that you can only really enjoy now if you grew up with it. I normally love these kind of films from the 80's but I just watched this one for the first time and it was for the most pretty painful. A few funny moments but it wasn't anywhere near as good as The Goonies.
shareI didn't grow up in its time period, but 80's movies have impacted my life fantastically. I love them all, and I wouldn't have a great taste in literature, movies, and (my brother may disagree) fashion. The Monster Squad is one of those films, how would I ever have known that wolfman's got nards? The Goonies I watched a little younger than I am now. Maybe when I was seven. Wow, that was +/- 10 years ago. I digress, The Goonies taught me lessons on how friendship and family is pretty much all you have in life. Ditto for the Monster Squad. I can go on with more films from the 80's. Some of which are good (The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, Adventures in Babysitting, The Burning, Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th, ALL STAR WARS FILMS; I could keep going) and some bad yet still a good one to watch to laugh (Friday the 13th part 8: Jason Takes Manhattan, Evil Dead 2, Stand by Me) and then you have the totally bad movies which you only have to watch once to know it was just for money (Jaws 3 I'm looking at you). Nevertheless, my life wouldn't have been as awesome without those movies. For example, for Halloween one year, I dressed up as Data from The Goonies. And I was DECKED OUT! I wore a hidden glove, slick shoes, etc. And while I was trick or treating, a bunch of bigger kids decided to try to take my candy, so I let them have the hidden glove and slippery run routine. I was down the road before they could wipe the gravel from their asses. That was a fun year, anyways, the 80's has been there for me thick and thin because it had nowhere to go. It's like the friend my parents weren't happy to let me have. But anyways, that's my case as to why I love the 80's more than any other time period from 1900-2012. THE END, thanks for reading my long entry.
shareI grew up with The Monster Squad and The Goonies, and aside from the fact they both deal with groups of kids, they really are nothing alike. At all.
I probably prefer Monster Squad of the two. It's more compact, more mature, and less shrill and noisy.
But it's impossible to see the film objectively. I made my wife watch Monster Squad thinking she would like it, but nope, not at all. But then again, she hates pretty much any movie I suggest and loves everything she finds without my help...
I can't imagine it would be 'painful', I mean, the running time is only about 75 minutes, but I definitely agree it is the kind of film, like many kids films, that one had to grow up with to get the most out of it. That said, almost everything from the 1980's was an acquired taste.
Never defend crap with 'It's just a movie'
http://www.youtube.com/user/BigGreenProds
As a kid, I prefered The Monster Squad. As an adult, I enjoy The Goonies slightly more.
shareI didn't grow up with or like either of them
shareWell, thanks for sharing lol.
shareI was actually coming here to see if anyone thought the opposite.
I absolutely LOVED this movie as a kid. My dad taped it off of television for me and I watched it constantly. Sometimes I'd just fast forward to the big monster showdown at the end, to see the brides getting shot with the bow and arrows and to see Dracula get sucked into the portal. For years, watching this movie has been one of my strongest and fondest childhood memories.
After having not seen it for close to 20 years, I rented it last night, hoping to relive the joy and share the love with my wife, who's a huge horror movie nut and 80s-movie addict.
From a grown up perspective, it starts out strong, but once the first 20-30 minutes are gone and the grittiness of foul-mouthed 12-year-olds wears off, this really is a movie that's at its' best in the eyes of a kid. Which, to me, is sad, because the beginning is very much a family-oriented version of Fred Dekker's other 80s opus, Night of the Creeps. There's some initially strong character building and the idea that there's more going on beneath the surface of these characters lives. But that goes by the wayside pretty quickly and it becomes a very thin, very shallow movie about fighting monsters.
And that's not bad. I don't dislike the movie; and I don't think a kids' movie has to be super deep or compelling. Sometimes its' just cool to watch monsters fighting. But, for me, I think it's something that was best enjoyed with healthy doses of immaturity and obliviousness.
Completely agree with the OP. I loved this movie as a kid, but I saw it tonight for the first time in 25 years and was completely bored by it. I didn't laugh once. On the other hand, my two young sons thought it was the coolest movie in the world.
share