The Monster Squad (1987) Retrospective / Review
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 2 ต.ค. 2024
- The Monster Squad (1987) Retrospective / Review
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#themonstersquad #monstersquad #freddekker #oliverharper #wolfman #dracula #frankenstein #retrospectivereview
I was an extra in this film. I’m the one walking in the background in the green shirt at 2:26
I was 15 years old at the time
"Wolfman's got nards!" the line every kid who saw this remembers. Such a classic. 🤘
That and "Know any Virgins."
Sad to hear that kid dies in 1997
Watching this as an adult you realize they didn’t even need the sister. They are all virgins!
@@mojosodope45 it needed to be a female virgin
Lol and hearing it on the playground
The Goonies + Ghostbusters = The Monster Squad. An 80's teen classic!
Actually it's more like The House of Frankenstein + Stan By Me x The 80s = The Monster Squad
Explorer + Ghostbusters
@@scaccu all good points
@@mogensschmidt2498Dream Warriors
The Goonies + Universal Studios Monsters = The Monster Squad
Now I want to see an Extended Director's Cut of Monster Squad.
I know I’m gonna catch some heat for saying this BUT....I love this movie waaaayyyy more than the Goonies.
Correct answer.
Yep. It’s better in every way. I like Goonies. I love Monster Squad.
Hell no, not from me, I totally agree. 🤘
I never like The Goonies.
I get so much shit for that too, but whatev
That's only because you have good taste
"I know this is gonna sound pretty stupid" - The '80s
Also, this movie has no business being this good. Loved it as a kid.
I loved it as a kid and still love it as an adult.
None whatsoever! Better werewolf than most flicks I've seen
"as a kid" fuck that. I love this movie even now. I have the poster hanging on my wall and even met some of the cast. As a fan of the Classic Universal Monsters, this movie is a freaking dream come true.
@@KingKhan-my2lf yeah I really like the ww design here
@@thefanwithoutaface8105 I loved it as a kid because like Oliver points out well, the director/script writer did a great job letting kids be kids of the time, which I could connect with rather than it being very sanitized. I remember throwing the bird and cursing big time when I was in middle school. And yeah sorry, for me, as a kid. I'm sure I'd enjoy it now but, I'm not much of a fanatic in general. I can appreciate it though. (also loved night of the creeps)
I'm so glad that one of my favorite channels is covering a classic from my childhood.
I agree!!! this was one of my favorites as a kid, and one of the few horror/comedies that comes with a rather sad ending
This is one of my favorite movies ever, and probably my favorite portrayal of Dracula.
Kid
“You know a lot about monsters”
Creepy German guy
“Yes I suppose I do”
Perfection
Subtle yet heartbreaking. Sadly most young adults wouldn't even get the clues to why that line had such weight.
Nazis = bad. Buddy. Being German has nothing to do with it.
@Disney is the Devil The Concentration Camp Tattoo is the evidence of bad, not that the guy's a German, you dipstick!
Van Helsing laying siege to Dracula’s castle with machine guns on a zeppelin is possibly the coolest scene idea I’ve heard of.
Fits with Shane Black's sensibility, as his originally scripted ending for Lethal Weapon was a car flying off the Hollywood sign and Cocaine raining down on La La Land.
Man, this one was one of my favorites growing up. It's a damn shame it bombed at the box office.
“The Monster Squad” is a enjoyable movie of the 80s. It’s campy & fun! I’ve always been surprised it didn’t do well when originally released . Cult classic with a following. As mentioned, Little Rascals v Universal Monster’s. Good SFX. Another Fred Dekkar movie worth watching is “The night of the creeps” also a lot of fun. Both are homages to old school horror/sci-fi. There is enough material for a remake with more edgy storyline & the kids being older. “Wolfman’s got nards!”
Dekkar didnt do Night of the Comet. he did Night of the Creeps. which is what i think you meant... maybe. but yeah oliover mentioned night of the creeps a few times in this.
If a remake happened, I'd absolutely love Edgar Wright to do it. I know he'd get the tone and manner just right. Maybe he could update it by bringing video game refs into it.
