FilmPGComedy Horror Psychological

The 'Burbs1989

Name: The 'Burbs
Genre: Comedy Horror, Psychological
Released: 1989-02-17
Rating: 6.5

“He's a man of peace in a savage land... Suburbia.”

Directed by Joe Dante

6.5

Crypt Score

Blended from 4 sources

IMDb 6.8Rotten Tomatoes 57%Metacritic 45TMDB 6.8

✍ Review

On the charts

#6·Top Horror Movies of 1989

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Year

1989

Runtime

102 min

Box Office

Budget

$18,000,000

Revenue (worldwide)

$49,101,993

Domestic

$36,601,993

🏆 1 nomination total

The premise

When secretive new neighbors move in next door, suburbanite Ray Peterson and his friends let their paranoia get the best of them as they start to suspect the newcomers of evildoings and commence an investigation. But it's hardly how Ray, who much prefers drinking beer, reading his newspaper and watching a ball game on the tube expected to spend his vacation.

Horror Vault's take

When a strange and reclusive family moves into the neighborhood, mild-mannered suburbanite Ray Peterson finds his peaceful staycation derailed by his own creeping suspicions — and those of his equally restless neighbors. What begins as idle gossip and over-the-fence speculation escalates into a full-blown amateur investigation that grows more unhinged by the hour. Joe Dante's darkly comedic thriller gleefully skewers the nosy, insular nature of suburban culture while keeping audiences genuinely unsure whether the threat next door is real or entirely imagined.

Content: Mild Violence, Dark Humor, Cartoon-Style Peril, Brief Disturbing Imagery