Natives of a small isolated town defend themselves against strange underground creatures which are killing them one by one.Natives of a small isolated town defend themselves against strange underground creatures which are killing them one by one.Natives of a small isolated town defend themselves against strange underground creatures which are killing them one by one.
- Director
- Writers
- Stars
- Awards
- 5 nominations total
Tom Woodruff Jr.
- Grabboid
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
7.2163.1K
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Featured reviews
Worms! Worms! Underground drag racing worms!
Loved the movie. How could you not? It has two lovably bumbling buddies, Val and Earl, played to perfection by Kevin Bacon and Fred Ward. It has a remarkably funny gun crazed survivalist couple played completely straight-faced by Michael Gross and Reba McEntire. It has a wonderfully batty bunch of "townsfolk," a winsome heroine and bad lot of underground drag racing worms looking to eat the characters mentioned above. The movie stands out from the "trapped and pursued" genre because it contains tongue-in-cheek humor, comedic escapes, inspired foreshadowing of doom and nutty monster mayhem. This is a delightful B monster movie that would best be watched with fellow funny movie buffs, popcorn and beer.
Surprisingly enjoyable good old fashioned monster movie!
On paper I would have expected 'Tremors' to suck - a low budget sci fi action comedy written by the 'Short Circuit' guys, and directed by a hack who went on to make 'City Slickers'. It doesn't exactly inspire confidence, does it? But if you put your prejudices aside you'll find that this is a surprisingly enjoyable good old fashioned monster movie. There is humour here, sure, but thankfully the movie doesn't go for a camp, tongue in cheek parody style, something for me that almost never works. The movies real strength is the perfect casting of Kevin Bacon ('Diner') and Fred Ward ('Henry And June') as the small town handymen turned reluctant heroes. They are supported by the left field but inspired casting of 'Family Ties' Michael Gross and country singer Reba McEntire as a couple of gung ho survivalists. 'Tremors' succeeds in what it sets out to be, an exciting and wonderfully entertaining b-grade horror thriller. A lot of fun and highly recommended.
Good, stupid fun for the whole family
Under my current rating system, this ranks as a piece of brilliant stupidity. While the plot and the idea seem really stupid and moribund, the performances and collection of principle actors proved to be an excellent mix, creating a grab bag of humor and suspense. I especially loved Michael Gross and Reba McEntire's performances as the gun toting couple. Kevin Bacon may have a game named after him, but this is one of those little films which proved to be a stirring presentation of the persona he can project. This film was all about good fun, and it delivered.
An absolute classic
Tremors is an absolute classic thriller, pitting the inhabitants of a small podunk town against four giant worms. The cast is well rounded, with Bacon and Ward playing the two unexpected hero's. And Reba? Amazing. The storyline is developed, the acting and dialogue not too cheesy, and the effects great for a movie it's age. Just a good time.
Great B-movie horror
A small isolated desert community comes under attack from underground monsters. Valentine McKee (Kevin Bacon) and Earl Bassett (Fred Ward) are two poor handymen. Rhonda LeBeck (Finn Carter) is a seismology student. And the hardcore survivalists Gummers (Michael Gross, Reba McEntire) are just some of the town residents.
This is Jaws on land. It is perfectly made by people who obviously know and love horror movies. The monsters are dole out slowly, first as a suggestion, then as glimpses, and finally reveal for the shock. There is top notch workmanship. Kevin Bacon and Fred Ward have great energy. They have the humor and the likability. More importantly, they have great chemistry together. Great actors in classic characters with a terrific premise, everything is there for a great movie. And the execution is perfect.
This is Jaws on land. It is perfectly made by people who obviously know and love horror movies. The monsters are dole out slowly, first as a suggestion, then as glimpses, and finally reveal for the shock. There is top notch workmanship. Kevin Bacon and Fred Ward have great energy. They have the humor and the likability. More importantly, they have great chemistry together. Great actors in classic characters with a terrific premise, everything is there for a great movie. And the execution is perfect.
Did you know
- TriviaKevin Bacon originally resented being in Tremors, only agreeing to do it because he needed money for his new marriage and upcoming newborn child. When the film was not financially successful, Bacon feared his career was over, and in following years would refuse to acknowledge the film's existence and even called it the "worst thing I ever did." However, Bacon would eventually come around to Tremors, calling the filming of Tremors to be "the single most fun time I've ever had making a movie in my entire career" in 2012, and later admitting in a 2020 interview "When I was making Tremors, I was very depressed and at a low-point in my life, and I kinda blamed Tremors for all that. I was bitter against it, I thought it was a career-killer...I never watch my movies more than once, some of my movies I've never even seen before and have no desire to, but I've watched Tremors a dozen times. I love it so much, and I spent years trying to capture the same energy we had on the set of Tremors. It's one of my favorite films of all time."
- GoofsWhen the remaining cast are on the bulldozer, near the end of the movie, they pull up beside Burt and Heather's house and one of the crew members is visible beside them, trying to hide.
- Quotes
Earl Bassett: Damn it, listen to me. I'm older and wiser.
Valentine McKee: Yeah, well you're half right.
- Alternate versionsThe Italian version features an error in the cast names during the end credits, listing Burt Gummer as being played by Reba McEntire instead of Michael Gross. Reba McEntire played Burt's wife, Heather.
- ConnectionsEdited into Tremors 3: Back to Perfection (2001)
- SoundtracksYou Are the One
Written and Performed by Fahrenheit
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official site
- Language
- Also known as
- Terror bajo la tierra
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $11,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $16,667,084
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $3,731,520
- Jan 21, 1990
- Gross worldwide
- $16,671,216
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content