David James Definitely agree Edgar Wright would be the perfect choice!
I love the fact that the wolfman in this movie is Uncle Rico from Napoleon Dynamite. No wonder he liked steak so much!
He also played a werewolf in "Fright Night Part II"...surprised Oliver didn't mention that
Also, Lazlo in Real Genius.
@@DrRiddlez2015 fairly certain he was a vampire in Fright Night 2.
@@oaktree1626 holy shit. That's uncle Rico?!
@@dakotachannel8142 Yep. Living in Val Kilmer's closet. 😄
Said it on multiple other vids, but the Dark Universe should’ve been an Avengers style accumulation based on the Monster Squad concept
I believe the plan was for each movie to introduce the character as an anti-hero with a tragic past, and then they'd do a team-up movie with them being an Avengers style outfit headed by Russel Crowe and his SHIELD like organisation, against actual villains.
@@davidjames579 And that's the problem right there.
We love these characters as villains, not as tragic anti-heroes. Like this Dracula Untold bullshit. If you wanna give him a tragic backstory, fine but don't make him a hero.
@@wjzav1971 Universal said we want an MCU. What have we got in our history that could fulfill that.
@@davidjames579 I'm not sure what you are trying to say here.
Please rephrase this sentence
@@wjzav1971 That Universal wanted a shared universe like Marvel's, and thought what characters have we used before that we could do that with. They took the copy the MCU memo so literally they wanted the characters to be heroes fighting together. Although as famous villains they'd have to start off bad, most probably because of a tragic backstory, and then they'd be redeemed. You could watch that story play out 5 times before a team up movie.
I cherish this film. Shame what happened with Fred Dekker. What a talent.
He could of made a good comeback. Every director makes a dud...
@@thejamesbondshowwithkrazyk4581 could *have
“Wolfman’s got nards!” I love this movie so much.
This and My Science Project have a similar feel to it and I love them both. These are fun to watch on a lazy night or Sunday afternoon.
Dude you know about My Science Project and you like Monster Squad you get major points for that.🧛♂️🧟♂️👻👽👾 squad 4 life
@@robertmartinez3165 I'm like George C Scott in Patton when he tells his friend the story about all those great battles that took place in history
"I was there!"
Ha ha.
I love My Science Project, glad to know other people enjoy that movie as much as I do
I've heard of this film but never seen it. I'm definitely going to have to remedy that, it looks great fun. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.
I always felt The Monster Squad and The Goonies we’re like cousins, like to make these a double feature and have loved the film since the VHS release. 👍🏻
An underrated classic. Duncan Regher was great as Dracula. I remember watching him in the Zorro tv show growing up.
Some nice poignant moments with the scary German guy's concentration camp number on his arm and Frankenstein's reaction to the Frankenstein mask.
I love the heroic music where Van Helsing pulls Dracula into the portal at the end.
Monster Squad is an absolute classic. It's up there with any of Amblins, and Joe Dante's Explorers and also Flight Of The Navigator as an 80's suburban kids adventure. Plus the kids swearing, and other naughty humour just adds to it, as it feels authentic.
I actually saw it at school! I think the teacher didn't notice it was a 15! And luckily was too busy chatting with a colleague to hear "know any virgins?" or "You Biiiitch!".
"Night of the Creeps" was a frickin' masterpiece.
Such an underrated gem.
Performed by a top notch youtube content creator.
As a little boy I remember seeing Van Helsing wrestling with Dracula at the end of the movie and thinking "that's the bravest man I've ever seen!"
I loved that beagle in this movie. Such a cute little pupper.
Another point; I loved how Van Helsing and Dracula were interlocked in battle going down the drain of hell. It was like Holmes and Moriarty at the Reichenbach Falls.
Very well acted, especially Dracula & the Wolf Man as when he was human his desperate attempts to stop the transformation felt so real and heartbreaking. When he’s finally shot w the silver bullet and his last words are “thank you.”
