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The People Under the Stairs Reviews

As with most Craven images, this one suffers from lackluster performances, a clumsy screenplay, a campy tone, and a noticeable lack of suspense.

Full Review | Original Score: 1.5/4 | Jun 11, 2023

...those shrieking, reaching victims will always stay with me.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/4 | Jun 22, 2022

The People Under the Stairs may be as misshapen as the people who live in this basement, but it might be as subversive too.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | May 26, 2022

It’s both a nasty thriller and a concise satire of race and class in America.

Full Review | Mar 17, 2022

A darkly comedic and prescient social commentary that ranks among Craven's best films.

Full Review | Original Score: 4.5/5 | Dec 30, 2020

The People Under the Stairs does not quite succeed in its intentions, but for such an off-kilter and original work it achieves a lot more than an audience might fairly expect.

Full Review | Original Score: 7/10 | Nov 29, 2020

Wes Craven's most engaging, peculiar, and memorable film.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Oct 21, 2020

Although much of the film is too exaggerated and flamboyant to be scary, the chills garnered from helpless children trying to elude armed adults is undeniably effective.

Full Review | Original Score: 7/10 | Sep 24, 2020

Easily one of the Wes Craven's most original, deranged, and off the wall films.

Full Review | Original Score: B+ | Jul 3, 2020

...a decent premise that's employed to pervasively (and increasingly) unwatchable effect by Craven...

Full Review | Original Score: 1/4 | Feb 24, 2020

The everyday and mundane that lures us into a false sense of security can become the very sight of anxiety. [Wes Craven]... does so with a certain complexity and I think his sleepers don't get the attention they deserve.

Full Review | Feb 11, 2020

The film turns America's obsession with child abuse to humorous and gothic effect.

Full Review | Jul 19, 2018

A parable of underclass exploitation that ends in revolution and extreme -- even explosive -- wealth redistribution.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Nov 6, 2015

A wacky, darkly comic, and obscenely weird horror movie...

Full Review | Aug 14, 2015

As a horror film and an allegory that is just as timely in the 21st century as it was in the early 1990s, "The People Under the Stairs" actually has something to say beyond its goal to frighten.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Aug 10, 2015

The performances combine with Craven's witty script and energetic direction to make The People Under the Stairs a spooky, laugh-filled release most horror fans should get a kick out of.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Jul 6, 2010

A pretense of social responsibility and most of the necessary tension get lost in a combination of excessive gore and over-the-top perfs in The People Under the Stairs.

Full Review | Mar 26, 2009

There are a few push-button frights, but a total dearth of mind-disturbing terror; the humour, too, is broad, crowd-pleasing stuff.

Full Review | Jun 24, 2006

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Sep 9, 2005

Perhaps the most staggeringly incompetent movie in the director's uneven canon.

Full Review | Original Score: D | Jun 3, 2005

The People Under the Stairs (Movie Review)

Spencer's rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ½ director: wes craven | release date: 1991.

With the death of Wes Craven, the world of horror lost a great mythmaker. There’s no better time to reflect on one of his richest stories, an underrated movie that took several years to attract the admiration it deserves.

The People Under the Stairs takes no pains to conceal its homage to legend and fairy tale. It opens, as many of those stories do, with an inexperienced but brave hero beginning a journey to save his family. The hero in question is a boy named Poindexter, but he’s known to his loved ones as “Fool” (Brandon Quintin Adams). His older, Tarot-reading sister assures him this affectionate nickname is no slight: fools are pushed into danger and forced into a decision--take the easy way out, or fight through it and come out triumphant. He finds himself in exactly that position when his dying mother is unable to make rent and their landlords threaten eviction.

Their landlords are notoriously villainous: credited only as “Man” and “Woman” (Everett McGill and Wendy Robie), they have spent years building an elaborate empire of slums, edging out tenants so that they can sell the land to commercial developers. There are rumors that all of their wealth is hoarded somewhere in their giant home, and Fool’s quest begins when he joins his uncle Leroy (Ving Rhames) and his uncle’s friend Spencer to reclaim what their community lost. It takes some effort to get inside, but once they are there they discover, to their terror, that the house is rigged so that its inhabitants can never escape. In addition to their own daughter, Alice (A.J. Langer), the Man and the Woman have accumulated dozens of pale, tongueless victims in their cellar--and their crawlspaces--and everyone is desperate to leave.

The film’s best element is the house itself: an artificial symbol of “security” that has been weaponized, designed to starve a community and entrap anyone who threatens its owners’ stranglehold. As a set it is sprawling and deadly, and scene after scene finds Fool and Alice stumbling through rotting floors and dusty hidden passages as they are pursued by their gruesome captors. McGill is plenty creepy as an unhinged, gun wielding maniac who cheers like a cowboy and inexplicably dons S&M gear, but Robie steals the show, channeling Joan Crawford and Norman Bates’s mother as she hunts down children.

The movie is relentlessly dedicated to exploring the deep history of storytelling, from folklore to grindhouses, and putting familiar elements to new use. It’s also shrewdly conscious of race, gender, and economics: more than just ‘flipping the script’ in terms of casting, Craven is aware here that he’s telling a bigger, often unheard story about violence and oppression in America. One great example is a scene that pays shot-for-shot homage to the famous bathroom sequence in The Shining : only now it is Fool, a black child, in place of Shelley Duvall, crouching in the corner while his pursuers unleash their trained dog on the splintering door.

A revenge fantasy that can be light on revenge (but only for a while), The People Under the Stairs may leave some horror fans wanting a little bit more. With the cast slimmed down for much of the movie to two heroes and two villains, no one is expendable, yet: the succession of injuries, though creative, loses a little suspense. But the finale is a spectacular payoff to the story that preceded it. Arthurian hero cycles, Kubrick and Hitchcock, grotesque mothers, haunted houses, home invasions, gold-hoarding monsters, and the brutal history of racist violence and gentrification: you would think, as the movie gets fuller and fuller, that at some point Craven would trip over his own feet. But The People Under the Stairs never stumbles: it explodes.

