MovieChat Forums > The Monster Squad (1987) Discussion > Movie Oddity *Spoilers Everywhere*

Movie Oddity Spoilers Everywhere

posted 12 years ago by SocialMediaFluff
2 replies | jump to latest

I've had an appreciation for campy movies since I can remember and absolutely love this movie. It's silly with questionable acting and a ton of holes in the plot, but I still watch it every Halloween with my kids.

Not to mention, this is one of my favorite versions of Dracula - scary and acting with a single purpose.

One thing I did find odd, the entire death count in the movie - which was amazingly high for a tweener movie - seemed to come from explosions or gunshots. For example, I didn't see one scene where a vampire actually bit anyone. I don't understand why they would bother having the deaths in the movie at all if they wouldn't be caused in the traditional "monster" fashion. It's not like they didn't show violence or kill the monsters in the expected way (silver bullet, stake through heart, ect), so why not have Dracula killing people by biting them?

This has bothered me since I first watched this movie decades ago. Did I miss a deleted scene somewhere where a vampire actually bit or the Wolfman actually ravaged?

[–] Rey_Kahuka 12 years ago

I think that's the key, monster deaths aren't taken as seriously as human deaths, so you can get away with more. I think the only humans that die on screen are either blown up or sucked into Limbo, neither of which are particularly graphic.

Conversely, the monster deaths are basically viewed as cartoon violence, so you can throw more of that stuff into a kids movie (or at least you could back then).

There might be a thread on this already, but I was just discussing the 'things from Monster Squad that you would never see in modern kids movies' with my wife after watching it again. I don't think a kids' movie coming out today would have as many sexual references, kids making bullets in school, or kids using guns; and they certainly wouldn't have the gay slurs or kids smoking cigarettes. Dracula calls a 5 year old girl a bitch, I love it!

Since I've already hijacked the thread (but I think this is somewhat on topic as it deals with things I don't think they'd have in kids' movies today), I'd also like to point out the terrible parenting on display, since it provides tons of unintentional comedy for me. Sean's father openly discussing marriage counseling with him (maybe some parents would do that with a kid his age, I don't know), Sean's father allowing him to sit outside on the roof-- as a thunderstorm rolls in-- and watch a movie. The mother leaving a candle burning unattended next to a child's bed.

What makes Monster Squad great for me are all these little details that probably led to its ultimate box office failure. It was at times too grown up, and at other times too childish. It had no true target audience. It's a shame it wasn't more successful, but looking back, I can't say I'm surprised. I'm just glad it exists, it's always going to be one of my favorites.

[–] reaseltbim 11 years ago

well the 3 girls Dracula fed from became vampires themselves. So yeah that would be 3 kills.

I don't know who died or who didn't but at the end the Wolfman and Dracula (And Gillman) attack all those cops. You could say they only injured them, but they were attacked anyway.
Frankenstein was the good guy, and the Mummy could barely walk.

But like I said, at the end Dracula and Wolfman do attack people. the fact that they don't kill them was probably to not show any blood, but who knows if any of those cops died from their injuries.

One ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them.