I always had a headcanon that Wolf Man was Rudy's dad. Phoebe saying, "I heard he killed his dad", the implication that Rudy didn't have much in the way of parental supervision (which might happen if your dad is struggling with being a werewolf), and the way Rudy appeared absolutely destroyed when he finally killed Wolf Man, even as he was saying, "thank you". And Jon Gries injected so much emotion into that line that I could imagine there was a subtext that it had even more implication than Rudy just ending that ordeal for him. IDK, you just get these weird ideas in your head when you're young and they take root there and can't be excised.
I love how they just GET Van Helsing’s diary. Like, they don’t find it in some old house, no discovery or museum heist or whatever, they just sorta buy it at a book fair.
"Is she a Vir-shinn??"
Loved Eugene!!
Me & a buddy of mine, from time to time quote that exact line!
Steven Beoethy
I had to ask my mum was a “vershin” was... embarrassed conversation that was as a kid 😂
I have to say, just watching this retrospective made me smile. Well done!
Epically underrated movie. Also a thousand times better than Universal Studios Dark Universe ever was.
Olivier's got Nards!! I know that makes no sense but I had to say it...lol.
This is so nostalgic for me, I’m born 96 and me and my mom bought it (VHS) on a sell out in a grocery store around 2000-2002 ish here in Sweden,for some weird reason I liked horror movies when I was little, we bought the monster squad and a Stephen king vhs 2 for price of 1! And this film was a masterpiece, damn I miss those times very very nostalgic movie! And I remember the excitement when we bought those 2 movies and how much I liked the movie even tho I was around 5 years old 😅
I discovered your channel with Jurassic Park.... And I can't tell you how happy I was to see Monster Squad in your list of retrospect videos.
I love this series of videos, I hope you keep doing them.
As iconic as Bela Lugosi and as masterful as Gary Oldman were in the role of Dracula, Duncan Regehr is by far the most badass intimidating Dracula. I love his unflinching no hold bars beat down of the cops. This Dracula even tried to blow up kids with dynamite!
*The Monster Squad,* *The Lost Boys,* *Near Dark* 1987 was a great year for horror!
Is *Weird Science* next??
yeah!
Near dark.. I forgot about that 1. Great movie
@@andyvenable4497 Oh! _The Gate_ too 🖐🏻👁
YES! Great movie, a childhood favorite. Nothing gets me in the mood for Halloween quite like this movie. It needs more love.
Love this film, but it does suffer from being too short. Hopefully a director's cut will one day be released.
Yep I'm a old film fan and a teen of the 1980s. I watched this great little fun horror film at the local cinema when it 1st came out in 1987. Loved it then and still love it now. Of all the crap remakes Hollywood is currently doing over the last 10 years, I'd actually like to see this film get a remake/reboot or sequel.
Another great review! I loved this film growing up as it brought together all my favourite monsters in a film that somehow works.
The child actors were great, Stan Winston's creature designs were amazing, and Fred Dekker did a fantastic job directing.
A truly classic nostalgic film.
Everything about this film, even the little quirks, are awesome. I'd even say that it's got as special a feel as The Goonies for me. The film's got a nostalgia connection but from the late 90's when I saw most of it around Halloween at my Gran's house I think, but I didn't know what it was until many years later because I'd missed the beginning of the film.
Brilliant video Ollie, always love how you put quite a good bit of the film at the end. It makes me want to watch the film you're featuring again =)
Came across it as a teenager in 2007 and loved it and to this day as a adult I still love it.
I was an '80s kid in the '80s when I first saw this '80s moviefilm from the '80s when it first came out in the '80s and it was on '80s HBO with its '80s intro/promo in the '80s. It's one of the '80sest '80s movies that ever '80s'd. So it totally has a nostalgia effect for me. I recently rewatched it and the pacing seemed a bit too fast, plus everything you pointed out about plot holes and the movie being too short is spot-on. I didn't notice those details as an '80s kid in the '80s with a MacGyver mullet.
19:09 That's authentic to how we '80s kids talked in the '80s.
20:10 Why does he wear a Confederate soldier's cap, though? Canceled?!
