Low-Budget Horror Movies Like Uninvited (1988) Show That the Charm Is in the Seams

Hello, reader. It’s me, Jeremy. In honor of Spooky Season, today’s issue comes to you from a dear friend of mine, Garon Bailey! Garon is a creative soul who is passionate about DIY filmmaking, which means he has a fondness for low-budget films. He is also a big horror movie junkie, which means he’s seen a lot of wonderful spooky schlock. He is also an avid animal lover who is particularly endeared toward on-screen critters serving as unwilling “antagonists.” All of these things mean he is the perfect person to write about this particular film, and I’m glad he did it. You’ll be glad he did it too after you give it a read (and then watch the film).

If you know me and you know how I interact with films, then you’re probably well aware of my love for low-budget movies that may be considered “bad” by traditional standards. I often find myself sticking up for certain movies that may not actually be worth the effort; sometimes I go as far as proclaiming that they’re far better than their critical reputation.*

With that in mind, Uninvited is a movie I love. But I cannot and will not claim that it’s unfairly maligned.

I don’t want to bore you with a full recap of the over-complicated plot of the film, so this simplified summary will have to suffice. Uninvited tells the story of a mysterious and dangerous house cat that escapes from a lab in Florida, becomes friends with a couple of college girls, and uses this relationship to sneak onto the yacht of a sleazy businessman trying to make it to the Cayman Islands to secure a large sum of sketchily obtained money before the SEC can shut him down. But this cat—and the secret this cat contains—obviously complicates this goal. (Amazingly, the plot is much more complicated than this, but that’s the general synopsis.)

But, of course, no one watches movies like this for the plot.** As with many films from the era of cheap slashers and weirdo horrors to capitalize on a craze, this plot is merely a pretext to get blood and naked girls on the screen.*** And that’s where this one takes off for me.

For starters, there’s no nudity in this movie. It follows a couple of college girls on spring break, so there are obviously some scenes featuring 20-somethings in bikinis. But I always respect this kind of restraint, whether it was the filmmaker’s choice or the young actresses exercising some power, in not catering to audience expectations.

Beyond that, what I love about cheap horror movies from this era is noticing where they couldn’t hide the seams. And let me tell you, Uninvited is loaded with seams. The blood and gore effects aren’t bad, and there are a couple of decent performances, particularly from the main trio of villains.****

But it’s full of charming moments of practical filmmaking. I think filmmakers of this era were perfectly content with using practical effects and trusting the audience to suspend their disbelief. Unlike nowadays, when there’s such a reliance on digital effects that falls to overworked and underpaid artists—effects that still don’t look great even though they’re supposed to be more convincing. The art of making something by hand and shooting it in person with a camera is all but lost. (I could rant about this at length, and most of you would roll your eyes at me.)

The cat monster puppet in Uninvited certainly doesn’t look convincing (although it’s kinda cute in its own way). And there are obvious miniatures of a boat in a storm that were actually shot in a swimming pool.***** My favorite seam, though, is the sound design. Every time the cat monster is on screen, the sound mix is peppered with cat noises. The best part is that the cat actor—which does a pretty good job for a cat that had to be dragged onto a boat—isn’t even opening its mouth. Of course, this didn’t stop the sound engineer from really laying on the “meow” button every single time it appears on screen. I love it so much. How can you not?

If this somehow doesn’t get you in the mood to party with this movie (and I really don’t know how it couldn’t), allow me to share some of the lessons I learned from Uninvited that I hope will convince you to give it a shot.

First, don’t let a lack of perfect setup stop you from pursuing something. Director Greydon Clark sure didn’t, and I believe the world is better for it. To put it simply, if you want to create something, you should create something! It will probably speak to some weirdo in the world, much like how Uninvited speaks to me. Second, keep in mind that sometimes the obvious “villain” is often the hero, and the true villainy can often be found somewhere between a mysterious and irresponsible science lab and a sleazy rich guy’s financial scheme.******

And finally, always remember that when things aren’t going well, it helps to look within to find the problem. (Because there could be a mutant cat monster living inside you.)

*I will take every opportunity to tell you how great Chopping Mall and Hello Mary Lou: Prom Night II both are.

**This is my assumption, but who knows?

***According to IMDb, the budget for Uninvited was $200,000, which was low even 35 years ago. 45% of that budget was used on the fee for the actors playing the three villains and to rent a boat to take them out and shoot the bulk of the scenes. (Yes, they shot on a real boat.)

****Alex Cord, Clu Gulager, and Oscar-winner George Kennedy are pretty good and enjoyable here, given the material they’re working with. (I should note that George Kennedy did not win an Oscar for this film, in case you were wondering.)

*****No, really. According to IMDb, these scenes were shot in the director’s swimming pool.

******The cat monster is the hero of this film. I will stand by this take.

Uninvited is now streaming on Shudder, Tubi, and Freevee, and it is available to rent elsewhere.