| A showman introduces a small coastal town to a unique movie experience and capitalizes on the Cuban Missile crisis hysteria with a kitschy horror extravaganza combining film effects, stage props and actors in rubber suits in this salute to the B-movie. | |
| Release Date: | Jan 29, 1993 |
|---|---|
| Director: | Joe Dante |
| Writer: | Charles S. Haas, Jerico |
| Genres: | Comedy, Drama |
| Keywords | florida, cold war, military base, film in film, cuban missile crisis, 1960s, key west, bomb shelter, film director, teenage protagonist |
| Production Companies | Falcon Productions, Renfield Productions |
| Box Office |
Revenue: $9,532,895
Budget: $14,000,000 |
| Updates |
Updated: Feb 04, 2026 Entered: Apr 13, 2024 |
| Name | Character |
|---|---|
| John Goodman | Lawrence Woolsey |
| Cathy Moriarty | Ruth Corday / Carole |
| Simon Fenton | Gene Loomis |
| Omri Katz | Stan |
| Lisa Jakub | Sandra |
| Kellie Martin | Sherry |
| Jesse Lee Soffer | Dennis Loomis |
| Lucinda Jenney | Anne Loomis |
| James Villemaire | Harvey Starkweather |
| Robert Picardo | Howard |
| Jesse White | Mr. Spector |
| Dick Miller | Herb |
| John Sayles | Bob |
| David Clennon | Jack |
| Lucy Butler | Rhonda |
| Georgie Cranford | Dwight |
| Nick Bronson | Andy |
| Cory Barlog | Stan's Friend |
| George Carson | Stan's Friend |
| Joe Gonzalez | Stan's Friend |
| Belinda Balaski | Stan's Mom |
| Charles S. Haas | Mr. Elroy |
| Mark McCracken | Mant / Bill |
| Archie Hahn | Shopping Cart Star |
| Naomi Watts | Shopping Cart Starlet |
| Chris Stacy | Gas Station Attendant |
| Allison McKay | Teacher |
| Glenda Chism | Teacher |
| Aaron Stormer | Kid Near Andy |
| Lana Bucciarelli | 'Eew!' Girl |
| Richard Rossomme | Shredded Wheat Man |
| D. Christian Gottshall | Store Clerk |
| Bernard Blanding | Soldier |
| Dennis Neal | Soldier |
| Luke Halpin | Man in Crowd |
| Eulan Middlebrooks | Young Man in Crowd |
| Elizabeth Dimon | Theater Cashier |
| Shane Obedzinski | Bleeding Kid |
| Summer-Healy Chapin | Balcony Full Kid |
| James Scott Hess | Kid in Floor Seat |
| Shawn Edward Watkins | Kid Next to Mr. Elroy |
| Danny Hanemann | Man Outside Theater |
| Jesse Zeigler | Kid in Line |
| Andy Isaacs | Faint Kid |
| Joe Candelora | Fireman |
| Steve Zurk | Cop |
| Mary Moriarty | Lady in Line |
| John Paul Lehman | Marine Guard |
| Jacob Witkin | Dr. Diablo |
| Tracy Roberts | Screaming Woman |
| Marc Macaulay | Shopping Cart Crook |
| Timothy Bass | Movie Theater Actor |
| Jeff Breslauer | Movie Theater Actor |
| Molly Conole | Movie Theater Actor |
| Peggy O'Neal | Movie Theater Actor |
| Colette Piceau | Movie Theater Actor |
| Steve DuMouchel | Mob Actor |
| Kurt Smildsin | Mob Actor |
| Michael T. Kelly | Mob Actor |
| Ike Pappas | Newscaster |
| Brett Rice | Gene's Dad (voice) |
| Robert Cornthwaite | Dr. Flankon (uncredited) |
| Sherrie Peterson | Movie Theatre Patron (uncredited) |
| William Schallert | Dr. Grabow (uncredited) |
| Kevin McCarthy | General Ankrum (uncredited) |
| Name | Job |
|---|---|
| Jerry Goldsmith | Original Music Composer |
| Isis Mussenden | Costume Design |
| Rick Baker | Makeup Effects, Makeup Artist |
| Steven Legler | Production Design |
| Frederic C. Weiler | Set Decoration |
| Selena Evans-Miller | Makeup Artist |
| Kathe Swanson | Key Hair Stylist |
| Charles S. Haas | Story, Screenplay |
| Marshall Harvey | Editor |
| Nanci Roberts | Art Direction |
| Erin Koplow | Makeup Artist |
| Pat Kehoe | Unit Production Manager |
| Margo Hunt McKay | Assistant Production Coordinator |
| Jerico | Story |
| Gretchen Rennell | Casting |
| Eric Weiler | Set Decoration |
| Ron Scott | Hairstylist |
| John Hora | Director of Photography |
| Mark Mangini | Supervising Sound Editor |
| Alexander Courage | Orchestrator |
| Joe Dante | Director |
| Name | Title |
|---|---|
| Pat Kehoe | Co-Producer |
| Michael Finnell | Producer |
| Organization | Category | Person |
|---|
Popularity History
| Year | Month | Avg | Max | Min |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 4 | 16 | 28 | 9 |
| 2024 | 5 | 17 | 31 | 8 |
| 2024 | 6 | 24 | 33 | 11 |
| 2024 | 7 | 17 | 31 | 10 |
| 2024 | 8 | 13 | 25 | 8 |
| 2024 | 9 | 11 | 21 | 7 |
| 2024 | 10 | 12 | 26 | 6 |
| 2024 | 11 | 11 | 20 | 6 |
| 2024 | 12 | 9 | 13 | 6 |
| 2025 | 1 | 12 | 25 | 7 |
| 2025 | 2 | 7 | 11 | 3 |
| 2025 | 3 | 5 | 10 | 1 |
| 2025 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2025 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2025 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 2025 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 2025 | 8 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| 2025 | 9 | 3 | 4 | 1 |
| 2025 | 10 | 2 | 4 | 0 |
| 2025 | 11 | 5 | 16 | 1 |
| 2025 | 12 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| 2026 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 1 |
| 2026 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 2 |
Trending Position
r96sk
5.0
A bore! John Goodman almost saves <em>'Matinee'</em>, he's good, but not quite. I personally didn't care for the characters of Key West and their stories, especially the parts with those portrayed by Kellie Martin, Omri Katz and James Villemaire. The story shoots off into quite a few directions, ... but I was genuinely not into any of it apart from the scenes with Goodman's Woolsey. The 'film within a film', <em>'Mant!'</em>, is great though - it actually amused me a fair bit, which was a stark contrast to what the real comedy (or lack thereof) achieved. I appreciate what it was going for, but I just didn't dig the vast majority of it unfortunately.
May 21, 2023