The Willies

This is a PG-13 movie made with a cast of mostly kids, written with humorous and yucky stories that appeal the most to kids (or, like "Tennessee Frickasee", are often TOLD by kids), and is ultimately a hearty attempt at a horror movie for kids. I found it to be pretty enjoyable myself, but I really think I would have liked this much more AS a kid. The stories would only scare a four-year-old (who, depending on the case of who the kid is, may not even be scared of them). Not that I was looking to be scared at all by a film like this, which I rented solely on how fun it could be. I did like it enough to consider it a fair horror-comedy/anthology, but I only wished I would've gotten to see it back in elementary school when I thought "Ghoulies 2" was the greatest movie ever made, because that's when I would have liked it the best.

This is a fairly good film.I believe it should be rated R for certain reasons.There are disturbing scenes like when the woman eats a dead rat,or a puppy's guts splatter.There are a few very short stories that don't even bother introducing the characters.Then we get to the main stories.The first is about when a janitor turns out to be a monster that kills bad people.This story was rather good,although not an oscar winner by a long shot.The second is just plain disturbing.It's about a kid who's obsesed with dead flys,and it gets more disturbing,you'll have to see to find out,and the ending for the whole movie is twisted.

this movie is basically about two brothers and their cousin who decide to scare each other by telling each other spooky urban legends while camping out.i guess you could compare it the TV shows Goosebumps or Are You Afraid of the Dark,although it's not as good as either of those two.anyway,what follows are two separate tales.the first one is pretty good.it's sort of a black comedy.it is quite amusing,and compelling.plus,it is well written.the second of the tales is not so good.much of the odd behaviour and events are given no reason or explanation.also this tale is boring and feels way too long.the ending makes no sense and doesn't tie into the rest of the story.long story short,the first tale is good-second one-not so much.for me,this movie is a 5/10

My review was written in January 1991 after watching the film on Prism video cassette.

"The Willies" is an uneven anthology horror opus that shows more creativity in the creatures department than in the writing. It's a video release aimed at younger patrons than usual for the genre.

Tipoff ias to where filmmaker Brian Peck is headed is the preponderance of youngsters in the cast. Pic opens with kids, led by Patty Duke & John Astins' talented son Sean Astin, swapping tales on a camping trip to try and gross one another out.

During a very lengthy pre-credits sequence (lasting 10 minutes), rather lame tales unfold, including a fat lady getting served a fried rat in her bucket of chicken, and a woman unwisely drying off her bathed poodle in a microwave oven.

Film proper has its high point in "Flyboy", a weird tale of a boy (Michael Bower) infatuated with collecting flies. A neighboring farmer invents a spectacular form of fertilizer that creates giant flies, which attack Bower in the scary climax.

Less thrilling is "Bad Apples", in which a stop-motion monster haunts the boys' room at an elementary school.

Technical credits and cast are above average in this not-ready-for-theatrical-release effort.

"The Willies" is sort of an "Urban Legend" for kids trying to gross each other out. Sean Astin and two other boys are camping out and tell each other a bunch of nasty stories. This was actually the first time that I'd ever heard of the woman microwaving her dog; I was surprised when I later learned that it's a fairly common urban legend. The movie itself first portrays a school where the janitor (James Karen) turns out to be a hideous monster...fortunately, not totally malevolent. The next half portrays a boy who gets a little too obsessed with bugs.

Yes, it's probably one of the sillier movies out there. But it knows that it is just that, so there's no problem. Sean Astin shows the same flair that he'd shown in "The Goonies" and would later show in the "Lord of the Rings" movies. Worth seeing.

PS: In case you don't recognize James Karen, he most recently starred in "The Pursuit of Happiness". He also starred in "All the President's Men", "Poltergeist" and "Return of the Living Dead" 1 and 2.