Suburban Gothic (2014) User Reviews

Strange mixed bag this movie was

[Finfrosk86 · 5/10 · 7 May 2015]

I first saw Excision, and was kind of intrigued by it, so I checked out Bates Jr newest movie, which is this one, Suburban Gothic.

Now, this is a pretty strange movie. It seems like it can't quite decide what it is. It has quite a lot of weird comedy, or at least I think it is supposed to be funny, it didn't really hit home for me. The comedic timing seems way off a lot of the time, with a lot of wasted potential. Maybe I just didn't get it.

But this is not just a comedy, it is a horror comedy. Horror comedies are my favorite genre, nothing beats horror comedy if done right. Anyway, some of the scary scenes in this movie are actually quite creepy. But I think they drown in the weirdness of the rest of the movie.

We get a tiny bit of Jeffrey Combs, that's always nice, also a small cameo from John Waters. The father is kind of cool, and the main guy is weird, but OK.

To sum up: kooky movie, weird humor which I didn't really find very funny (let it be said: I'm a tough crowd, laughter wise), some creepy scenes, very simple story. OK.

An entertaining spark to the comedy-horror genre

[tabuno · 7/10 · 28 January 2019]

Matthew Gray Gubler from the television crime series Criminal Minds gets to let loose in this comedy-horror movie. At the same time, Ray Wise from the classic Twin Peaks television series (1990) also gets to expand on his former character again as the father figure, this time as Gubler's character's dad. What sets this rather conventional movie apart from other comedy-horrors is the script which delightfully expands and enhances those stylistic characters of Gubler and Wise and transforms them into a comedic parody upon which both actors take to their roles with a feverish outpouring of electric sophisticated humor. At the same time, the script at a few points seems to cross the line of parody and seemingly endless excessive mimicry making the movie almost overly burdened with pretentious acting (possibly the fault of the movie's director). The movie also sharply turns pretty dark later in the movie straining the carefully crafted balance of the tone of the movie. Nevertheless, Suburban Gothic offers an entertaining spark to the comedy-horror genre, making it rise above the many mass of ordinary movie titles.

Like "Swingers" - More a cultural study than a movie

[estreet-eva · 5/10 · 28 June 2015]

More of a cultural study about being a millennial than an actual movie. Kat Denning has a lot of tattoos, the male lead - Matthew Gray Gubler (maybe change that for Hollywood, dude) is unemployed, lives with his parents and is looking for his "purpose" and a few mumbled jokes are passed around. The plot, such as it is, deals with a fairly routine ghost story that our digital native heroes must release from torment by solving a mystery. In other words, if you have seen an episode of Scooby Doo, you've basically seen the film. However, it is somewhat entertaining. In short, if you can watch it on cable and can't anything better, maybe give it a try.

Frustrating follow-up to Excision

[your crowbar · 5/10 · 30 August 2014]

I went to see Excision, Richard Bates Jr.'s debut, knowing almost nothing about it. All I had read was a 5-star Empire review. I'm so glad I trusted said review: Excision is a funny, original, sometimes horrifying, and also disturbing film. I'll never forget its ending (a true rarity: a profoundly sad ending in a horror movie). And it made me very excited about future films from writer and director Bates.

Well, to put it mildly, Suburban Gothic is a disappointment. The goal here is obviously to pay homage to John Waters' trash/filthy/defying humor (no wonder Waters himself shows up in one of the best scenes of the film), but the result seems more like not-really-inspired Waters (Cry-Baby, Pecker) than excellent Waters (Polyester, Pink Flamingos). Close-up shots of feces, vomit, and sperm add nothing to the story - and unfortunately most of the humor of the film doesn't go much higher than this.

But it'd be unfair to classify Suburban Gothic as just scatological humor. There are some truly funny scenes, Matthew Gray Gubler is charming as the protagonist, and he makes a good team with Kat Dennings. (The cast is the best thing about the film, including Leland Palmer himself, Ray Wise, and Barbara Niven as the parents) But the story is so generic I couldn't believe it came from the same man who wrote Excision. There's not a single scary moment - which wouldn't be a problem if the film was a riot, like Shaun of the Dead. Unfortunately (for me), I wasn't laughing nearly as much as the girl behind me, who was almost dying of laughter every time Gubler gave a high-pitched scream - and he does it a lot.

I guess I'll have to wait for the next film from Bates. Or watch Excision again.

Kat & JW

[Quanfa · 8 January 2021]

Kat Dennings will probably always be an underrated actress until she gets the "it" role she needs. Until then she will do bad movies like this, but she has enough star power to get people to see it. All that aside, the main character is so irritating I wanted to punch him in the face every time he opened his mouth, except one scene.

"Ok, I'll look into his work. What's your favorite movie of his?" "Running out of Bullets" "I'll watch that one first."