Contributor

A loophole in his parents' "anti-scary movie, pro-literacy" policy meant that Spencer had read Stephen King's entire body of work by the time he was in middle school. He soon discovered the horror and B-movie offerings on late night cable TV and was hooked for life. He currently lives, works, and writes in North Carolina.

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The People Under the Stairs

Two adults and a juvenile break into a house occupied by a brother and sister and their stolen children. There, they must fight for their lives. Two adults and a juvenile break into a house occupied by a brother and sister and their stolen children. There, they must fight for their lives. Two adults and a juvenile break into a house occupied by a brother and sister and their stolen children. There, they must fight for their lives.

• Brandon Quintin Adams
• Everett McGill
• Wendy Robie
• 197 User reviews
• 126 Critic reviews
• 57 Metascore
• 2 wins & 8 nominations

• (as Brandon Adams)

• Grandpa Booker

• Ruby Williams

• (as Joshua Cox)

• Veteran Cop

• Police Sergeant
• Social Worker

• Stairmaster
• Stairperson 1

• Stairperson 2
• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

Did you know

• Trivia Wes Craven was inspired to write this film after reading a real-life news story about burglars breaking into a house. When authorities arrived, the burglars had disappeared but they discovered locked doors with noises coming from behind. Children had been locked up inside the rooms by their parents, never allowed to go outside.
• Goofs When Fool hits Daddy with the "iron" poker, it snaps in half and is obviously made of thin wood. Fool stops briefly, and looks off set in surprise, before continuing with the scene.

Leroy : You seen Spencer?

Fool : I seen Spencer, alright.

Leroy : You find anything?

Fool : Something found him. He's dead, Leroy. I think scared to death.

Leroy : Y-you sure?

Fool : You thought he was white before, you should see that sucker now!

• Connections Featured in Siskel & Ebert: Cape Fear/Strictly Business/All I Want for Christmas/Liebestraum/The People Under the Stairs (1991)
• Soundtracks Do the Right Thing Written by David 'Redhead' Guppy & Markell Riley Performed by Redhead Kingpin (as Readhead Kingpin) & The F.B.I. Courtesy of Virgin Records Ltd.

User reviews 197

• Apr 1, 2004
• How long is The People Under the Stairs? Powered by Alexa
• November 1, 1991 (United States)
• United States
• Wes Craven's the People Under the Stairs
• Thomas W. Phillips Residence - 2215 S. Harvard Blvd, Los Angeles, California, USA (Robeson Funeral Home)
• Alive Films
• See more company credits at IMDbPro
• $6,000,000 (estimated)
• $24,204,154
• Nov 3, 1991
• $31,347,154

Technical specs

• Runtime 1 hour 42 minutes
• Dolby Digital

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The People Under The Stairs Review

15 Jan 1992

102 minutes

People Under The Stairs, The

Wes Craven achieves more meaningful political commentary with this one brilliantly deceptive "horror" movie than Oliver Stone does in his last four projects. McGill and Robie star as camouflaged Ronald and Nancy Reagan who live inside a spectacularly complex mansion of social horror, all funded by money swindled from the lower classes around them. There they physically abuse their "daughter" to keep her in line, imprison and mutilate young white males who refuse to behave well, plus butcher blacks and all other minorities for cannibal cuisine.

Into this stunning symbolism comes teenage would-be burglar Adams, who courageously fights back against both "Daddy" and "Mommy" - pet names that the Reagans still use for each other to this day - in ways wonderously atypical for a teenager in any fright film.

Going against the rancid tradition of modern terror formulae, Craven immediately establishes empathy with the "abnormal" folk, one intentional reason why his title is not Mommy And Daddy Rule. By the time he finally introduces those denziens in the basement, he builds not the expected fear but genuine emotional connection. Instead of snuff-style anticipation for the next victims to die, he invests all his support in the kids' fight to escape the house.

His shockingly sensitive portrayal of America's army of Have-Nots comes wrapped in enough whipcrack pacing and shrews set design to make even the staunchest Thatcherite swallow the medicine.

Anti-greed, anti-racist, and pro-feminist at the same time, this movie-movie gem scores on levels few horror films ever have. At a time when the Reagan's spiritual son wants four more years, Craven delivers one complicated sociopolitical exposé that would make Jonathan Swift and George Orwell spit up and cheer.

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Movies | 01 11 2020

• Movie Reviews

‘The People Under The Stairs’ 4K UHD Blu-Ray Review – An Irreverent & Chilling Thriller From Wes Craven

• By Dillon Gonzales
• May 18, 2023
• No Comments

Wes Craven, the director of A Nightmare On Elm Street and Scream , takes you on a terrifying journey inside the most demented house on the street. Trapped inside a fortified home owned by a mysterious couple, a young boy is suddenly thrust into a nightmare.

The boy quickly learns the true nature of the house’s homicidal inhabitants and the secret creatures hidden deep within the house.

For thoughts on The People Under The Stairs, please check out our discussions on The Video Attic:

[youtube https://youtu.be/iTQfj0MHFHQ?t=983]

Video Quality

Scream Factory presents The People Under The Stairs with a tremendous 2160p transfer in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio sourced from a new 4K scan of the Original Camera Negative with Dolby Vision/HDR. The film was previously released by Scream Factory on Blu-Ray eight years ago from a dated master. That release was passable at the time, but this new presentation simply blows it away in nearly every respect. Even if you are not yet 4K UHD capable, this new release comes with a new Blu-Ray sourced from the same 4K scan which also bests the previous Blu-Ray. 

One of the most wondrous aspects of the 4K UHD disc is the application of Dolby Vision/HDR for finessed and precise color output that will knock longtime fans sideways with its depth and nuance. The film largely takes place in a spacious dark house and at night for the latter half of the narrative, and it is in this aspect that the transfer shows its worth. The black levels are outstanding with nothing in the way of crush or banding present. Audiences can now see so much more shadow detail with figures properly defined instead of blending into the murky background. 

