Terrifier (2016)
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The story
On Halloween night in Miles County, New York, two friends, Tara and Dawn, leave a party and encounter Art the Clown. The pair find themselves pursued by the enigmatic killer as they navigate a series of dangerous encounters. After Dawn's car is disabled, Tara calls her sister Victoria for help. As the night progresses, the girls find themselves trapped in a deadly game of cat-and-mouse with Art, who stalks them through a local pizzeria and nearby buildings. The film focuses on the visceral threat posed by the clown and the desperate attempts of the women to survive his relentless pursuit.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
The story begins with a disfigured woman who survived a massacre the previous year being interviewed on a talk show; after the show, she mutates the host. On Halloween night in Miles County, New York, friends Tara and Dawn encounter Art the Clown. After being abandoned at a pizzeria where Art is also present, they are separated. Tara seeks help from a pest exterminator, Mike, and encounters a 'Cat Lady' squatter. Art captures and sedates Tara, while Dawn is left to face him. Art brutally attacks and kills several people, including the pizzeria owner and Mike. Victoria arrives to find Tara's corpse and is hunted by Art. After a violent struggle, Mike and Victoria manage to flee, but Art eventually catches and mutilates Victoria. The film ends with a twist: one year later, Victoria is revealed to be the disfigured woman from the opening talk show scene. It is later revealed that Art reanimates in a morgue and attacks a medical examiner.
- First release year
- 2016
- Runtime (minutes)
- 85
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Damien Leone
- Writers
- Damien Leone · writer
- Cast and characters
- Jenna Kanell · Tara Heyes; Samantha Scaffidi · Victoria; Catherine Corcoran · Dawn; David Howard Thornton · Art the Clown
- Genres
- slasher; independent; black comedy; comedy horror; supernatural horror
- Themes
- survival; violence; supernatural
- Tone and mood
- tense; gory; brutal
- Setting
- Miles County, New York on Halloween night.
- Premise and plot tags
- slasher; horror; clown; survival
- Source material / true-story basis
- Short films: The 9th Circle (2008) and Terrifier (2011)
- Franchise connections
- Terrifier
- Reception
- The film received generally mixed reviews from critics, with praise for special effects and performances, while the writing was criticized. It became a cult film and spawned a franchise.
- Reported review scores
- Arrow in the Head · score: 8 · scale: 10; Starburst · score: 6 · scale: 10
- Awards and nominations
- Fangoria Chainsaw Award · Best Limited Release · Nomination; Fangoria Chainsaw Award · Best Supporting Actor (Thornton) · Nomination; Fangoria Chainsaw Award · Best Makeup FX (Leone) · Nomination
- Production trivia
- The character Art the Clown first appeared in the short film The 9th Circle (2008).
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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