The Monster Squad

The Monster Squad is a 1987 American horror comedy film directed by Fred Dekker (who also wrote the film along with Shane Black).

The film was released on August 14, 1987 by TriStar Pictures.

Plot
A group of kids form a club called the Monster Squad which is devoted to their interest in monsters, but when Dracula, Frankenstein, the Wolf Man, the Gill Man and the Mummy come to town to try to take over the world, it's up to the Monster Squad to stop them.

Cast

 * Andre Gower as Sean Crenshaw
 * Robby Kiger as Patrick
 * Brent Chalem as Horace
 * Ryan Lambert as Rudy
 * Michael Faustino as Eugene
 * Ashley Bank as Phoebe Crenshaw
 * Duncan Regehr as Count Dracula
 * Tom Noonan as the Frankenstein Monster
 * Carl Thibault as the Wolf Man
 * Tom Woodruff Jr. as the Gill Man
 * Michael MacKay as the Mummy
 * Jonathan Gries as Desperate Man/The Wolfman
 * Stephen Macht as Detective Del Crenshaw
 * Mary Ellen Trainor as Emily Crenshaw
 * Jack Gwillim as Dr. Abraham Van Helsing
 * Gabriel Dean as Wiley "the Worm"
 * Jason Hervey as E.J.
 * Leonardo Cimino as Scary German Guy
 * Stan Shaw as Detective Rich Sapir
 * Lisa Fuller as Patrick's Sister
 * David Proval as Pilot
 * Daryl Anderson as Co-Pilot

Production
According to director Fred Dekker, the film was cut by 13 minutes because some executives didn't want it to run for more than 90 minutes.

Shane Black's first draft of the screenplay was so huge, the opening of the film featured Van Helsing accompanied by zeppelin's and hundreds of men on horseback storming Dracula's castle. Dekker stated that this sequence would have cost more than the final budget of the film.

Liam Neeson was considered for the role of Dracula and he was paid for a bit part in the movie that was never filmed.

Box Office
"The Monster Squad" debuted at #12 at the box office, grossing $1,920,678 during its opening weekend. The domestic gross was $3,769,990.

Critical Reception
Rotten Tomatoes gave "The Monster Squad" a 53% rating based on 17 reviews and its average rating was 5.4\10.

Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times wrote that it is "fun for the kid in all of us."

Vincent Canby of The New York Times called it "a feature-length commercial for a joke store that sells not-great, rubber monster masks."

Hal Hinson from the Washington Post said the film "plays like it was written with a power tool."

Accolades
1988 Saturn Awards
 * Best Supporting Actor: Duncan Regehr (nominated)
 * Best Performance by a Younger Actor: Andre Gower (nominated)
 * Best Music: Bruce Broughton (nominated)
 * Best Costumes: Michael W. Hoffman & Aggie Lyon (nominated)

1988 Brussels International Festival of Fantasy Film
 * Silver Raven: Fred Dekker (won)

Young Artists Awards
 * Andre Gower, Robby Kiger, Ryan Lambert, Michael Faustino, Brent Chalem and Ashley Bank: Outstanding Young Actors\Actresses Ensemble in Television or Motion Picture (won)