Psycho Goreman

The title threw me. The marketing materials called it PG: Psycho Goreman. I get how writer-director Steven Kostanski was parodying the MPAA rating, but it backfired on me. The “PG” connotation conjured images of watered-down Amblinesque horror, pushing this off my must-see list. Turns out, I was half-right in the best possible way.

Kostanski does lift his premise from the Amblin playbook. Tween siblings unearth an alien being in their backyard. But said alien isn’t cute and cuddly, he’s a murderous, demonic extraterrestrial overlord who spends his first scenes dispatching a crew of hoodlums in a hilarious, over-the-top gore-fest.

The hook emerges when one tween—played to precocious perfection by Nita-Josee Hanna—discovers the alien must obey her every command. From here the film careens into a gleeful parody of the aforementioned Amblin schmaltz. She names him “Psycho Goreman” and—with contagious certainty of purpose—conscripts him as her playmate. Goreman retains his murderous rage, however, and steals all his scenes with his direct dialog. Think Drax in Guardians of the Galaxy.

The copious gore will dissuade some, but fans of 80s horror should love it. I’m already looking forward to a second viewing.