The Killer Shrews

Play trailer

The Killer Shrews

Released Jun 25, 1959

1h 9m

Sci-Fi

Horror

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

40%

Tomatometer

10 Reviews

24%

Popcornmeter

2,500+ Ratings

Capt. Thorne Sherman lands his ship on an isolated island to make a delivery, only to find that mad doctor Marlowe Craigis is experimenting on shrews in an attempt to shrink them. The opposite happens, and the shrews become enormous and hungry for human flesh, leaving everyone on the island in peril, including the doctor's pretty daughter, Ann, and her unappealing fiancé, Jerry. Then, Thorne tries to organize an escape plan.

Watch on Fandango at Home

Buy Now

Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Every time a “shrew” is shown, one expects it to sit, roll over, or extend its paw.

Rated: 2/4

Oct 4, 2023

Full Review

Rob Humanick

Suite101.com

Not particularly watchable until the climax.

Rated: 2/5

Oct 26, 2011

Full Review

Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

If you get a few laughs from the bizarre acting and dumb story, that's the most you can expect from this bad film.

Rated: C-

Dec 15, 2007

Full Review

Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Rated: 3/5

Nov 2, 2005

Full Review

Linda Cook

Quad City Times (Davenport, IA)

Rated: 3/5

May 8, 2005

Full Review

Rob Thomas

Capital Times (Madison, WI)

Carpet remnants attack! Very funny "MST3K" version, unwatchable on its own.

Rated: 0/5

Jul 17, 2003

Full Review

Read all reviews

Dallas H

Wow, the visual design of the shrews is horrendously cheesy. The constant switch back and forth between hand puppets and dogs wearing costumes is laughable. I cannot believe someone thought investing money in producing a sequel and reboot decades later would be worthwhile.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

08/19/24

Full Review

Audience Member

Love it actually! 4/5. I enjoyed it.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

08/08/24

Full Review

Liam D

Even by B 50s/60s movie standards. This is an lazy bordering on unwatchable with effects that are laughable, an terrible story and cheesy acting

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

08/02/24

Full Review

CodyZamboni Z

Cheap looking, amatuerish, un scary, and poorly acted, Worst of all, it's boring, A silly tale of giant poisonous hungry shrews, snacking on their human creators,

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

07/28/24

Full Review

Ted B

1.5 stars. I know this was a low-budget drive-in-style movie from the late 1950s, but the film's special effects and acting were so bad that I can't help but wonder if it's not a spoof in the vein of "Plan 9 from Outer Space."

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

07/28/24

Full Review

Audience Member

"The Killer Shrews" is quite an interesting movie to say the least. Flat, one note performances and special effects so terrible even Ed Wood would think they sucked. The title creatures look nothing short of ridiculous. Just a small group of dogs with prosthetic teeth and long fur coats. The puppets used for closeups look even more ridiculous! The performances are as flat as a board. Ken Curtis was overacting to no end. Gordon McLendon (Who only had a part in this movie because he co-produced it.) had no personality and was clearly phoning it in. The only saving grace of this movie is the late James Best. He gives as decent a performance as you can with a movie like this. He is the reason why I gave this movie more than a one star rating. If you are a fan of "The Dukes of Hazard" you may get a kick out of seeing this movie just to see James Best before he was Sherriff Roscoe (I personally recommend the episode of "The Twilight Zone" titled "The Last Rights of Jeff Myrtelbank" if you wish to see some of Best's early acting work.), I would give "The Killer Shrews" a look. Otherwise I would not recommend it. it is too cornball to work as a serious horror movie.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

01/22/23

Full Review

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Ray Kellogg

Director

James Best

Thorne Sherman

Ingrid Goude

Ann Craigis

Baruch Lumet

Dr. Marlowe Craigis

Ken Curtis

Jerry Farrell

Gordon McLendon

Dr. Radford Baines

The Fly

95%

71%

The Fly

Watchlist

TRAILER

for The Fly

Invasion of the Body Snatchers

97%

85%

Invasion of the Body Snatchers

Watchlist

The Wasp Woman

45%

24%

The Wasp Woman

Watchlist

Shivers

85%

58%

Shivers

Watchlist

The Food of the Gods

18%

26%

The Food of the Gods

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

View more photos

Synopsis

Capt. Thorne Sherman lands his ship on an isolated island to make a delivery, only to find that mad doctor Marlowe Craigis is experimenting on shrews in an attempt to shrink them. The opposite happens, and the shrews become enormous and hungry for human flesh, leaving everyone on the island in peril, including the doctor's pretty daughter, Ann, and her unappealing fiancé, Jerry. Then, Thorne tries to organize an escape plan.

Director: Ray Kellogg
Producer: Ken Curtis
Screenwriter: Jay Simms
Production Co: Hollywood Pictures
Genre: Sci-Fi, Horror
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jun 25, 1959, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 1, 2012
Runtime: 1h 9m

Most Popular at Home Now