The beginning of the film does take place during the day, and there is a world of nuance to be found during these stretches in the open air. Highlights are solid as a rock with no evidence of blooming in the brilliant luminance. Lighting is an essential part of establishing the mood of this film and this disc handles every slight environmental change with ease. The new presentation features some colors in the production design and effects such as the green of the foliage or the deep red blood that coats the entryway which pops off the screen with a vibrant intensity. 

The texture on display in the grotesque makeup, the outfits and within the production design are jaw-dropping. The special effects present with miraculous clarity that makes the work all the more visceral. While this transfer has been refreshed, there are still some fleeting specks that pop up which do not distract from the image. This presentation is true to the original look of the film with the added resolution making elements seem more immediate and natural. The level of detail and clarity is stunning with an excellent amount of natural film grain intact. The grain resolves very well with nothing ever feeling clumpy even within the dingy environments. There does not appear to be any jarring digital anomalies such as compression artifacts or any other such nuisances. This presentation is a top-tier effort from the team at Scream Factory.

Audio Quality

The 4K UHD Blu-Ray disc comes with a DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track and a DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio track, both of which serve up exactly what you want. From the very opening moments with the characters speaking off screen, these tracks provide a nuanced soundscape that perfectly captures the artistic intent with a fidelity that is accurately maintained. Environmental sounds such as reports from the television and the scurrying in between the walls are rendered well alongside everything else. 

The score from Don Peake has never sounded richer and is used perfectly to establish the tone of the story. There is never a moment where it threatens to overwhelm competing sounds, and it maintains a firm balance so that dialogue comes through crisp and clear. There does not seem to be any obvious instances of age-related wear and tear. Scream Factory has delivered exactly what fans hope for in an ultimate presentation. English SDH subtitles are provided for those who want them.

Disc One (4K UHD)

• Audio Commentary 1: Director Wes Craven delivers a very informative and amiable commentary track moderated by Michael Felsher from Red Shirt Pictures in which he discusses his initial ideas for the film, where he was at this point in his career, some of the themes he wanted to tackle, the process of casting the ensemble, the look of the film, the diversity of the crew and more. 
• Audio Commentary #2: Actors Brandon Adams, A.J. Langer, Sean Whalen and Yan Birch offer a much less exciting commentary track prone to extended periods of dead air, but there are some intriguing anecdotes sprinkled in to keep this from being a complete waste of time. This one really needed a moderator to keep things moving. 
• Audio Commentary #3: Actor Brandon Adams delivers a pretty decent commentary track moderated by film critic Calum Waddell which finds the actor revealing a lot more about what it was like to be a child actor, his experiences on the set and more. 
• Fear, Freud & Class Welfare – An Interview with Director Wes Craven: A 25-minute archival interview from the previous Arrow Video release with the director in which he discusses the inspiration for the film, what different rooms in the house mean to him, the perniciousness of secrets, his struggles with the script, how this compares to his other work and more. 
• Behind Closed Doors – An Interview with Actress A.J. Langer: A 14-minute archival interview from the previous Arrow Video release with the actress in which she discusses her memories of Wes Craven, her relationship with horror films, the psychology of the film, her experiences during the production and more. 
• Silent But Deadly – An Interview with Actor Sean Whalen: A 14-minute archival interview from the previous Arrow Video release with the actor in which he discusses the audition process for this film, his relationship with Wes Craven and his fellow performers, the legacy of the film and his character and more. 
• Underneath The Floorboards – An Interview with Filmmaker Jeffrey Reddick: A nine-minute archival interview from the previous Arrow Video release with the filmmaker behind the Final Destination series in which he discusses his evolving relationship with the movie, the themes of the film, how Wes Craven subverts certain conventions, how the film was marketed incorrectly and more. 
• Theatrical Trailer: The minute-and-a-half trailer is provided here. 

Disc Two (Blu-Ray – Theatrical Cut)

• Audio Commentary #1: Director Wes Craven
• Audio Commentary #2: Actors Brandon Adams, A.J. Langer, Sean Whalen and Yan Birch
• Audio Commentary #3: Actor Brandon Adams
• House Mother – Interview with Wendy Robie: A nearly 20-minute interview with the actress in which she discusses her involvement and character in the film, the audition process, getting a role for her Twin Peaks co-star Everett McGill, memories of working with Wes Craven, experiences during production and more. 
• What Lies Beneath – The Effects of The People Under The Stairs: A 15-minute piece with the KNB special effects team including Howard Berger, Robert Kurtzman, and Greg Nicotero, who discuss creating the look of the characters, working with Craven, how they achieved certain effects, working on a smaller budget and more. There is some cool archival footage spliced in throughout. 
• House of Horrors – Interview with Director of Photography Sandi Sissel: A 16-minute interview with the cinematographer in which she discusses her background, how she got involved with Wes Craven, dipping her toe into horror, the look of the feature, how they achieved certain angles and more. 
• Settling The Score – Interview with Don Peake: A ten-minute interview with the composer in which he discusses his background, working with Wes Craven, creating the atmosphere of The People Under The Stairs, his relationship to the film and more. 
• Behind The Scenes Footage: A seven-minute archival glimpse at some of the gory makeup effects from the set. 
• Theatrical Trailer
• TV Spots: A minute-and-a-half worth of TV Spots are included here. 
• Vintage Making Of Featurette: A four-minute vintage piece which features narration discussing the basic plot along with some very brief interviews with the cast and creative team. 
• Original Storyboards: A seven-minute collection of early storyboards are provided. 
• Still Gallery: A collection of promotional material and stills from the film are provided here. 