20:27 Fact. That's what yer crazy '80s U.N.C.L.E. might have had on his '80s wall in the '80s.
20:33 A lot of the best '80s movies from the '80s were inspired by or were remakes of '50s classics from the '50s.
20:38 Those shoes don't match the rest of his getup. Those look more like something an '80s Boomer who was born in the late '40s would wear in the '80s. Or what someone from the Silent Generation who was born in the '30s would wear in the '80s.
22:24 Why do they have their helmets unfastened?! Why do movie people always do that?!
25:06 / 26:09 At night, though? Plus, the church's lights are on. Church's don't typically have a night shift. Or should I say "Graveyard Shift." [[cue Graveyard Shift theme song]]
If you like The Monster Squad, check out WOLFMAN'S GOT NARDS! A DOCUMENTARY! PRE-ORDER (release date: 10/27) iTunes (digital download): @t | Amazon (Blu-Ray/DVD): @t
I remember watching this movie on HBO. I was like 10 years back in 1988. Awesome movie, I will never forget this movie. 2 thumbs up 👍 👍🧛🏻♂️
why haven't you done THE LOST BOYS Retrospective / Review???
Watched this movie in the late 80s when I was 8ish. I think it must have gone to sky movies quickly after bombing at the cinema. I remember my friends and I loving it and having our own plans, supplies and preparations in place if monsters attacked
There's something very funny about Dracula calling a five year old girl a "bitch."
Of all the memorable scenes in this movie, the short moment of sean 's dad bringing him burger king and watching the movie with him, hits home every time.
This movie is a family favorite. We’ve seen it upwards of 100+ times. It’s one of those childhood films that, upon revisiting, you go “holy shit this is actually really good”. Not only that, but very few kid adventure films nowadays would have the kind of violence, horror and profanity this film had. But that’s an important part of its charm. Such an excellent ensemble cast and Duncan’s Dracula is easily the coolest, most badass of interpretations. He’s like the T-1000 meets Dracula. Great breakdown, Oliver!
I saw this when I was like 9 or so on a VHS copy. Perfect age really.
I must have rented this movie at least 50 times when I was a kid. Sure, it’s goofy, and the story isn’t perfect, but I absolutely love it.
One of my all time favorites from the 80s. Nostalgic, I listen to the soundtrack in my car still. The conviction of the kids and the quality of the monsters makeup really makes this hold up today.
R.I.P. Brent Chalem (1975-1997) 😥🙏🏻
These are so rare now. All we get from this guy are movie commentary videos.
I recently discovered this film a few years ago as well and I love it to bits and bobbies. It’s so sweet and endearing and I giggle like mad whenever I watch it.
Loved this when I was a kid, thought it was the coolest thing ever.
Loving your videos, I was an 80s kid, born in the early 70s, remember this well, preferred the goonies and still do, my nostalgia for the goonies is as much as raiders but...I remember the monster squad was so cool. No one at school had even seen it, or cared. But, this and the goonies inspired me and my friend Shaun to go trespassing in woods, farmers fields, building sites and abandoned houses - always looking for adventure. We took home made weapons, rope, swiss army knives, home made waterproof matches even, black widow catapults, Rambo knives with survival shit in the handle...good times, life was different then....and fun. Loved it and always look back with happiness...
Keep this stuff going mate. Thankyou Lee
I absolutely loved this movie and still do. My eyes well up when Frankenstein saves Phoebe.
I love this movie. A classic in my country (Brazil). Here... this movie is weird named ''Deu a Louca nos Monstros'' (Something like ''Monster be Wild\mad''). :P I wanted a sequel, but, the director say ''a sequel (with the actors in adult age and your sons) will compared with 'IT' is this days''. :(
The Universal Studios need learn (again) how make ''shared universes''. Failed in many tries: ''American Werewolf in London''; ''Darkman''; ''The Mummy trilogie'' (with Brandon Frasier); is good adventure\monster movies... but... ''Van Helsing''? ''Dracula''? and this new ''Mummy'' with Cruise? Oh my God... horrible movies. For me, Universal Studios need make a crossover with ''American Werewolf'''s elements, ''Darkman'' (like the ''main hero'' of this shared dark universe); a Van Helsing's grand-grand-son\daughter and new versions of classic Universal Monsters like enemies. A little adventure, like ''90's Mummy'', but with horror in the climax.