Also, John Waters is Jesus Christ, so it's a must watch. But overall it was a pretty lame movie.

Quirky, fun light entertainment

[david_royz · 7/10 · 23 September 2021]

It doesn't squarely fit comedy/horror or any other label, but it's fun (and a little dark) with some interesting characters and laugh-out-loud moments.

Matthew Gray Gubler is great as the man-child and Ray Wise is perfect as his father.

There are a few scenes sprinkled through the film that look oddly "cheap". Perhaps late pickups or second unit production. They're kinda distracting but don't ruin the film.

Idea Just Doesn't Click On All Cylinders

[gregsrants · 5/10 · 18 October 2014]

In 2012, I came across the hidden gem Excision. Directed by Richard Bates Jr., Excision was the type of film that horror fans love to find – a title that they knew nothing about starring a bunch of people that we never heard of that, upon screening, was much much better than the throwaway DVD we expected.

Excision didn't have us pacing the halls awaiting the next Richard Bates Jr. effort, but it did have us stand notice when his new project, Suburban Gothic was announced as part of the Toronto After Dark Film Festival schedule.

With a successful and fairly well received film in his rearview mirror, Bates Jr. was able to gather together a cast of more familiar faces for his sophomore effort. Enter Matthew Gray Gubler (Criminal Minds), Kate Dennings (Thor), Ray Wise, John Waters and Jeffrey Combs – the later three very entrenched in horror history.

Suburban Gothic follows the life of Raymond (Gubler). A bit of a loser and an awkward one at that – a "freak" as his counsellor calls him - Raymond lives at home with his parents (Barbara Niven and Ray Wise) as his college degree does little to assist in securing employment.

One thing that Raymond is good at is summoning spirits and interacting with the paranormal. This talent catches the eye of paranormal obsessed goth Becca (Kat Dennings), a bartender that believes Raymond's sightings are a gift and the two will team up to fight an evil that has encroached the town.

Suburban Gothic is a whole bunch of things. It's a comedy, a horror, a supernatural thriller and a wannabe cult classic. The cast is well suited with no actor going outside a true comfort zone. Gubler has played the geek many times before as has Dennings playing the sarcastic muse as has Ray Wise playing an overbearing father with great lines and John Waters playing a gay freak. Been there, done that.

Suburban Gothic wants to be a The Frighteners, a Ghostbusters, an Odd Thomas and a Supernatural all rolled into one. But the effort doesn't reach the potential. It's like a car that runs but doesn't click into the right gear when accelerating. Everyone tries their best and there are some great lines in the film (John Waters' scene with Dennings and Gubler is absolutely fabulous) but everything doesn't click together like Lego blocks and instead of a David Lynchian Gothic Mullholland Drive the result is more of a Brundlefly.

www.killerreviews.com

Fun, Spooky, but a bit inappropriate

[ghouladventures · 7/10 · 10 August 2017]

I enjoyed the camera work and color, the story was fun but had a deeper meaning too. I loved that it was kinda comedy/horror but it was just fun spookiness rather than horror. I will definitely watch it whenever Halloween comes around. I enjoyed the movie, but I feel that there was a lot of sexual jokes and swearing. Which is fine, but in my opinion they should have used less sex jokes and saying "fuck" every other sentence.

Both stars are for Kat Dennings

[hmb-51778 · 2/10 · 15 February 2021]

I really appreciate the opportunity to waste an hour of my life watching this uncomfortable attempt - and I do mean attempt at quirky paranormal comedy. We didn't finish it, so no spoilers here.

But only Ms. Dennings seems to have the slightest idea what movie this is trying to be.

I'll be honest, I never watched Two Broke Girls, but Wandavision got me looking for other places to catch her.

She really is good here. But she has a sense of the absurd.

Our Hero is played with zero charisma by that guy from that show.

Here he plays (and I mean that in the loosest possible definition) a bedraggled every man. But there's more smirk than depth or reason to feel any sense of compassion.

I blame the script, the direction, the actors, and the editor.

It's appalling.

Not like that guy will ever escape the typecasting his 15 years on his hit show have given him. But apparently playing a series of ticks and affectations with nobody inside is the best use of his time.

Save yours and skip this train wreck.

Tim Burton-esque Horror Comedy

[becca7931 · 6/10 · 10 October 2020]

Matthew Gray Gubler is perfect in this. Ray Wise is at his best. Kat Dennings is underutilized, though. She has great comedic timing and presence and is not given enough of it to perform. The editing could have been tighter, giving it more flow. But I like that this movie is exactly what it wants to be and is unapologetic about it.

If you like quirky movies, this is for you. If you like your horror straight, best to skip this one.

This movie was one long weird journey

[jimelas-835-982916 · 3/10 · 30 January 2015]

So I like Kat Dennings hair and make-up and that made the movie worth it, she played her usual snarky sarcastic mess the character that she always plays so expect nothing different for her she is definitely typecast.