Final Thoughts

The People Under The Stairs is not the absolute best movie from Wes Craven, but that is mostly due to the man being a master of horror. This is certainly a movie that is underrated within his career, as it offers up both some chilling imagery along with some pitch black comedy with a dash of social commentary. The greatest strength of the movie is that it never fails to be a fun ride, and the memorable performances scattered throughout only aid in this. There are a few brief stretches that could be tightened up just a bit, but overall this film just works. Scream Factory has provided the film with a 4K UHD Blu-Ray release that boasts a 5-star A/V presentation and an assortment of special features from both the previous Scream Factory release as well as the Arrow Video release from overseas. Even if you already own this one on Blu-Ray, this is a can’t-miss presentation. Highly Recommended 

The People Under The Stairs (Collector’s Edition) will be available to purchase on 4K UHD + Blu-Ray Combo Pack on May 30, 2023. 

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the 4K UHD Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Scream Factory has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.

Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.

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The People Under the Stairs Reviews

• 57   Metascore
• 1 hr 41 mins
• Drama, Horror, Comedy, Suspense
• Watchlist Where to Watch

A boy, who has been evicted from his ghetto dwelling, breaks into the home of his former landlords and discovers their terrible secret.

Directed by Wes Craven, of LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT and A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET fame, THE PEOPLE UNDER THE STAIRS harks back to horror movies of the 1970s in its overall claustrophobic meanness. Fool (Brandon Adams) lives with his mother and sister Ruby (Kelly Jo Minter) in a dangerous, filthy ghetto apartment. As if this state of affairs isn't bad enough, the family is evicted by their cruel landlords, who are known for emptying low-income buildings and replacing them with profitable middle-class housing. Ruby's boyfriend LeRoy (Ving Rhames) concocts a scheme to steal from the landlords, and persuades Fool to help him. Together they steal into their enormous home, ignoring such ominous signs as the window gates that are padlocked from the outside. Once within, the trio find themselves trapped in a house of horrors. Landlords Man (Everett McGill) and Woman (Wendy Robie) are dangerously mad. Siblings, they live as a couple and have a teenaged daughter named Alice (A.J. Langer), whom they abuse and terrorize. She's not even their natural daughter--she was kidnapped to fulfill some twisted fantasy of a "normal" family life. She has no brother because the boys they kidnapped all failed to work out; they tried to escape or defied authority. Disfigured and starving, they live in the basement, the "people under the stairs" of the title. Fool escapes from the house, but returns to rescue Alice. He eventually kills Man and sets the people under the stairs free. They kill Woman. Fool also discovers a large cache of money in the house, which finds its way into the hands of the beleaguered tenants. THE PEOPLE UNDER THE STAIRS seems made up in equal parts of Tobe Hooper's THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE and Craven's own THE HILLS HAVE EYES, both of which deal with monstrous, perverted families who prey on their more mainstream cousins. It has none of the ironic self-awareness that has characterized most newer horror films--the NIGHTMARE movies are a perfect example--and doesn't really seem interested in frightening viewers. There are no sudden scares, no jumps involving closets or shadows. It's designed to be unpleasant, to make audiences squirm by way of its nastiness, and succeeds quite admirably. Its exploitation of child abuse is creepy; the terrorized Alice is manhandled, thrown into a tub of scalding water and beaten (off-screen) carefully, so the bruises don't show. The boys in the cellar are kept discretely in the shadows most of the time, but its made clear that they've been mutilated--tongues cut out, ears and who knows what else sliced off--by their wicked step-parents and left to die. Fool attempts to save Alice by reporting her plight to the police as a case of child abuse, but when they come by to check, she's chained up in the basement and Man and Woman are on their best behavior: the system fails again. Other disturbing elements include butchered corpses (unfortunate echoes of Milwaukee murderer Jeffrey Dahmer, which also plagued the recent BODY PARTS) in the basement and the sight of McGill on the rampage dressed head to toe in leather bondage gear. THE PEOPLE UNDER THE STAIRS doesn't stop at making viewers squirm on a personal level; it has a socio-political agenda as well--economic exploitation is equated with mythic monstrosity. Man and Woman--they don't even have real names--are less disturbed individuals than modern-day ogres, waiting in the old dark house to eat the flesh of little children. But THE PEOPLE UNDER THE STAIRS doesn't play like a fairy tale; there's nothing fantastic about it, and the happy ending, in which money seems to equal happiness, rings terribly false. (Violence.)

Revisiting Hours: Won’t You Be My Neighbor — ‘The People Under the Stairs’

By Alex Pappademas

Alex Pappademas

Every Friday, we’re recommending an older movie available to stream or download and worth seeing again through the lens of our current moment. We’re calling the series “ Revisiting Hours ” — consider this Rolling Stone’s unofficial film club. This week: Alex Pappademas on Wes Craven’s The People Under the Stairs.

In real life, the house where most of Wes Craven’s The People Under the Stairs takes place is a three-story Craftsman-style mansion in the West Adams district of Los Angeles. When the neighborhood’s well-to-do white population began moving to the city’s west side in the early 1900s, West Adams became a haven for L.A.’s emerging black middle and upper class. Before it became a movie location and a protected historical site, the People Under the Stairs house — properly known as the Thomas W. Philips Residence — was the home of Gone With the Wind actress Butterfly McQueen. In 1945, when white homeowners tried to push the black population out of West Adams by demanding the enforcement of racially restrictive property-ownership covenants, McQueen’s neighbor and Oscar-winning costar Hattie McDaniel led the coalition that fought them in court and won.

Wes Craven’s ‘The People Under the Stairs’ Sets 4K Ultra HD Release Date

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In the horror genre there’s arguably no director as beloved as Wes Craven . The filmmaker is best known for the slasher classics A Nightmare On Elm Street and Scream , but Craven has a vast catalog of hidden horror gems. This includes his 1991 horror black comedy The People Under the Stairs . Now, thanks to Scream Factory, the film is coming to 4K Blu-ray in April.

