recommended for repeat viewings or for study. Once you deeply analyze the film, you'll start to realize how deeply flawed the whole film truly is. Have a good time watching it, but don't spend too much time on it.
