The Monster Squad (1987)

Director:

Fred Dekker

Writers:

Shane Black (written by) &
Fred Dekker (written by)

Release Date:

14 August 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Comedy | Family | Fantasy | Horror

Tagline:

The End of the World Starts at Midnight

Plot:

Dracula is alive. In fact, he plans to rule the world and that is why he seeks the help of other legendary monsters...

Plot Keywords:

Monster | Friend | Dracula | Amulet | Mummy

Awards:

3 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Andre Gower	...	Sean (as André Gower)
Robby Kiger	...	Patrick
Stephen Macht	...	Del
Duncan Regehr	...	Count Dracula
Tom Noonan	...	Frankenstein
Brent Chalem	...	Horace
Ryan Lambert	...	Rudy
Ashley Bank	...	Phoebe
Michael Faustino	...	Eugene
Mary Ellen Trainor	...	Emily
Leonardo Cimino	...	Scary German Guy
Jon Gries	...	Desperate Man (as Jonathan Gries)
Stan Shaw	...	Detective Sapir
Lisa Fuller	...	Patrick's Sister
Jason Hervey	...	E.J.

Runtime:

82 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | German

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Singapore:NC-16 | Australia:M | Canada:G (Quebec) | UK:15 | USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County - 900 Exposition Boulevard, Exposition Park, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Home Box Office (HBO)

Trivia:

Ashley Bank turned down a role in Fatal Attraction (1987) to play Phoebe.

Goofs:

Continuity: After the vortex closes, Phoebe moves from one end of the bench to the other and crouches down, lowering her head. In the reverse shot, she's back at the end she was originally at and simply lowers her head.

Quotes:

Scary German Guy: [as Sean, Patrick, and Horace are leaving Scary German Guy's house] I expect you boys thought I was some kind of monster myself, mm? A vampire, perhaps? That's quite all right. But I am not, you know. If I were a vampire, then I wouldn't have a reflection...
[points to mirror, where he is clearly visible]
Scary German Guy: ... now would I?
Horace: Man, you sure know a lot about monsters.
Scary German Guy: Now that you mention it, I suppose I do.
[Scary German Guy closes door, revealing a concentration camp tattoo on his wrist]

Movie Connections:

References This Island Earth (1955)

Soundtrack:

The Monster Squad

Great monster movie for films buffs

The Monster Squad is a terrific re-telling of the House of Frankenstein, set in the late 80s. A group of young boys unearth an evil secret within the diary of vampire hunter, Dr. Abraham Van Helsing (Dutch, not German, but forgivable). Dracula has returned, and has re-animated Frankenstein's monster, and brought along a innocent, but tortured werewolf, the frightening, Creature of the Black Lagoon-esque Gill-Man, and a 2000-year old Mummy.

The SFX are spectacular, and the make-up and costuming are very well-made. This movie closely follows the the myths and folklore of popular monsters (only wooden stakes and garlic are effective on vampires; even dynamite cannot stop the silver-prone werewolf; etc.)

The acting is somewhat lacking, but this is a kid's Saturday night drive-in type movie. Only Duncan Regehr (syndicated TV's Zorro) as the truly and unrelentingly evil Dracula is worth mentioning. However, Tom Noonan as the kindly and gentle Frankenstein's monster is a great departure from the malevolence of his counterparts.

Highly recommended.