At the time of its release, The People Under the Stairs was a modern take on the creepy house in a neighborhood that no kid would dare to cross. It followed a young boy played by Brandon Quintin Adams who breaks into his family’s greedy landlord’s house, but he gets more than he bargains for when he finds their landlord is holding children hostage under the stairs. The film, like Scream , was very much ahead of its time as it acted as a satirical commentary on America’s broken class system and gentrification.

Even though it’s been eight years since Craven passed away in 2015, his films have been more popular than ever. Of course, the Scream franchise has been getting a lot of love because of the new films and the recent 4K releases of the first two installments in that meta slasher franchise, but Craven was more than just Ghostface. His horror library is filled with so many frightening marvels that are finally getting their due. Just last year Cursed came to Blu-ray for the first time and People Under the Stairs now joins Red Eye as another Craven film getting the 4K treatment in 2023.

RELATED: James Wan's 'Dead Silence' Lands 4K Ultra HD Release From Scream Factory

What to Expect From the 4K UHD Release

While Scream and Elm Street are the director’s bona fide classics, People Under the Stairs features the same fierce wit and intense atmosphere that Craven was known for. On top of that, the film included a stellar cast of Evervett McGill , Wendy Robie , A.J. Langer , Ving Rhames , and Sean Whalen . This new 4K addition will come with all the same special features that appeared on Scream Factory’s original Blu-ray release of the film. This includes two audio commentaries featuring Craven, Adams, Langer, Whalen and Yan Birch , behind-the-scenes footage, and a Making-Of featurette. The cover art for the 4K release also bares the film’s classic poster of an eerie skull hovering over a dark neighborhood.

The People Under the Stairs is coming to 4K on April 25, 2023, and will be $34.99. You can pre-order the film now on Scream Factory’s website . The trailer for People Under the Stairs can be seen down below.

• The People Under the Stairs

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Wednesday, october 11, 2017, movie review: "the people under the stairs" (1991).

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‘The People Under the Stairs’ – Universal and Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw Remaking Wes Craven Classic

It was only a matter of time until Hollywood took a stab at remaking Wes Craven ‘s criminally underrated and appreciated The People Under the Stairs , which will be penned by Doom Patrol  and  Night Sky  scribe  Ezra Claytan Daniels for Universal Pictures and Jordan Peele ‘s Monkeypaw Productions, reports Deadline .

Monkeypaw Productions will produce the film with Jordan Peele and Win Rosenfeld serving as producers. The project is still in early development.

The original Universal Studios movie, which Craven wrote and directed, and produced with Shep Gordon follows young Fool (Brandon Adams) who breaks into the home of his family’s greedy and uncaring landlords.

There he discovers a disturbing scenario where incestuous adult siblings have mutilated a number of boys and kept them imprisoned under stairs in their large, creepy house. As Fool attempts to flee before the psychopaths can catch him, he meets their daughter, Alice (A.J. Langer), who has been spared any extreme discipline by her deranged parents. Fool and Alice attempt to escape.

Read Julieann Stipidis’ article in which she details how The People Under the Stairs shaped both Barbarian and Cobweb .

Horror movie fanatic who co-founded Bloody Disgusting in 2001. Producer on Southbound, V/H/S/2/3/94, SiREN, Under the Bed, and A Horrible Way to Die. Chicago-based. Horror, pizza and basketball connoisseur. Taco Bell daily. Franchise favs: Hellraiser, Child's Play, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Halloween, Scream and Friday the 13th. Horror 365 days a year.

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The People Under The Stairs - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray

Wes Craven's The People Under The Stairs really struck chords with audiences when it was first released in 1991. Since then, this movie has been discovered by newer generations that have come to appreciate the sheer fun and horror that this movie conveys while still telling an all-too-true tale of the class system in America. Scream Factory ignites the video with a new 4K image that looks amazing and the same DTS-HD 5.1 audio mix to boot. The bonus features are still worth watching, but nothing is new for this release. Highly Recommended!

Trapped inside a fortified home owned by a mysterious couple, a young boy is suddenly thrust into a nightmare.

Storyline: Our Reviewer's Take

The People Under The Stairs is one of those rare films that continue to be great and poignant even after three decades have passed (Has it really been that long?). Debuting in 1991 Wes Craven, the Nightmare on Elm Street creator himself, wanted to tell a story about the class system in America and how it unfairly treats a majority of its citizens. Being Wes Craven, the director added some excellent horror tropes in this narrative along with some truly funny comedy that walked a fine mixture combining both ingredients. The results netted the studio and its creators more than five times its budget, which is odd, given that it has almost no star power with bizarre sequences involving S&M and scenes of brutal torture and gore. 

What made this movie stick out to other people besides an adult-only crowd is its main protagonist in Fool (Brandon Adams of The Mighty Ducks , Moonwalker , and The Sandlot fame) is a kid about eleven years old who takes on a mess of scary, adult situations. It's through his eyes that these insane and chaotic characters are viewed, which gives the pure craziness of what's happening around him feel more like an adventure, more so than life or death until certain moments in the movie take place. No matter what the case is, The People Under The Stairs is still a ton of fun thirty-two years later that still rings true with the atrocities of landlords and the class system - all told by the guy who delivered Freddy Krueger to the world. 

For the full film review, CLICK HERE. 

Vital Disc Stats: The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray The People Under The Stairs rents its way to a new 4K + Blu-ray package via Scream Factory. The two discs are inserted into a hard black plastic case with a cardboard sleeve. Unfortunately, the cardboard sleeve and the case come with the same artwork, which is the movie poster artwork with the skull over the house. The new artwork for the Blu-ray is not available here. There is no insert either. 

Video Review

The People Under the Stairs comes with a brand new 2160p UHD transfer with Dolby Vision and is an upgrade from the previous Scream Factory and Arrow Video releases. The colors are more natural and vibrant this time around. The sunny exteriors reveal green leaves in the neighborhood streets and clear blue skies above. Inside the two houses though are mostly dank, dark, and old that is ripe with browns, off-whites, and dark reds. The Dolby Vision elevates those white balances and brown colors with the reds to make it look even more amazing than before. Inside the walls of the house, Christmas lights pop brightly, which is a nice addition to the color palette. The black levels are inkier this time around with no crush or murky shadows. The gimp suit looks elegantly wonderful here with the right amount of silver buttons that cover it from head to toe. Skin tones are more natural as well. 