Sorry my poor english, friends (I'am brazilian) ;)
The only movie where Tom Noonan didn't play a villain.
Tom Noonan will always be Cain from Robocop 2 to me.
And he still technically played a monster....go figure
@@PhilLeotardosGhost And The Ripper from Last Action Hero
THANK YOU SOOOOOOOO MUCH FOR THIS!!!!!.. This is one of my fav movies
I'm born in 1975, always lived in Dallas, TX and saw every classic 80s movie there is. I've never heard of Monster Squad...weird but it looks pretty awesome, I woulda loved it at 12 years old in '87.
I just bought this on DVD after watching Ok he's great retrospective.
Her as my view...I LOVED IT....They'll never make such awesome non politically correct films like this again.
Can't recommend it enough. It so deserved a sequel but like many if you I never heard of it either ☹
Best kids movie ever. Well better than Goonies.
Was one of my favorites as a kid. What I would do to relive that first time I watched this movie in wonder, bewilderment, and some measure of fear at seven or so years old.
Wolfman’s got nards!
in this when the cop goes. "2000 year old dead guys dont just get up and walk around".. cut to mummy walking.
dekkar did this gag pretty much exactly in night of the creeps as well with the with the frozen brain slug dude.
tom adkins as the cop "40 year old dead guys dont just get up and walk around"... cut to dead dude walking...
ha. i love it.
Got Dammit I LOVE THE MONSTER SQUAD !!! I tried so hard to be cool like Rudy and it just didnt happen lol. At best im maybe like Eugene lol jk.....I love this amazing coming of age movie. Now would be the perfect time to release a sequel or requel with no additives or flare, just a shot for shot remake or sequel from the OG cast, without Horace, Scary Gernan Guy and Shawns Mom Respectfully as they have passed away. However i would much more want a sequel with the OG cast and maybe a fill in for Horace,vut they can pick it up inside the everyday lives of the OG cast. No gimmicky stuff either just 80s style good old fun and a tad bit scarier,bot bloodier,but more tension yes.
"Hey fat kid, nice job." " My name *shotgun click* is Horace!"
I'm so glad more people are talking about this classic film! I loved watching The Monster Squad as a kid and I still love watching it now
How ironic! I didn't discover this movie until this year! (2019) I totally missed it on cable throughout the 90's, and now that I know it featured some missing scenes, I wish I could find the TV-cut. =( However, I agree it shouldn't be remade, but I DO wish we could get a follow-up movie, or at least an OG director's cut. =)
Love this film! Always cry like a bitch at the end "DONT GO FRANKENSTEIN PLEEEEEASE DONT GO..." :_(
shame this wasnt part of your childhood. its awesome. goonies meets monsters. everything you nitpicked at cause you had no nostalgia for i was just like.... "so..." haha. nostalgia goggles are thick on this one for me.
It’s no Fright Night (or Fright Night 2, which is also perfect somehow) but it truly stands the test of time and repeated watches. Shane Black + strong direction + practical effects and/or believably intense action = a hard combination to beat. For me, Fright Night, Phantasm and Halloween 3 are just the peak of the mountain.
Another 80's title showing HOW COMPLICIT Hollywood was with PREMATURE SCARIFICATION. - So much due in return.
This film was not nearly as good as it could have been. However, it was against The Lost Boys the same month of that year. A much better film.
well excist the fact that they forgot about the invisible man, the hunchback of notre domta, the phantom of the opera, and dr. jeykll and mr hyde but still this movie is great and i will love it forever
Ah man a zeppelin with machine guns fighting 400 Wives of Dracula on horseback damn I want to see that
Ah yes, Shane Black and Fred Dekker. Wouldn't it be nice to see them collaborate again...oh wait.
