30 Years Later and People are still talking about C.H.U.D.!!!!!

 

Back in 1984 I was only 4 years old and I never knew this film existed till about six years later when I was ten. Finding it on during the late nights when I would stay up till about 5 or 6 in the morning and watch whatever smut-filled, horror or down right what the hell did I just watch films that they use to show on USA, Prism or HBO. This is when television to me was great cause you easily be up all night watching movies like this and go bed wondering when will I see that movie again and it be on the following weekend almost at the same time and you were set.

 

But this film stands out to me cause it captured me when I was just finding out you can see films that I would never be allowed to see in the theaters on television. Basic cable may of edited them down so they could fit their schedule, removing violence, gore or nudity. But the fact that I could waste my late nights on watching practically anything I wanted to what did I have to lose? Waking up late on Sunday only meant that I had enough time to go outside and tell my friends about this movie about mutants who are killing people. Trust me when word of mouth from a kid travels it goes leaps and bounds and soon the whole neighborhood was talking about this one movie and parents are pissed cause their child watched a movie where monsters from the sewers were slaughtering people. I've had my fair share of times where I was grounded for doing this. But it only meant I was forced to stay in my room and thanks to basic cable at the time it just meant I watched more and more smut on television.

If you have never seen or heard of this movie than you need to do yourself a favor and go find it. In fact any 80's horror movie if you haven't seen them find them and watch them. Cause the 80's is the best era for horror movies. I don't care what this generation is saying that their horror stockpile is the best. I call bullshit cause there hasn't been a wave of good horror movies in the past decade and a half. There has been hits and a lot of misses in my book. The 80's are hands down the best cause you had 10 years of horror movies that not one year in that decade had a bad movie. But anyway since I am done my little rant about the decades. I have to tell you about this film and back to 1984 we go and director Douglas Cheek with Peter Stein set out to make a horror movie produced by Andrew Bonime. The film would star star at the time who were not as big as they are now such as Daniel Stern and John Heard as well as film debuts for John Goodman and Jay Thomas. The film tells the story of what happens when a cop takes a lead due to a recent flood of missing people reports begin to cause panic in the city and he searching for his own missing wife. All while a former fashion photographer who takes up photographing the homeless stumbles upon something more fiendish than the homeless and all while Nuclear Regulatory Commission tries to cover up something they goofed on.

                        

Now your asking what does C.H.U.D. mean?  C.H.U.D. is an acronym for "Cannibalistic Humanoid Underground Dweller" but in the film during a cover up process in the film its the alternate acronym "Contamination Hazard Urban Disposal".

 

So how does the film stand up after 30 years? Is it as good as it was then? In my book it stands the test of time. Its clearly a cult favorite amongst the horror community. The films name and monsters have been referenced more times than you can think of. From the Simpsons to the Misfits at one time having a drummer named Dr. CHUD. As well as unlocking the monster in Tony Hawk's Underground video game to Clerks 2 when Dante rhetorically asks his boss, Becky, if she thinks he is some kind of ugly C.H.U.D. or something. Only having a million dollar budget the film grossed back its own budget and then another 3 million more. Proving the film was a success and what does that mean when a movie is a success?

SEQUEL!!!!!! Ugh!!!! Let's just say this movie has nothing to do with its original only the fact that it shares the name C.H.U.D.. Trust me its sequel is more a comedy than it is horror and falls flat. How you make a movie about cannibalistic underground dwellers and then try to spin it into a near zombie movie in the sequel?

Fail! Its only shining example is Gerrit Graham whose been in films like Phantom of the Paradise, Terrorvision, Beware! The Blob and Child's Play 2. Another good thing was they avoided putting this out to theaters cause they probably knew ahead of time they had a bomb on their hands and chose to wisely shove it onto shelves on VHS. Trust me I never knew this existed either till I was a bit older from when I first saw C.H.U.D. and upon finding it in the horror section at my local West Coast Video before it was changed into a Blockbusters. I laughed at this when I watched it with my friends, we still joke about it today but its rarely brought up in a discussion.

 

So when was the last time I saw C.H.U.D. well in fact it was 2 years ago I saw it twice. Once during a movie night with friends and then at Exhumed Films 6th annual 24 Hour Horrorthon. So today being its 30th birthday maybe its time to crack open that dvd one more time and give it a spin. Hell I may even watch its seque.......wait lets not go that far. So if your doing nothing tonight during the holiday weekend grab this bad boy and watch it.

 

 

^This bad ass print is done by our friend Chris Garofalo!!

Click the print to go directly to his store to check out his various prints!

 

By Bucky S.