Ice Cream Man: A Sizable Scoop of Slasher Fun
Ice Cream Man is a slasher comedy about a deranged ice cream man who serves up human body parts as ice cream to unsuspecting customers. A film that both used mashed potatoes to pose as ice cream, and was sponsored by Converse (yes, the shoe company). The movie follows a group of kids who try to stop him and uncover his dark secrets. The movie stars Clint Howard, Olivia Hussey, David Warner and Jan-Michael Vincent.
The movie is a cult classic that appeals to fans of cheesy and campy horror. It has a lot of gore, humour and absurdity. It also has a nostalgic 80s vibe with a retro soundtrack and costumes. The film is not to be taken seriously, being a parody of the slasher genre. According to IMDB, even one of the actors did not take the film seriously. Jan-Michael Vincent was frequently inebriated on set. This explained why, during one scene, Vincent strayed off instead of splitting up with the detectives – staggering back to the car when the investigators arrive!
Again according to IMDB, Clint Howard (playing the killer, Gregory Tudor) screamed and yelled at the top of his lungs while driving in his car every day to the set in order to have a more gravelly voice for his role. So at least some of the actors took their job seriously. Despite its detractors, the film is fun and definitely has entertainment value. While others have criticized it for its poor acting, writing and production quality, it is this that gives the film B-movie appeal. The movie is not for everyone, but it might be worth watching if you enjoy low-budget horror comedies.
Despite many scenes that act as filler, the film has a solid beginning, a great ending, and some decent sequences in between. The filler scenes really slow the pace! Ice Cream Man plays its cards early on in showing us that Gregory isn’t quite right, but it eventually attempts to make him a more sympathetic character. Sure, he had a difficult background, but it doesn’t explain what he does in this picture!
In 2014, star Clint Howard launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund a sequel (titled Ice Cream Man 2: Sundae Bloody Sundae) to coincide with the film’s 20th anniversary. However, the campaign ended on October 30, 2014, with only 70 backers and just over £3500 raised. Luckily, the project has not been abandoned, and they are looking for a new crowdfunding structure and alternative financing for the film. There are no current updates on this yet. We will be on the lookout!
