THE 'BURBS (1989)

With Joe Dante's return to duties behind the camera after 7 years in cinemas at the moment (The Hole in 3D), I found myself with a night in the day before heading off on holidays so I delved into my DVD cupboard and pulled out one of his back catalogue.



Made after the messy but fun Explorers and the now fondly thought of Innerspace (originally panned by critics), it needed to be a hit to keep Dante's reputation on the rise after the success of Gremlins and The Howling. Although it didn't make quite the box office impact he would have wanted, it has developed quite a following over the last couple of decades.

Something that has struck me recently is how badly some films age. One example is Big Trouble in Little China, a film that I watched on a weekly basis during my early teens. When it was given a special edition DVD release I bought it immediately and ran home from work to revisit the good old days. Although it was still fun and flicked all the right switches, it looked really dated. The 'Burbs doesn't suffer in this department, probably because it doesn't need any special effects that may have scrimped on the budget. The only big set piece is at the end with an explosion that looked better than many of the CGI fireballs we have to endure these days.

Like Dante's other films the focus here is on black comedy with a daft twist and returns to the small town setting of Gremlins where a gang of neighbours (Tom Hanks, Bruce Dern and Rick Ducommun) become increasingly suspicious of their new 'diferent' neighbours and set about trying to prove them as wrongdoers.

The charm and fun of the film is the comedy of the 3 male leads. Hanks was at the peak of his comic acting powers, following on from the fine work in Big including another food scene resembling his interference in the buffet of that film. He also has a wonderful zany freak out at the end of the film which you can't help but laugh at. Dern's army type and Ducommun provide great support as the odd side kicks egging Hanks on. The best laughs of the film come from moments played straight, but undeniably with the tongue firmly in the horror genre cheek. My favourite moment, and the one I always remember the film for, is when Hanks and Ducommun find a bone in the garden that they presume is Walter's leg. Cracking use of the close-up/pull away.



Dante and the writers have some real fun poking fun at small town America, the silly personalities and minutiae of living in these towns. How else are these men meant to entertain themselves? The highlight of their day is discovering where Walter's dog will take a dump. 

Hanks' rant at the end has some serious resonance as well - suburbs and towns were undergoing a change in those days, neighbourhoods were getting bigger and strangers were appearing. The days of knowing everyone's names were disappearing. I don't know whether I was looking too hard or already had this idea in my subconscious, but I got feeling that Dante and Co were telling us to not be suspicious of those that were different to us. That then went down to the toilet when they found skeletons in the boot of the Klopeck's car. That'll teach me for looking for meaning.

A negative? Corey Feldman. I remember loving him when I was a kid. Now whenever I see him (I also saw the Lost Boys recently) he irritates me more than Cheryl Cole. And that is saying something.

80's films are enjoying a renaissance at the moment with remakes, re-releases, remasterings and sequels but this one seems to have passed everyone by. You hear very little of it. However, if you mention it to someone who saw it growing up, a familiar smile creeps across their face. If you haven't seen it, watch it. Sod it, go and buy it, I got it for £3 from HMV. A cracking black comedy from a real fan of horror.