Fred Dekker’s 1986 horror-masterpiece Night of the Creeps changed my life – and it probably change yours, too. It was the horror film that brought aliens, parasites, axe-murders and zombies together in one grand, hilarious and terrifying masterpiece. It was the horror film that wed John Hughes’ teenaged life with George Romero’s on-earth death-walkers.
Back in 1959, a meteorite crashed into Earth, bringing with it a type of parasite that feeds on human brains. When the first victim of the parasite is put into deep freeze, no one expects two teenagers, Chris and J.C. (Jason Lively and Steve Marshall) to inadvertently release these slug-like aliens onto their campus when they unthaw an infected man who has been cryogenically frozen since the fifties. Now with the help of a sorority girl that Chris is crushing on and an aging, cynical detective, they must stop the slugs from infecting their friends before the whole campus turns into murderous zombies. These zombies can only be killed by intense heat, which gives the film license to introduce a flame-thrower and various firearms into the film for extreme gore and awesome explosions. The script, also by Fred Dekker, is witty and extremely self aware, making reference to the plot's own silliness. Dekker’s dialogue is infused with infectious glee, especially during the gratuitous nudity and gore scenes. Even better, the gore is (of course) all practical effects - eaten-away skulls, face damage, intestines, bodily explosions, gun shots to the head and so many finer touches here are utilized with relative ease – it is the 80s, after all! Horror fans will also appreciate the nods to various genre luminaries, even amongst the characters’ names (Cynthia Cronenberg, Sgt. Raimi, etc). Night of the Creeps is a love story to the horror genre, and it isn’t to be missed.
Released by HBO Cannon Video in 1989, and CBS FOX internationally, a new copy of Night of the Creeps on VHS will run you $30.00, which isn’t bad as far as most collectors are concerned. You can get a used tape for even less on eBay and Amazon.com. You may prefer to pick up the DVD/Blu-Ray from Sony Pictures Entertainment, since it’s the director’s cut and it includes several great extras such as cast and director commentaries, behind-the-scenes footage, deleted scenes, trivia and more.
FEARnet caught up with Dekker himself to chat about Night of the Creeps, as well as Monster Squad, House, and the details of his filmmaking career.
You started making movies at a very early age – some as early as 12 on your 8mm camera? Do you have any memories about a favorite childhood film you made?
One of my first 8mm films was called “The Deadly Chase.” The only thing deadly about it was the acting and the shaky camera work. After college, I made a “sequel” starring Shane Black. This one had actual car stunts and was a vast improvement. Ten years makes a big difference.
You attended UCLA as an English major because you were rejected from film school – did having this heavy literature and English background help you when writing House? How did you come up with the story?
Being an English major really only taught me how to construct a critical essay. As for House, it was conceived as my directing debut. I wanted to shoot it at my parents’ Victorian house in Marin County. Very cheaply, probably in black-and-white. I had a storyline but never got around to writing the script, so my college roommate Ethan Wiley asked if he could take a shot at it. It was much more cartoony than what I was thinking about but I gave the script to Steve Miner, who loved it and said he wanted to make it.
House not only opened second to Pretty in Pink when it was released in theaters in 1986, but it also spawned three sequels. What was this success so early like for you?
I was barely paid on the first one, and had nothing to do with sequels (for which I was also not paid!). So apart from my first screen credit, and a great relationship with Steve, its impact on my life was minimal, although I did meet the editor, Michael Knue, who I subsequently hired to cut Night of the Creeps.
When it helpintWere you on the set of House during production? It’s pretty cool that William Katt, who played Tommy in De Palma’s Carrie also played the lead in House!
Yes, I was there for some of the Vietnam scenes and some stuff in the house. Both the house interiors and the Vietnam jungle were built on sound stages at Raleigh Studios across the street from Paramount Pictures.
The Monster Squad is an all-time favorite (for many). I read that you originally wrote a huge script for this film?
