Fear of Clowns

We all have them. That one movie that is so terrible, we have no idea why we watched it. Not only that, but we have seen it more than once! I am going to talk about one of mine, a movie that is so bad, I think you should see it! “Fear of Clowns” was made in 2004 right here in Maryland, in the middle of Hurricane Isabel. The auditions were held in a hotel in Glen Burnie, and many scenes were shot there, in Baltimore or in the surrounding areas. Kevin Kangas is the prime mover in the making of this movie, a guy who definitely was channeling Ed Wood. Kangas wrote, directed and has a cameo in this extravanganza. The back story is more interesting than the film itself. Kangas had such a small budget that he often didn’t have permits or permissions to film in his chosen locales. In one case, he had permission to film in a yard, but liked the house better a few doors down. So while the inhabitants were at work, Kangas set up the whole scene and got it filmed before they ever knew what happened. In another case, while filming at a mall (possibly the Columbia Mall) Kangas and his crew had to dodge the police. If you look carefully, you might recognize some of the local settings. Because of the low budget, the special effects are crude, obvious and laughable; but that is what makes this movie so much fun. It’s amazing what creative short cuts and trade-offs you have to make to come up with any effects when your budget is practicaly nil, and computer graphics are not even in the realm of possiblities (even ones as poor in the equally awful “Birdemic”). The plot doesn’t really matter, something to do with an artist who has coulrophobia (fear of you-know-what) who is stalked by a murderous funny man. If you decide to watch, good luck finding it showing anywhere, even though for some reason, the equally awful “Fear of Clowns II” is offered on Prime. While you are at it though, Prime also offers “Making of The Fear of Clowns” though I hear Pennywise walked out half way through. There you go, my take on a terrible movie that I can’t resist watching. What’s yours?