Tremors (1990)
83%RT Audience Score: 75%
Awards & Nominations: 5 nominations
An affectionate throwback to 1950s creature features, Tremors reinvigorates its genre tropes with a finely balanced combination of horror and humor
Tremors is the perfect movie for those who love a good mix of horror and comedy. The practical effects are impressive, and the characters are well-developed, making it easy to root for them as they face off against giant, underground monsters. It’s like a western, but with monsters, and it’s so absurd that you can’t help but laugh. Plus, who doesn’t love a good B-movie homage? Tremors is a classic that still holds up today, and it’s definitely worth a watch.
Production Company(ies)
Ear Goggles
Distributor
MCA/Universal Pictures [us]
Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Limited)
Filming Location(s)
Alabama Hills, Lone Pine, California, USA
MPAA / Certificate
PG-13
Year of Release
1990
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:1h 36m
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:France, Guatemala, Luxembourg
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Jan 19, 1990 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 29, 2005
Genre(s)
Horror
Keyword(s)
starring Kevin Bacon, Fred Ward, Finn Carter, Michael Gross, Reba McEntire, Robert Jayne, directed by Ron Underwood, written by S.S Wilson, Brent Maddock, horror, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Anton Bitel, Ty Burr, Michael Wilmington, Steve Simels, Kim Newman, PG-13, Brent Maddock, S.S Wilson, MCA/Universal Pictures, practical effects, creature feature, small town, subterranean monsters, seismologist, survival, humor, western, science-fiction, comedy, special effects, practical effects, horror-comedy, family-friendly, cheesy fun, tension, simplistic, science fiction
Worldwide gross: $16,667,084
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $38,424,118
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,450
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 4,190,198
US/Canada gross: $16,667,084
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $38,424,118
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,182
US/Canada opening weekend: $3,731,520
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $8,602,607
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 996
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $11,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $25,359,283
Production budget ranking: 1,240
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $13,655,974
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): -$591,139
ROI to date (est.): -2%
ROI ranking: 1,403
Fred Ward – Earl Bassett
Finn Carter – Rhonda LeBeck
Michael Gross – Burt Gummer
Reba McEntire – Heather Gummer
Robert Jayne – Melvin Plug
Director – Ron Underwood
Producers – Brent Maddock, S.S. Wilson
Writers – S.S. Wilson, Brent Maddock
Director(s)
Ron Underwood
Writer(s)
S.S. Wilson, Brent Maddock
Producer(s)
Brent Maddock, S.S. Wilson
Film Festivals
Berlin
Awards & Nominations
5 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (46) | Top Critics (11) | Fresh (40) | Rotten (6)
Propelled by impressive practical effects, this is an oater-inflected monster movie which fully embraces its own icky absurdity and literally low culture – but the film’s hidden weapon is a strong focus on characterisation.
July 4, 2022
Anton Bitel
Little White Lies
TOP CRITIC
Tremors is the Slacker of monster movies: bemused, improvisatory, willfully low-key.
January 22, 2020 | Rating: B+
Ty Burr
Entertainment Weekly
TOP CRITIC
It’s a zippy melodrama for small-town America and small-towners at heart: well-executed kitsch for audiences that will still be amused at the notion that the bugs are getting so big, they’ll drag us all down.
January 22, 2020
Michael Wilmington
Los Angeles Times
TOP CRITIC
Unlike the typical movie homage, Tremors actually improves on the B-movies that inspired it.
January 22, 2020
Steve Simels
Entertainment Weekly
TOP CRITIC
Entertaining and unself-conscious enough to stand the test of time, even if the puppetry doesn’t.
February 3, 2011 | Rating: 4/5
Kim Newman
Empire Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Tremors has a few clever twists but ultimately can’t decide what it wants to be – flat-out funny, which it’s not, or a scarefest.
October 18, 2008
Variety Staff
Variety
TOP CRITIC
This is a rollicking, rip-roaring funhouse ride, with enough rude shocks to keep you anxiously on-guard, and enough self-mocking sass to be immensely, exhilaratingly funny.
May 13, 2022
Joe Leydon
The Moving Picture Show
It captures the structure and speed of those ’50s sci-fi classics better than just about any other attempted update in this field.
June 13, 2021 | Rating: 3/4
Matt Brunson
Film Frenzy
The mixture of unexceptional heroes, monster movie violence, and tame comedy – all unraveling in a desolate, arid landscape – is certainly unique.
September 25, 2020 | Rating: 5/10
Mike Massie
Gone With The Twins
It paints in western shades a science-fiction comedy canvas in which the brilliant leading duo, the imaginative work of the director and the special effects department stand out. [Full Review in Spanish]
April 28, 2020
Sergio Benítez
Espinof
It’s hard to not grin and give in to the buoyant, boisterous, bloody and, yes, brainy energy here -from cockamamie camera placement to practical effects and editorial rhythms that sometimes recall Sam Raimi at his rowdiest.
January 30, 2020 | Rating: 4/5
Nick Rogers
Midwest Film Journal
A simple and entertaining film. Nothing more and nothing less. [Full Review in Spanish]
January 22, 2020
Antonio Lara
El Pais (Spain)…
Plot
A small town gradually becomes aware of a strange creature which picks off people one by one. But what is this creature, and where is it? At the same time, a seismologist is working in the area, she detects _tremors_. The creature lives underground, and can ‘pop up’ without warning. Trapped in their town, the town-folk have no escape.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
There is no goofy or funny or odd comment about the film Tremors on Fresh Kernels.
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