Clown in a Cornfield begs the question: where are the scarecrows? Are they going to bring this up in the next meeting of Horror Icons Anonymous? I think the clowns co-opting the cornfields is reason for a dialog – even a debate. But, hey, I guess the argument is everyone fears a clown, and the last film scarecrow we got, Mia Goth kind of humped instead.

Anyhoo, Clown in a Cornfield winningly stars Katie Douglas as a new girl in a small fly-over town. She immediately makes friends with the non-stereotypical local teens and soon they realize they are being stalked by killer klowns (not from outer space).

My immediate reaction to this film was how much I liked the characters. How well they were written and how they weren’t falling into the standard issue buckets of teen fodder. I especially liked Douglas and her relationship with her movie dad. it helps I didn’t actually want all the characters to instantly die. Note to slasher screenwriters: sometimes every victim doesn’t need to be a piece of shit.

The film is funny and winning and falls down a tiny bit by having a “kids these days” generational angle… but its not enough to hurt it. I chuckled throughout (and so did my audience) at some of the gags, character moments, and the energetic kills. As a slasher (or slasher-adjacent) film, it got the balance right.

In that the film doesn’t stray too far from what it is, it surprised me only in that the actors/characters are solid. Everything else is good, no arguments from me, but not amazing or revelatory or whip smart.

Clown in a Cornfield still rubs me wrong that it doesn’t have scarecrow representation, but a good cast playing relatable characters was good enough. Nice kills, a couple surprises, and just a generally good time. It’s enough.

Score: 84