From the re-watch pile…

THE ‘BURBS (1989)

Film:  Joe Dante has always been somewhat of a hero to me. I haved always admired his love of cinema and his associated knowledge, and even though I am well and truly a fan of horror, I do have a michevious child trapped inside me, and in general, Dante’s films speak to that kid.

He directed some of my favourite films as a teen, like The Howling, Gremlins and Innerspace, and continues to entertain me with films of a similar vibe, like The Hole and Burying the Ex. I like that his films have this odd polluted wholesomeness to them.

The ‘Burbs was released in 1989 and is a story about suspicion, and what can happen when it gets in the way of facts. Is it a microcosm of society that may have morew relevance today than ever before?

What would I know? I’m a nerd who collects toys, reads comics and watches movies!!!

Anyway, The ‘Burbs tells of a quiet street where Ray Peterson (Tom Hanks) live with his wife Carol ( Carrie Fisher) and their son, Dave (Cory Danziger), and this week, Ray has decided to take a week off to relax!

The problem is, is that Ray is quite highly strung, and is easily led astray by his friend Art (Rick Ducommun) and Mark (Bruce Dern), the paramilitary nutjob who lives across the street, and the three of them are suspicious of their new neighbours, the Klopeks (Henry Gibson, Brother Theodore and Courtney Gains), and think they may be part of a satanic cult or are serial killers…

When one of the older members of the neighbourhood suddenly goes missing, the three cook up a scheme to find out what the Klopeks are up too… but are the Klopeks the REAL danger, or is presumption and suspicion the REAL villain here…?ejudices and presumptions of ‘normal’ folk…

Through his amazing cast and efficient filmmaking, Dante has created a fun dark comedy that really works, and feels timeless. The story rolls along at quite the clip, but that could be that we, as the voyeuristic viewer is getting caught up with all the stickybeaking… we love to know each other’s business, right? This could also happen as some of the stereotypes are very familiar.

Tom Hanks plays his role as manic as he did in these days, before he became a ‘serious actor’, and there is a special appearance by Dick Miller ( who no doubt is playing ‘Walter Paisley), but the people who really nail their roles are The Klopeks. Within the confines of the film, and its environment, Dante has made them the perfect straight men to the apparent insanity of us normal folks. Special mention needs to go to Brother Theodore who seems like an evil monk in his role.

This isn’t top tier Dante, but it is an enjoyable watch.

Score: ***1/2

Disc: This region B Australian bluray release is presented in a slightly above average 1.77:1 image with a decent 2.0 audio track.

Score: ***1/2

Extras: Only two extras on this disc: a trailer and an alternate ending which was far weaker and had some real ham-fisted dialogue.

Score: **