Shane Black wrote the first draft by himself while I was making Night of the Creeps. And yes, Shane is nothing if not, er… extravagant when it comes to putting scenes on paper. The original prologue was a movie all by itself!
Were you part of a Monster Squad growing up? There is so much horror love in this film, from the posters on the wall in the club house to the homages played to the Universal monsters and Stan Winston’s Wolf Man. I’m guessing Monster Squad was your labor of love?
Very much so. I had an older friend who turned me onto Famous Monsters magazine and the Don Post masks and all that, so us talking monster movies in a little fort he built in his backyard was the real-life inspiration for the Squad’s clubhouse. During one sleepover in the fort, my dad brought us sandwiches after dark and he did his terrible Lugosi Dracula impression before he knocked. I’ll never forget that.
What was it like working with Ashley Bank, who was so young at the time?
She was great. Kid actors are so open and easy to work with. They don’t have any of the overthinking and “method” stuff that older actors have, so it was just a matter of telling (or showing) her what to do. In some scenes, I’d actually crouch by the camera and act the scene out for her, and tell her to copy what I was doing. Try that with an adult actor and they’ll throttle you.
I’m sure you’ve been asked this a million times, but are there any stories behind “Wolfman’s got nards!”?
That was Shane’s line. Any lycanthropic genitalia obsession would be his.
Liam Neeson played a role, but it was later cut?
Yes. In the original script, the kids meet a mysterious man in the scary mansion. When Horace notices the man’s reflection in a mirror – and sees that the only thing reflected is a latex mask floating in the air, they realize it’s actually Dracula! I didn’t want the audience to guess the twist, so rather than put Duncan Regehr in unconvincing make-up, we hired Liam as a diversion. When we ran into scheduling and budget restraints, we decide to cut the scene before we even shot it.
Are you surprised by the staying power of Monster Squad?
Absolutely. It’s very gratifying, but I wish it had been as popular on release as it is today. Let’s just say it did not help my career.
Night of the Creeps was a unique and fun take on the zombie genre at the time. And the sci-fi and slasher genre! Plus, it’s hilarious! I also love that all the characters in the film are named after some of the best horror directors of the time. In writing the script, where did this idea come from?
I was paying tribute to the directors I admired who had started out in low budget genre pictures -- because that’s exactly what I was doing!
Night of the Creeps has two endings – which do you personally prefer and why?
The graveyard ending – in which we show the alien ship from the opening of the film presumably looking for their “experiment” -- was always the intention. Unfortunately, I showed the picture to an audience before the special effects shot was finished and the preview audience was confused (nothing scares movie executives more than a confused audience!. The theatrical ending with the zombie dog was a compromise, but I always hated it. It was a cheap scare, and suggests that the creeps are infecting our heroine, which feels like a violation of any goodwill toward our heroes. The graveyard ending is much more evocative and spooky. That’s the real ending.
The great makeup effects artist Howard Berger worked with you on this film – what was he like to work with? You also had Greg Nicotero play a zombie!
Greg was actually the only founder of KNB who isn’t in the movie. Howard and Rob Kurtzman both worked on David Miller’s FX team, and both played zombie frat boys. Greg and I had dinner a while back and he told me he came to the set – but it was news to me. I didn’t remember him being there at all!
After The Monster Squad, you went on to write several episodes of Tales From the Crypt, and you directed one as well. You wrote the screenplay for Robocop3 with Frank Miller – and directed the film as well. Then you kind of disappeared from the industry – was this because of the difficulties with the Orion company and the film, or did you just need a break? You haven’t directed since (which is heartbreaking for us all)!
The truth is, Robocop 3 was so loathed that my directing career simply lost its traction. I’ve been trying to get a picture up and running ever since, and have had a few in various stages of development, but the whims of fate have conspired to keep me out of the director’s chair. Believe me, it’s not by choice, and I’m always hoping the wind will blow in a different direction so I can make another picture. Cross your fingers (or call your rich friends).