Throwback Thursday: ‘Tremors’

When it comes to fun movies that never get old and stand up to repeat viewings, it’s hard to beat the original ‘Tremors’ (1990). I never did see this movie in the theater, but I can only imagine how much fun this would have been to experience for the first time in a crowd full of moviegoers seeing ‘Tremors’ on opening night. ‘Tremors’ grossed $16,667,084 domestically, not including VHS/DVD sales.

‘Tremors’ wastes no time throwing us into the heart of what makes it great… monsters. The movie is this odd but wonderful melding of the two biggest genres of the 1950’s bringing the monster flick and the western together to create uniquely entertaining and nostalgic movie fare. We are introduced to our first “victim” at precisely 13 minutes into the movie, but this doesn’t really count because it’s sort of a self-inflicted death, brought upon by fear. What drives a man to climb up an electrical tower and sit there for 3-4 days and die of thirst?

Our first “real” victim makes his debut at 15 minutes into the movie, meeting his demise exactly 30 seconds later. What has begun now is a chain reaction of events that lead Earl (Fred Ward) and Valentine (Kevin Bacon) on a mad dash to flee the tiny town of Perfection, believing a crazy killer is on the loose. They would be correct, except for the crazy part.

Oh, I almost forgot the love interest. There always has to be a love interest and it’s Rhonda (Finn Carter) in ‘Tremors’ causing a rift of sexual tension between Earl and Valentine… all over a nerdy hot seismologist chick. Of course, she proves useful in surviving and defeating the mysterious killers.

Oh, what the Hell! I’m not giving anything away here. The killers are giant subterranean worm-like creatures of unknown origins, but theories abound with the most popular being mutants caused by radiation, government weapons created to attack the Russkies, dormant prehistoric creatures, or alien beings from outer space. You pick! What they most certainly are is determined by opportunistic entrepreneurial general goods store owner Walter Chang, played with great caricaturistic finesse by Victor Wong. What are they… they ARE Graboids! Hell yeah!

As totally awesome (and smelly) as the Graboids are, the heart of the movie is made of it’s characters. Offbeat, stereotypical and often naive, the townsfolk of Perfection perfect what is great about ‘Tremors’. The most memorable characters are Burt (Michael Gross) and Heather (Reba McEntire), a married couple who live in a fortified house bunker and make Charlton Heston and the NRA look tame when it comes to an obsession with guns. Michael Gross would ultimately end up making something of a career out of the ‘Tremors’ franchise, starring in all four movies and the Sci-Fi channel TV series which ran for 13 episodes. It’s tough to say if Michael gross is better known as Burt Gummer in ‘Tremors’ or as Mr. Keaton in ‘Family Ties’.

‘Tremors’ is one of the last great bastions of stop-motion animation, combined with animatronics, used for special effects in big movies. In this sense, the Graboids were real, not computer-generated, making them that much more enjoyable. The effects are both fun and convincing enough so that we don’t sit through the entire movie huffing and puffing like we do when effects are ridiculously bad.

‘Tremors’ could also make a great, if not brutal, drinking game if played based on how many times Earl and Valentine say Hell, Damn, Son of a Bitch or some variation thereof. Oh, and you’ve never heard anyone utter the words “mother humper” the way Kevin Bacon does in ‘Tremors’. Hey, what do you expect? It’s a PG-13 movie from 1990. ‘Tremors’ was originally set for an R-rating until the studio cut a deal with the MPAA by removing all but one F-word from the finished film.

The ‘Tremors’ Collector’s Edition DVD released in 1998 with special features including a Making of Documentary, a video showing the creation of the Graboids, Outtakes, the original unused ending and production photos. If you’re truly into the franchise as a whole, all four films can be purchased in one two-disc set for $14.99 on Amazon.com or at Best Buy.

Let’s check the counts on this modern classic of comedy horror…

• Body Count: Eight Humans, One Horse and several sheep.
• Burt & Heather’s Gun Collection: 36 Rifles, Shotguns, Semi-Autos and Pistols (that I could count); One Elephant Gun; One Flare Gun; a Cannon (sight unseen) and a slew of Pipe Bombs (aka “a few household chemicals in the proper proportions”).
• Times Melvin Pisses Earl Off: Four.
• Times Earl Says Pardon My French: Twice. (Rhonda says it once as well.)
• Make-Shift Pole Vaulting Scenes: One.
• Bulldozers: One.
• Reba McEntire Songs: One.