A Lot or a Little?
What you will—and won't—find in this movie.
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Positive Messages
none
Movie is all about random attacks by a maniac.
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Positive Role Models
very little
Most characters wind up as victims, scared and far from their best. Some characters try to stand up to the villain or to help others in need, but their efforts come to nothing.
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Violence & Scariness
a lot
Extremely graphic blood and gore. Blood sprays/spurts. Woman hanging upside down, sawed in half from her crotch to her head. Woman's flesh from her chest sliced off; man wears her breasts on his own chest. Guns and shooting, character shot to death. Character with scary, mangled face. Eye-gouging. A severed head on fire like a jack-o-lantern. Severed hand. Knife in face. Stabbing. Beating with blunt objects (boards, hammers, etc.). Decapitation. Whipping with chains. Woman tied up and gagged. Suffocating. Choking. Disgusting toilet covered with feces.
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Sex, Romance & Nudity
a lot
Naked breasts. A couple falls onto a bed, kissing. Sexual innuendo.
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Language
a lot
Very strong language includes "f--k," "motherf----r," "s--t," "a--hole," "t-ts," "bitch," "son of a bitch," "piss," "hell," "douche bag," "retard," "freak," "pee," and "ji*zzed," plus exclamations of "Christ," "Jesus," "for God's sake," "swear to God." Middle-finger gesture.
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Drinking, Drugs & Smoking
a little
Two drunk characters argue about driving home and decide to wait until they're sober. Cigarette smoking. Injection of mysterious knockout drug.
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Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that Terrifier is a slasher movie about an evil killer clown. Blood and gore are extremely strong, and the violence against women is disturbing. One woman is hung naked upside down (her breasts are visible) and sawed in half from her crotch to her head. Another woman's skin is sliced off of her chest, and the killer wears it on his own chest so that he can have breasts. There are many deaths, and tons of blood sprays/spurts, plus beating with blunt objects, guns and shooting, stabbing, slicing, severed heads, eye-gouging, and much more. Language is also very strong, with multiple uses of "f--k," "s--t," "bitch," and more. There's some sexual innuendo, and a couple falls into bed, kissing. Characters are drunk after a night of partying, cigarette smoking is shown, and a woman is injected with a knockout drug. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
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TerrifierOfficial trailer -
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Terrifier
Community Reviews
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- Parents say (25)
- Kids say (68)
age 17+
Based on 25 parent reviews
Parisbondofficial Adult
February 16, 2023
age 18+
Insensitive and Disturbing
This movie has too much violence and gore. This is definitely not for kids and especially when their brain is still developing. This is also not a movie for people who are sensitive to slasher films. There’s one big main scene that was disturbing and petrified me. “Art the clown” sliced a woman in half upside down completely naked and he started by her sensitive areas to her head. This had me have anxiety for a week and traumatized me. I’m 21 and I thought I would be old enough to handle this but I couldn’t. It really disturbed me and I don’t understand how some people like this kind of films were it involves torture p*rn and traumatizing side effects. I also don’t understand how some people think the clown is funny, especially when he is laughing and smiling while brutally murdering people. Meanwhile, the film is good quality but second movie is better. The movie kept dragging it self. There was no story behind the clown about where he came from, what’s his legal name, or why he turned out to be the way he is or if he was always like that while growing up. The only story behind the movie is only about the event that occurred at the abandoned building and the symbol of “Art the Clown” The second movie is a much better Quality but the gore is still the same and the violence, maybe even more. The second film he goes all out and even try’s torturing and murdering a kid. There is one scene in this film that was really bad, there was too much blood and gore everywhere. I don’t understand this scene tho, where they are still alive, even tho they look like they’ve been slaughtered to death. It was kind of unrealistic but it still terrified me and almost made me want to puke. There is some settings in this film where it doesn’t make it all bad and terrifying. There’s some supernatural and some badass costume goddesses. Overall The two films is definitely not for kids and also not for sensitive people like me. There’s really bad gore and violence. I don’t know what made me watch the second movie after the first, but it eased me a little since there’s mystic fantasy relating to one of the characters to the second film. My best advice is to watch this with someone that can comfort you and ease your anxiety. Especially if you’re sensitive to slasher films. Other than that if you like movies like this than go for it.
pooch831 Adult
December 19, 2020
age 16+
Gorehounds will love it. Scary clown movie
If you and your children don't like gory movies with murders and dismemberment skip this. I'd only watch this with older kids...maybe.The performance of the clown is great, he doesn't speak and uses movement and facial expressions. I heard he used to portray the grinch and used it an an influence.
Rate movie
See all 25 parent reviews
What's the Story?
In TERRIFIER, Dawn (Catherine Corcoran) and Tara (Jenna Kanell) are finishing up a night on the town when they realize that they're both too tipsy to drive. Tara suggests getting a slice of pizza while they sober up. A scary, unspeaking clown (David Howard Thornton) in a black-and-white outfit wanders into the pizza parlor and starts staring at Tara. After the friends leave, the clown brutally murders all of the employees in the restaurant. When Dawn and Tara get back to their car, they find the tires slashed. Tara phones her sister, Victoria (Samantha Scaffidi), for a pick-up, and then goes into a creepy nearby building to use the restroom. Unfortunately, the clown isn't through with them yet, and it's going to be a long night.
Is It Any Good?
Our review:
Parents say (25):
Kids say (68):
An attempt to pay homage to slasher movies of the 1980s, this horror pic has a truly unsettling killer and some entertaining elements, but it ultimately goes too far with its cruelty toward women. Written and directed by Damien Leone, Terrifier is well cast, from the freaky-looking Art the Clown -- with his strange, sneering smile -- to the exterminator who initially looks creepy but turns out to be good. Tara is especially likable: She's a traditional horror heroine who seems to have been made up to resemble Neve Campbell's Sidney Prescott in Scream. (We also hear a radio ad for "Craven's Halloween Store.")
But, perhaps in an effort to avoid the traditional formulas of all those 1980s movies, Leone sends his storyline flying all over the place. There's no real hero (or "final girl") to root for. The viciousness of the attacks and torture of the female characters seems a little outsized and excessive for what seems intended as an homage. Perhaps worse, a cruel prologue sequence offers heavy-handed foreshadowing to the movie's rather hopeless ending. If only Terrifier had found a better balance of characters -- and perhaps a measure of hope, which would have added more suspense -- it might have stood near the movies that inspired it.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the violence in Terrifier. What message does it send that so much of it is directed at women? Does the movie go too far? Who decides what "too far" means?
Is the movie scary? What's the appeal of horror movies?
How is drinking portrayed? Is it glamorized? Are the drinkers responsible?
Why do you think so many people find clowns scary?
What's the "slasher" subgenre of horror, and why was/is it so popular?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming: March 15, 2018
- Cast: Jenna Kanell, Samantha Scaffidi, David Howard Thornton
- Director: Damien Leone
- Inclusion Information: Female actors, Queer actors
- Studio: Dread Central Presents
- Genre: Horror
- Topics: Monsters, Ghosts, and Vampires
- Run time: 82 minutes
- MPAA rating: NR
- Last updated: June 20, 2023
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