The detail is vivid and sharp, thanks to the Dolby Vision in the darker scenes. Those nighttime sequences and dark corners of the rooms inside the house are livened up a bit with those steely black levels that look better than ever before. Closeups reveal beads of sweat, the gory practical effects of decomposed bodies, muscles, and tissue, along with individual hairs, facial pores, and more. Wider shots of the house capture all of the debris from dust and other particles of blood and gore. The textures in the wardrobe, especially the leather gimp suit look incredible. There are no major issues with banding, aliasing, or heavy noise. And the filmic nature of the movie is kept intact with its wonderful grain.

Audio Review

The audio portion here comes with a lossless DTS-HD MA 5.1 option as well as a DTS-HD MA 2.0 stereo mix. This sounds like the previous tracks were imported over from the Blu-ray here.

Click here to read about the Audio.

Special Features

• Audio Commentary #1 – Director Wes Craven gives his thoughts on this movie so many years later, with Micahel Felsher asking him questions during his commentary to keep things going. Craven is excellent to listen to here as he talks about Tarot cards and the origins of the story. 
• Audio Commentary #2 – Brandon Adams, A.J. Langer, Sean Whalen, and Yan Burg are all together talking about the movie. These actors have a lot of fun discussing some of the fun memories from the set and filming, but that’s about it. Also, there are some gaps in the commentary here.
• Interview with Wendy Robie (HD, 20 Mins.) – The evil mother in the film Wendy Robie discusses her role in the film and working with everyone on set. She is truly excited and blessed that she got to play this role and is forever grateful. She has some fun anecdotes about working with everyone and being the spotlight in the theatre.
• The Effects of ‘The People Under The Stairs (HD, 15 Mins.) – This is a fun extra where Robert Kurtzman, Greg Nicotero, and Howard Berger talk about working on the film in their young careers on a tiny budget. There are also some good behind-the-scenes effects here as well.
• House of Horrors with D.P. Sandi Sissel (HD, 16 Mins.) – The director of photography talks about working on location and on set with everyone, and how she finds this movie funnier than scary. 
• Settling the Score (HD, 10 Mins.) — The film composer Don Peake discusses his career, the music of the movie, and more.
• Behind the Scenes Footage (SD, 7 Mins.) – Here is a B-roll of the actors and filmmakers having fun with one of the special effects corpses on set.
• Vintage Making of Featurette (HD, 4 Mins.) – This is a promo reel for the film from when the movie came out with interviews with the cast and crew.
• Original Storyboards (HD, 7 Mins.) – A slideshow of some of the storyboards from the film.
• Trailers (HD, 4 Mins.) – A trailer and tv spot for the film.
• Still Gallery (HD, 5 Mins.) – Images from the film and promo art. 

Final Thoughts

The People Under the Stairs is still an excellent film that mixes both horror and comedy together in such a wonderful way. The performances by everyone involved are pitch-perfect. The video and audio elements are both the best they've ever been and the extras are all worth watching even though there are no new additions. That being said, whether or not this is already part of the collection, this 4K Scream Factory Edition is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for the amazing extras and technical merits.

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Jordan peele's the people under the stairs remake: writer & everything we know.

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• The People Under The Stairs Remake: Further News & Info
• Jordan Peele, known for his socially conscious horror films, is remaking Wes Craven's "The People Under the Stairs" and his vision for the project is finally gaining traction.
• The project has confirmed a writer, Jeremy Carver, who has experience with genre-bending storytelling, ensuring the preservation of the original film's beloved odd tone.
• While the film's progress has been delayed, likely due to the pandemic, Peele's dedication to his passion project means that "The People Under the Stairs" won't be released before 2025 at the earliest.

Acclaimed horror director Jordan Peele has set his sites on a remake of Wes Craven's The People Under the Stairs , and the project is finally getting major updates. Originally released in 1991, the cult classic follows a young boy named Fool who breaks into his greedy landlord's house only to discover a depraved secret world. Craven, most known for A Nightmare on Elm Street and Scream , did not have a hit on his hands with The People Under the Stairs , and the socially conscious chiller was largely ignored upon initial release.

In the past decade, actor/director Jordan Peele has established himself as one of the brightest lights in the world of horror, and his movies often make commentary on race, class, and a variety of other social issues. As such, Peele is the perfect modern director to tackle the late Craven's ahead-of-its-time vision in the 21st century. Jordan Peele's movies are thoughtful and incisive, and yet they don't skimp on the scares that make them great horror flicks. Peele's vision for The People Under the Stairs was announced a few years ago, but promising news is finally coming out about his latest opus.

Is The People Under The Stairs Based On A True Story? Wes Craven’s Inspiration Explained

Wes Craven's cult classic horror movie The People Under the Stairs has a psychologically disturbing premise that feels inspired by a true story.

Though the project has been confirmed for some time now, the latest news sees Jordan Peele's The People Under the Stairs finally land a writer . Hollywood writer Jeremy Carver has been tapped to help bring Peele's vision to life , and the wordsmith is well-versed in genre-bending projects with work on shows like Doom Patrol and Supernatural . There has been no word yet on exactly what tone the new movie is going for, but it will take Carver and Peele's quirky and intelligent storytelling to preserve the odd tone that helped make Craven's original such a beloved cult movie.

While the announcement that the film has found a writer is big news, it doesn't really come as much of a surprise since the film has been confirmed since 2020 . Jordan Peele has been a big screen taste-maker since the release of his 2017 film Get Out , and he isn't one to make superfluous announcements regarding upcoming films. However, it was a bit troublesome that The People Under the Stairs received no updates for three years, but that could have been chalked up to the COVID-19 pandemic which temporarily derailed Hollywood for a few years. On top of that, Peele has consistently released other films in the intervening years.

