Night of the Clown

Director - Dustin Ferguson (Ebola Rex, 5G Zombies)

Starring - Jennii Caroline (Amityville Toybox, The Dummy 2), Colby Coash (Camp Blood 4, Blood Claws), and Breana Mitchell (Meathook Massacre, Doll Killer)

Release Date - 2016

Genre - Horror

Tagline - "It was a killer Halloween party..."

Format - DVD (Personal Collection)

Rating (out of 5):

     I've reviewed several films from Dustin Ferguson this month.  Sadly, they were hit or miss with me.  Penny Pinchers, Wrong Side of the Tracks, and Runaway Nightmare were all solid watches and movies I could totally see myself diving into again.  With that being said, Asylum of the Devil and Angry Asian Murder Hornets were huge disappointments.  I know the "new normal" has changed the way movies are made so I'm giving AAMH the benefit of the doubt but Asylum just didn't feel like a completed film.  After I recently watched Todd Cook's Night of the Clown I noticed that the disc was actually a double feature with Ferguson's remake included.  Chris Seaver's remake of Cook's Evil Night was a fantastic film so I couldn't wait to dive into it.

     The film follows a group of party goers who are preparing for a Halloween party.  However, a serial killer clown that was burned alive 30 years ago has returned and is turning the woods into his slaughterhouse.

     The original Night of the Clown is a wacky and weird slasher that doesn't take itself too seriously.  The original director took on five different roles in the film which added some much needed laughs.  Sadly, this remake does not embody any of the qualities that made the first film so much fun.  In fact, it completely re-writes itself into something completely different.  The acting in this one is the only aspect that hs better than the original film.  The characters are grounded and more genuine, however, they are not that memorable.  They fall victim to horror cliches and the performances are forgettable.  The story for this one mixes A Nightmare on Elm St. with serial John Wayne Gacy.  We follow a serial killer who is captured by the locals and burned at the stake.  Hell, the killer even has the surname Gacy.  If you put that to the side you are still given a film that does not feel finished.  We have a film that run about 60 minutes with a 5 or 10 minute intermission.  The film already struggled with pacing before this and then completely loses the story after this point.  It's a struggle for even the most adamite no budget fan to finish.  Finally, the kills in this one are unimaginative and forced.  The original does not have memorable kills as well so this is pretty consistent with the first.  Overall, Night of the Clown was a huge disappointment and easily the worst movie in my October horror binge.  I was so excited for this one and then I was hit with the harsh reality that more time went into the artwork than it did on making the acutal film.  Skip it.