The lead male character was just....nothing to look at, nothing to feel any kind of way about he was boring. Even when he was doing humor he was just boring. Think Benedict cumber-snatch but American and not British.

If you have no expectations for this movie and you just kind of want background noise to sleep too or you want to just waste some money and time than this is the movie for you but overall it's a snooze fest even the ghost effects were terrible.

Delightfully fun horror/comedy!

[hellfire_mcbane · 10/10 · 22 August 2014]

I had the privilege to view this film at the Bruce Campbell's Horror Fest at the Chicago Wizard Con last night and was thoroughly impressed. I was expecting a low budget, poorly acted schlock fest like most independent horror comedies but Suburban Gothic was delightfully charming and fun.

It's low budget doesn't affect the great atmosphere of a creepy yet quirky guy trying to survive his own personal suburban hell. Between the sharp, witty dialogue , the creepy, charming characters, and atmospheric tone it feels like I imagine what James Gunn and Tim Burton would have created if they had to do a collaboration for film school together.

The writing was spot on and never before had I seen such great directing and acting in an independent horror comedy since Sam Raimi's early work. Richard Bates Jr. Is a brilliant up and coming writer/director and I anxiously await his future projects. One thing that was refreshing was the fact it didn't rely on gore or nudity to catch interest and If not for the adult dialogue it would be rather family friendly for a horror film.

The best way to sum up this film is that it's just plain fun!

Subpar Horror Comedy

[scythertitus · 6/10 · 25 April 2021]

With so many good people cast in this movie you would hope that they would have something good to work with. Unfortunately the dialogue and effects, along with bad editing, make this nowhere near the movie it could have been.

All the themes are just so on the nose and the antagonists lack any nuance. We are expected to root for the protagonist 'just because' even though he comes across as a snarky Dick from the start of the film. It's a blunt mess really.

Overall there are some glimpses of good ideas and humour, but so much is masked by the broadness of the writing and the unlikability of the characters.

"Gone Ghost"

[Kamurai25 · 5/10 · 27 January 2021]

Decent watch, could watch again, but can't recommend.

I watched this excited to see Kat Dennings in a movie again, but she really ends up playing second fiddle to Matthew Gray Gubler who basically carries the movie. While he actually seems like a good actor and was able to add a flavor to his character that I couldn't tell that if it was just him shining through, the truth of the character or he elevated the character with a special twist, so this puts him on my to watch out for list.

The story itself is really lackluster. There are a lot of familiar faces, and the minute to minute is generally pretty entertaining, but the weirdness of finding a hidden kiddie coffin and trying to lay a ghost to rest gets weird when it's stretched over a long period of time without getting intense.

I'm all for different, and I can't call this bad, but there are so many other good things to watch instead.

So, so very bad, and I love horror comedy

[thetieflingqueen · 1/10 · 12 November 2022]

If your main character is so unlikable as to make me want him to die in a horrible way, what are you even doing?

Unfortunately he doesn't.

We start out with a greasy douchebag who wants to start a job in upper management with no experience, and takes no initiative to find any other job.

So he moves back home to Mommy and Daddy to mooch off of them, but with an aura of being an arrogant "better than you" because he's so special having moved to the city, and is so better than all those "redneck" small town people.

So he continues to be an arrogant prick, his father is unbearably racist, and the only real likable characters are Becca and Mom.

The pacing is slow, the comedic timing is off, there are characters introduced that serve no purpose to the story, scenes that serve no purpose to the story, and I can see why this never got any traction.

Meanwhile, they spend all this time showing how horrible the Dad is with the racism, but then have a certain item stolen by the Hispanic worker.

This just feels like a film written by a whiny hipster, for whiny hipsters, and even then, they do it poorly.

This is awful, and a waste of time. And we love the horror comedy genre. And indie horror comedies are some of the best. Just not this one.

Gubler and Wise as one family to fight ghost

[jeannefrancoise · 6/10 · 6 May 2016]

Matthew Gray Gubler and Ray Wise are definitely good actors of drama-comedy. They are the core characters in this movie, because all plots are related to their broken relationship as father (Wise as Donald) and son (Gubler as Raymond). The movie begins of ordinary days of Raymond that comes back to his hometwon at the village to meet his parents and to find job. While killing his time, this story is developed by the discovery of an old coffin with the dead body girl inside at Raymond parents backyard by one of his father's Mexican workers. Ordinary days of Raymond becomes extraordinary and makes him fighting in arguments with his dad because Donald doesn't believe in supranatural things. For me, the movie plot is too simple whereas there are Gubler and Wise, so that the director should have taken them seriously with serious effects to show the audience about supranatural case. The ghost appearance is banal, just in dark wind, and there are some useless scenes. Remember, there are Gubler and Wise in this movie, so I expect the really ambiance of suburban Gothic, not just suburban family matters. Need improvement on the next movie!