The cult classic horror film obviously inspired Peele's own filmmaking style, and it seems as if the director is taking his time while crafting his own spin. As such, The People Under the Stairs is still in the early days of pre-production, and the announcement of Jeremy Carver helped to confirm that fact. The script will likely go through a slew of drafts before Peele decides to direct it , and considering the fact that it is a passion project, it might take years to be released. With all that in mind, The People Under the Stairs likely won't arrive before 2025 at the earliest.

The People Under The Stairs Remake: Further News & Info

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The People Under the Stairs - 4K Blu-ray Review

• Start date May 31, 2023

Michael Scott

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• May 31, 2023

• Jun 1, 2023

Thanks for the review. Never heard or saw this one before. Will check it out.  

Senior Member

Awesome cult watch it is. Thank you for the review.  

Asere said: Awesome cult watch it is. Thank you for the review. Click to expand...

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Monday, October 5, 2015

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Tv/streaming, great movies, chaz's journal, contributors, black writers week, under paris.

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Xavier Gens is back with his second stateside release of the year in a film that’s already topped the Netflix charts, the defiantly goofy “Under Paris,” a movie that almost feels like it’s paying homage to the master in its nods to Steven Spielberg ’s “ Jaws ” before going full “Sharknado” in an insane final act that will be the reason most people remember this movie. Gens can’t quite find the balance between those two films, and much of “Under Paris” looks as ridiculous as its plotting with over-done CGI and stylish cinematography. But this is a reasonable diversion on a summer day, a Netflix flick that gets in, gets bloody, and gets out in a way that sets up an inevitable sequel that will likely be even more preposterous than this one—in a good way.

Sometimes, a wonderfully simple pitch is all a movie needs: There’s a shark (or sharks) in the Seine. Go! That’s the wonderfully effective premise of “Under Paris,” which actually opens in what is basically a water garbage dump in the Pacific (which is a real thing ), where we’re introduced to a marine researcher named Sophia Assalas ( Bérénice Bejo of “ The Artist ” and “ The Past ,” who gives a notable amount of gravity to what could have been a thankless role) who is hunting a mako shark named Lilith. When Sophia’s husband tries to take a blood sample from the shark, he’s attacked and killed, setting up both a personal trauma for our heroine and a personal connection to the shark. Check and check.

Three years later, Sophia is working in Paris when she discovers that Lilith is not just alive and well but happens to be in the Seine. This river runs through the heart of the City of Lights, which also happens to be the upcoming site of a triathlon, because of course it is. The attention that the event will bring to the city gives “Under Paris” a nice layer of “Jaws”-esque tension, with Sophia and her team knowing that there’s danger in the water but the mayor ( Anne Marivin ) refusing to take the precautions necessary to prevent the loss of life and the gain of shark food. Caught in the middle of the tug-of-war between Sophia and the mayor is a cop named Adil (the charismatic Nassim Lyes , who also starred in Gens’ last film “ Mayhem !”), who everyone who has ever seen a movie knows will eventually be convinced by Sophia to do something to stop the upcoming watery bloodshed. But will it be too late?

Gens and his team of writers—there are four credited, and one can sometimes sense a few too many cooks in this kitchen—take a bit too long to set things up, but they deliver when needed. Even though Gens is obviously foreshadowing the carnage to come in the final scenes of “Under Paris,” they really pay off on that promise with a few scenes that need to be seen by anyone who has scheduled viewings around Shark Week or seen all four “Jaws” movies multiple times. It’s impressive insanity, and it ends with a sequence that recalls Roland Emmerich as much as it does Steven Spielberg.

There’s a version of “Under Paris” that’s smarter than this one (and a bit tighter in the editing department), but this is the kind of no-nonsense genre flick that seems perfect for Netflix in its brutal simplicity. It’s “Jaws” in the Seine. And there’s something almost charming about its willingness to be a blunt instrument in a time when so many movies overcomplicate or drag out their storytelling. “Under Paris” has some ecological messaging and commentary on the political games that cost lives, but it’s mostly about sharks and swimmers. And that works in any language. 

Brian Tallerico

Brian Tallerico is the Managing Editor of RogerEbert.com, and also covers television, film, Blu-ray, and video games. He is also a writer for Vulture, The Playlist, The New York Times, and GQ, and the President of the Chicago Film Critics Association.

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Album Review: Zayn’s Room Under the Stairs

By Ansharah Shakil , June 19 2024—

Zayn Malik’s musical career has been marked with twists and turns, from his 2016 debut solo album Mind of Mine to his long and complex concept album Icarus Falls in 2018 to his third album Nobody is Listening released in 2021. With his latest album Room Under the Stairs , released on May 17, he’s trading R&B for a soulful, softer sound, stepping back into the spotlight and making a return on the charts. 

If Zayn cited wanting to make different music as a reason for leaving One Direction, Mind of Mine, released exactly one year after Zayn left the band, was proof of concept, a love letter to R&B. On Icarus Falls , he was even more ambitious — the album’s highs and lows were all intentional, and he dipped in and out of pop with ease. Nobody is Listening felt far more grounded and confident, but still began with the unexpected “Calamity”, a combination of rap, spoken word and poetry. What all of his music has, to this point, had in common is that tendency to provide moments of surprise, just like with his career. Room Under the Stairs is an experimentation in genre for him — It’s a vast difference from anything he’s done before, and the end result is a serene album that seems sure of itself and its sound, even if that sound itself is largely all the same. 

