Creepshow is memorable for several reasons, the first being its writer, Stephen King, who also stars in it. The second being George Romero, who would ultimately direct it, and finally, its cast, comprising numerous luminaries from the screen, both big and small. People like Hal Holbrook, Ted Danson, Leslie Nielsen, E. G. Marshall, Viveca Lindfors, Adrienne Barbeau, Fritz Weaver, Ed Harris and more. If there is one thing a person could say about this film, it is that it was set up for success.

There are five stories to be had in this affair, and it makes for a fairly uneven mix as a few are good, better than one of them, while another is better than all. The first, called Father’s Day, was decent but seemed to run a little on the long side, while the second, starring King himself, was a little more interesting. Called “The Lonesome Death of Jordy Verrill,” it would find King taking on the comedic while still trying to convey the horror of his situation. At times, it was agonizing, though towards the end, it redeemed itself when the ‘death’ part came into play. Something to Tide You Over would feature Neilson as a killer, tormenting and torturing poor Ted Dansen before getting his comeuppance in the end. The fourth outing, entitled The Crate, was decent enough, with the great Hal Holbrook taking the lead. It would find him discovering a monster in a crate and having to deal with his beautiful, yet abusive, wife, as played by the wonderful Adrienne Barbeau. The final story in this anthology is called “They’re Creeping Up on You,” starring E. G. Marshall, and it is the most disturbing of the bunch, with its final scene being particularly gross.

Some may think, given the title, that this would be a straight-up horror movie, but there is a good dose of comedy and humour throughout. It proves that there is more to King than just macabre drama, and given his acting within, more to the man than just being a writer. That being said, King is no incredible thespian, and his tale is the worst of the bunch simply because it is so incredibly corny, but even then, it is still not all that bad. The performances from the cast elevate the material from a poor B film to a reasonably solid B movie. There is a lot of cheese throughout, and thankfully, Romero is present to lend a steady hand through the thick of it, to balance that humour with the scares King is trying to push through the screen. Sometimes the horror is effective and sometimes it is not, much like the comedy throughout. Holbrook provides a bit of mirth during his skit, the man able to put across the misery he feels around his wife while making it darkly comedic as well. Neilson is fantastic, funny even when he tries to play it straight, and he was perfectly cast as a serial killer who finally gets what is coming to him after murdering Dansen.

The scares are few despite the horror within. Children might find some of it frightening, although the cockroaches that appear at the end of the film would give anyone pause. Tom Savini, who provides the special effects, does a great job of making each element in this movie as memorable as possible, whether it’s the bugs mentioned earlier, the creature in the crate, or even the transformation of man into a tree. All in all, when one takes everything into account, the film was a hodgepodge of content that was hit and miss. One cannot expect that everything will be a win when it comes to anthologies, and when it comes to Creepshow, it was good. Not bad, not excellent, simply good and worth at least a single watch.

3 out of 5