Today's selection is simultaneously a great B-horror movie and an unabashed love letter to the genre itself. Released in 1986 to mixed reviews and little fanfare, Night of the Creeps has gone on to enjoy a dedicated cult following. (In fact, Kim and I caught a midnight screening at the Sunshine just last weekend.) The film's reputation is easy to understand: it's a goofy, tongue-in-cheek aliens-and-zombies movie that's chock full of in-jokes, references to classic horror and sci-fi, and even some stunt casting (including the venerable Dick Miller in a small role).
The plot, itself an homage to Ed Wood's Plan 9 from Outer Space, is relatively simple: A cannister of experimental alien brain slugs crashes to Earth and the slimy little bastards start infecting the brains of both living and dead hosts. A pair of dorky college freshmen and a semi-suicidal detective (the always awesome Tom Atkins) stumble into the middle of it all, and lots of zombie mayhem, head-exloding, teen wisecracking, and slug-burning ensues. It's also another wonderful relic of the 1980s, chock full of preppy blond bad guys, terrible sweaters, neon, and period music by Stan Ridgway, Jane Wiedlin, and others. Hell, the hero is played by the dude who played Rusty in National Lampoon's European Vacation.
Put simply, it's amazing. Unfortunately, Night of the Creeps remains unavailable on DVD, so the only way to experience it is to buy a VHS copy on eBay. Or you could just live vicariously through the movie's MySpace page.
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