On a side note, I find it interesting how many movies were released in the '80s involving "traditional" horror icons like vampires, ghosts, and werewolves.
"Too scary for kids, too tame for adults." Dekker is just weird. The Predator was the same kind of mess.
Well, I'll take his word for it.
This is an awesome movie! As was Night of the Creeps...
I was so proud I was able to explain the origin of the "Wolfman's got nards" quote, when a perplexed friend showed me the spine of an issue of Empire magazine where it appeared...
One of my Desert Island movies for sure.
Be safe, Dude. :)
I think this works because, while it's cheesy and kinda dumb, it's totally sincere in its execution. There's a genuine warmth and reverence for the monsters of old. Other attempts at this were preoccupied with being really slick and modern and it just came off as lame. This is definitely a product of the 80s; but it was made with care and love.
Fun fact: Jon Gries played a werewolf twice, once here in Monster Squad and also in Fright Night Part II. (Haven’t finished the video, my apologies if you end up mentioning this, I’m currently on the actor roll call lol)
Does anyone know when the "Wolfman's got nards" documentary is going to be released? I keep looking for it to rent digitally or buy it, but can't find it anywhere even though it says it's been released in 2018.
Lovely review for this absolutely charming film. Watching in May 2020 during lockdown!
OMG... Kids Incorporated, hearing you mention that brought back horrible memories of my older sister watching that stupid show... Musicals and any entertainment with choreographed songs makes me feel embarrassed be of the same species as the performers
House of Frankenstein 1997 mini series had a Frankenstein monster that looked similar to the one in this movie.
He was also a werewolf in Fright Night 2, and he's OD in Terrorvision
Great movie! I seen this in the cinema in Ireland in late 1988, wonderful.
"Eat your candy bar EJ!"
"Ruddddy'😀
The Black Dahlia Murder - Nocturnal ending:
"Soon, the creatures of the night shall rule the world. And there is no one to stop UUUUSSS!"
The video is over. Meeting adjourned.
4:06, NIGHT OF THE CREEPS FTW!!!
The Monster Squad was a solid video renter in the UK back in the day. It wasn't big or hyped, but I wouldn't say it went under the radar. This movie was lucky that it came out just at the time when video rental hits were becoming almost as important as theatrical ones.
I shared a room with a brother 4 years older than me. Our wall and ceiling was covered in Iron Maiden posters.
The kids bedroom in Poltergeist has an Alien poster, so this 70's/80's pop culture worship was present even at the time.
Movie posters in bedrooms were very rare up until the mid-80's, simply because they had never been aggressively marketed to private consumers until then. That's why most all of the older movie posters you see carry the same white-frame and full credits format, they were just meant for movie theaters. If you wanted a poster for yourself, you usually had to buy or pilfer it directly from the theater. That all changed with Batman. That marketing campaign was insane, flipping all of the industry's standards. No frame, no text, not even the movie's title... madness! That's when the film industry learned that they could make a quick buck selling their own advertising. Before then, the only movie posters you saw were in the homes of theatre employees, their friends, and *hardcore* movie buffs.
I love Alien, and Aliens is my favorite movie of all time, and even I didn't have those posters. It was all The Doors, Grateful Dead, and Yes album covers for me. The Poltergeist poster just feels like a contrived nod from the director to one of his favorite films.
@@santiago451 I did not know that.
Up the Irons!
Night of the creeps was such a cool movie!! Love it! Too bad he didn’t made more. Again: dumb dumb studios!
This movie is why the 80's was an awesome time to be a kid. I caught this on cable with my brothers & sisters and just fell in love with it. This wouldn't have worked in any other era but the 80's. Great job Oliver.
Maybe I saw this movie too late in life but I found it to be pretty lame. Id rather watch Ernest Scared Stupid which has become nearly unwatchable now, but both movies had great treehouses.
Seems i was the only 80's kid with F1, wrc, lambo and honda posters, a japanese amry flag and samurai chambara poster.
As a kid, I loved this movie... What kid wouldn't? All kids love movies in which the characters are kids that find themselves in a situation where they're on their own without the help of adults.