The Clown Murders

The Clown Murders is a 1976 Canadian horror film directed by Martyn Burke. It was one of the earliest films in which John Candy appears. The Executive Producer was Stephen Stohn, who later produced the Degrassi: The Next Generation TV series.

The Clown Murders
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Martyn Burke
Written by	Martyn Burke
Produced by	Christopher Dalton, Stephen Stohn
Starring	Stephen Young Lawrence Dane John Candy Cec Linder
Cinematography	Dennis Miller
Music by	John Mills-Cockell
Production company	Magnum Films
Distributed by	Astral Films
Release date	September 1976 (1976-09)
Running time	96 minutes
Country	Canada
Language	English
Budget	CAD $135,000[1]

Plot

Four friends hatch a scheme to dress up like clowns on Halloween and kidnap a businessman's wife (Susan Keller) to prevent him from closing a land deal. Though the scheme is intended as a prank, it takes an ugly turn when real violence is used at the kidnapping. As the kidnappers deal with the fallout from their actions, it becomes apparent that an outside party (also in a clown costume) is stalking them.^[2]

Cast

• Stephen Young as Charlie
• Susan Keller as Alison
• Lawrence Dane as Philip
• John Candy as Ollie
• Gary Reineke as Rosie
• John Bayliss as Peter
• Al Waxman as Police Sergeant
• William Osler as Harrison
• Philip Craig as Tom

Release

The film was released by Astral Films in its native Canada in September 1976.^[1]

Home media

In the United States, in 1985 the film was released on VHS and Betamax by Trans World Entertainment, with John Candy receiving first billing on the cover, and his photo appearing on the back cover, despite his small role in the film.^[3] It was also released on DVD on July 12, 2007 by Image Entertainment under license from Cinevision International.^[4]

Reception

Kurt Dahlke from DVD Talk gave the film 2.5 out of 5 stars, writing, "The Clown Murders is almost worth a rent for Canadian Cinema scholars or rabid fans of '70s sleazo-crime dramas in this incarnation, but it stinks so much as is that it's really hard to go out on that limb."^[5] Todd Martin from HorrorNews.net gave the film a negative review, calling it "mind-numbingly boring" and also criticized the film's lack of scares.^[6] Terror Trap awarded the film 1/4 stars, stating that the film "doesn't have the requisite firepower - either in terms of its writing, or its ability to generate dramatic tension - to make for a worthwhile watch."^[7]

See also

• List of films set around Halloween