Review of: The Boogens

We live in a wonderful time. These low-budget creature features were a dime a dozen in the early 80’s. Actually, throughout all of the 80s, When this was released in 1981 and finally made its way to the video store’s horror section, I have no doubt it was one that was rented last and only because there wasn’t anything left. Why pick up The Boogens when Scanners, The Howling, Wolfen, Funhouse, and Evil Dead were available? Poor Boogens.

But wait! What’s this? A competent and fun monster puppet flick that is leaps better than Graveyard Shift and would go well with a tunnel-themed horror rental party with My Bloody Valentine? Surely you jest? Also, this definitely played some inspiration to The Descent. There is no way around it.

Mark and Roger are two young miners trying to help a mining company open back up a hundred-year-old mine. The mine collapsed years ago, and they had to go in and clear out the tunnels. What happens next, of course, is that age-old story of ” You should have left well enough alone.” As the miners blast deeper into the tunnels, they open up a hidden cavern full of human bones. While they investigate, something also seems to be lurking in the waters.

Enter Trish and Jessica; two young girls traveling to a cabin to meet Mark and Roger. They bring along their loyal and monster food fodder dog, Tiger. Everyone meets up in the cabin, but little do they know one of the tunnels enters the basement.

Something this film does effectively well is not revealing the creature too early. When you think there is going to be a jump scare—due to the brooding music and tone—nothing happens. Which actually builds more tension to the film than it rightfully deserves. Not to mention that acting is actually pretty good. The best of the bunch is Jessica, played by Anne-Marie Martin. Who also had small roles in Halloween 2, Runaway, and Prom Night. The wildest of credits is that she was a writer on the mega cult classic hit TWISTER, plus she was married to Michael Crichton. Anyway, Jessica is the best of the characters and the most engaging. She is wild, charming, and believable, especially as a young 20-something in the early 80s.

There is always an old creepy hermit in these films who knows more than anyone else, and The Boogens is no exception. Jon Lormer plays Blanchard. A character that seems like would have been perfectly suited for John Carradine. With about 20 minutes left, it is revealed how Blanchard is connected to the mines.

There is a lot of build-up in this movie. It is incredibly unsettling—if not a little confusing—when you finally hear the creature’s roar. The puppet seems almost like they weren’t sure what they would make until filming started. Is it a turtle? Is it an octopus with a shell? How many are there? I would say it might be of distant relation to the graboids from Tremors.

To be honest, it doesn’t really matter because that is what makes practical effect monster and nature horror movies so fun. Every day, we question whether or not Megaladons are real as well as Bigfoot, so why not a carnivorous cave turtle with tentacles? But that happens when humans poke around in places they shouldn’t be—We discover things we didn’t know existed and have been waiting to feed for over 70 years. I wish there had been a second one so we could have gotten answers to where they came from and what they are.

The Boogens is a fun and well-done low-budget lost monster film. The acting is adequate, the story is engaging, the gore is solid, and the tension builds slowly. The Boogens just released on 4K from Kin Lorber. The time it took to clean up a film that was a lost VHS novelty deserves all of our respect. A satisfying purchase and a nice deviation from the same old monster flicks you have watched a hundred times.