Good for a few laughs...

[LincolnSixEko · 4/10 · 5 May 2022]

But overall it was kinda flat. The plot moved slow and had many boring spots. But the parts where I did laugh I did pretty hard. It could've been a lot better.

Great!!

[madelynpcampbell · 7/10 · 27 April 2021]

This movie is very funny. It isn't scary at all the ghosts are played for laughs. I enjoyed it a lot.

Mediocore comedy begats run of the mill ghost story

[youngcollind · 5/10 · 29 September 2021]

Matthew Gray Gubler plays the hipster/millennial archetype a little too on the nose, and they really overuse the cringey "aren't you gay" joke. Kat Dennings plays the sarcastic cool girl she'll be burdened with her whole career, coming off a little less insufferable than her Two Broke Girls character. Ray Wise fits into his mean dad role like a glove. The comedy is generally weak, but watchable. The ghost premise that drives the plot is ridiculously typical, the old "we need to resolve the issues of this dead girl so we can put her spirit to rest" story-line that's been done to death, but the film isn't making any attempts to be legitimately scary, so I suppose it's lack of originality in that department can be forgiven. It's all fluff really, but since it doesn't take itself too seriously, it's passable if you don't have better options.

I am whelmed.

[LokyraMac · 7/10 · 27 October 2022]

I adjusted my rating multiple times. I might change it again before I finish typing this.

Ranking aside, I really enjoyed this movie, and will happily watch it again.

Every character in this movie is an absolute tool. I loved these tools. I tend to be tool-phobic, but I'll meet up with these tools again, and I'll enjoy it.

The best way I can find to describe this movie is: Millennial screws up his life with the aid of his horrible excuse-for-a-human father, and his Permanent Denial, Where's Mommy's Little Helper mother, and has to move back in with said parental units. Then it turns into Daria: Millennial Version, who happens to be haunted by some Other-Side Creeps.

It was more like watching a hilarious Snapchat or Vines compilation from internet friends than a produced, scripted, and rehearsed movie. Part of that was the actors really filling out their roles, and part of it was the hilarious realness of the dialogue and reactions (adjusting for the oomph of polished comedy and drama).

While I can't shout from the rooftops for all comedy horror fans to watch this, I -can- add it to my Official Halloween Month Movies List, and will likely coerce my bestie to watch it with me during one of our movie nights.

Not even one funny moment. Scary just because it actually got made.

[mark.waltz · 3/10 · 27 October 2021]

The idiotic character played by Matthew Gray Gubler takes stupidity to a new level, playing a college graduate who refuses to take a job unless it has him starting from the top, and the result has him being forced to move back into his parents basement. The bad news is that his parents, Barbara Niven and Raymond Wise, are just as idiotic as he is, and as it turns out, everybody in this town turns out to be idiots to.

Not one likeable person, either bigoted or just plain stupid, and even the one smart character, a Gothic looking bartender (Kat Jennings) is overloaded with cynicism and vocal fry which is a deadly combination because she's the type of character who can't stop talking, with tactless things coming out of her mouth from the start. So Gray Gubler has some sort of paranormal ability and this creates some situations that end up being more gross than funny. Cameos by veteran celebrities can't help when the script is so bad, tactless and generally unwatchable.

Comedy Strain

[kosmasp · 8/10 · 2 November 2014]

It's called Suburban Gothic for a reason. There may not seem to be a real goal or something this movie is heading towards (none the main character can see at least), but the ride we take with it, is so much fun, that you might not care. Ray Wise is exceptional as the bad father figure, setting the tone early on. But in a very funny way, so that you can't really be mad at him.

Humor is something that is hard to grasp or be sure about. Like obviously this is awkward and weird in a way, that will either entice the viewer or appall them. Kat Dennings seem to be shoe-in for the role she's playing, because we've seen her play similar characters before. Without knowing her you could be fooled into thinking that it's very close to who she really is. But no matter if that is true or not, this movie thrives on her and every other actor, who play their role exceptionally

Strange and quirky

[nufanman-95960 · 7/10 · 20 November 2020]

First half of the movie had some solid laughs. Second half shifted to the main plot which was on the strange side. Story was interesting enough for a first watch, maybe not a second though.

Racism and homophobia on full display

[smashketchem · 2/10 · 28 December 2021]

The movie runs rampant with bigoted characters with an overuse of slurs that don't serve any purpose other than to make nearly every character unlikable. It tries to be quirky but ends up feeling more like an edge lord fantasy.

Dennings, Wise, Waters, and Soundtrack

[ZillyPutty · 4/10 · 24 July 2021]

This film is heavy on quirkiness but light on quality. Kat Dennings and Ray Wise do what they can, and John Waters cameos. The soundtrack is good.