In the past Zayn has been at his best when he leans into other genres — just recently when he joined Pakistani trio AUR for “Tu Hai Kahan”, in the Qawwali-inspired 2016 track “INTERMISSION: fLoWer” or singing lyrics from Mohammed Rafi’s “Chaudhvin Ka Chand” in 2021’s “Tightrope.” In “Tightrope” the lyric “We are who we are when we’re alone” called back to “We are who we are when no one’s watching” from “I Won’t Mind” — arguably one of Zayn’s greatest (albeit unreleased) songs because of its stripped-down, simple intimacy. That vulnerability is a quality that Room Under the Stairs is too calm and collected to accomplish, despite the fact that Zayn has said this is meant to be his most personal album to date. 

What it does feel like is an album that is his. The production is largely Zayn’s, alongside Dave Cobb, known for working with country and rock. And though Zayn has had successful and excellent collabs before — “wRoNg” with Kehlani, “No Candle No Light” with Nicki Minaj, “Dusk till Dawn” with Sia, “When Love’s Around” with Syd or even the infamous “I Don’t Wanna Live Forever” collaboration with Taylor Swift  — there are none to be found on the 15-track version of Room Under the Stairs or the Z-sides version, released on May 20 with five additional songs. 

Opening track “Dreamin” starts off both versions and sets the tone for the album: joining Zayn’s trademark falsettos are country and folk-influenced balmy guitars and drums, the minimalist production letting his agile vocals take centre stage. On first single “What I Am” Zayn’s lyrics are honest, tugging at the heartstrings when he sings, “Don’t take me for what I’m sayin’, just take me for what I am.” 

The Z-sides album includes the demo version of “Alienated”, an introspective, blues-inspired track. The first Z-side, ​​“Ignorance isn’t Bliss”, is made sharply defiant by its production. In “Lied To” the acoustic guitar compliments Zayn’s elegant voice, especially in the chorus when he sings “You do me right / You stay by my side”, stretching out the word “you” like a declaration of love before effortlessly switching into a lower range for the bridge. 

These songs could easily have replaced more forgettable songs like “My Woman” and “The Time”, or “Concrete Kisses”, which is a miss in terms of production and lyrics. These three are examples of how strong vocals can’t quite save some of the songs, which are similar enough that they blend together. “How It Feels”, on the other hand, is a standout, dissolving into a gorgeous falsetto near the end. Following track “Stardust” is stunning — amongst its soft vocals and glittering keys are sweet lyrics that just bypass being too trite.

“Birds on a Cloud” starts off similar to the other tracks, but the guitars pick up twenty seconds in, mildly upbeat like the soundtrack of an indie film. By the end it’s cemented itself as one of the strongest tracks on the album. When Zayn references his daughter in “Shoot at Will”, it’s another lovely track, a moment of clarity. But “False Start” knocks everything else out of the park: bright and alive, it carries the momentum of its stomping rhythms and sublime high notes all the way to the end, each part of the song working together in harmony. Like Room Under the Stairs as a whole, it feels like a transformation: a new chapter for Zayn in his career, and one the audience can take as is. 

Tagged: album review , Under the Stairs , Zayn Malik

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Netflix’s killer-shark movie Under Paris is the missing link between Jaws and Sharktopus

Silly? Serious? A shark attack movie cares not for these distinctions

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Conventional wisdom says there are two ways to make a shark attack movie. You can set it at sea, where most sharks live, and try to use character, plot, compelling action , and maybe over-the-top devourings to make your story feel unique. Or you can lure in viewers by putting sharks somewhere no one expects sharks — flying through the air and landing all over Los Angeles ! Roaming the streets of downtown New Orleans ! Swimming through the snow at a ski resort ! Bursting out of the ground in the jungle! Most filmmakers who choose the latter path have to abandon any sense of reality and embrace absurdism. Netflix’s French thriller Under Paris , from Hitman director Xavier Gens, is a bold attempt to have it all.

Gens and co-writers Maud Heywang and Yannick Dahan seem to want their thriller to be both a serious, thoughtful, character-driven movie and a pulpy, gory thriller where a CG shark converts people into chum in the City of Light. That plot stretches believability at every point, but Gens refuses to cede any of the ground around tone or realism that’s expected from a “shark in an impossible place” movie. Instead, he slaps the most serious face on it that he can.

Even so, it’s an extremely silly and not particularly scary movie.

Best Actress Oscar nominee Bérénice Bejo ( The Artist ) stars as Sophia, a marine researcher whose shark-tagging project went terribly wrong when a mako designated as “Lilith” attacked her dive crew years ago. Traumatized to the point where she spends most of the movie wearing an unchanging half-determined/half-lost expression, Sophia winds up in Paris, giving desultory aquarium lectures to bratty school groups.

Her past resurfaces (along with a familiar fin) when fervent young activist Mika (Léa Léviant) contacts her on behalf of a resistance group called SOS, or Save Our Seas. Mika’s team hacks into wildlife tagging systems to deactivate the tags so fishing boats can’t use them to hone in on animals’ locations. SOS is tracking Lilith’s tag, and they’ve traced her to the Seine. Mika, her hacktivist friend Ben (Nagisa Morimoto), and their group want to save the shark by luring it back out to the ocean. Sophia just wants to keep Parisians from getting eaten by a deep-sea shark they don’t expect to encounter in a relatively shallow freshwater river.

As much as this premise feels like cult-movie goofiness aimed at fans of trashy creature features, there is at least a little science behind it. Sharks have been found in England’s Thames river , some shark species can navigate freshwater or transition from rivers to oceans and back , and dwindling habitats and rising global temperatures have pushed many animal species to behave in odd ways or evolve rapidly to fit into new ecosystems . (The film is also drawing heavily on recent real-world attempts to detoxify the Seine so it can be used for 2024’s Olympic Games.)

All of which makes Under Paris one of the most substantive of the many aquatic-attack horror movies that have tried to coast along in the wake of Steven Spielberg’s Jaws , at least for most of its run time . The leads are established actors with well-earned reputations, projecting grim, soulful determination. The cinematography is razor-sharp and superbly lit, a standout in an era of murky filmmaking . The themes, about climate change and generational discord, have some resonance. At nearly every moment, this movie asks viewers to take it all at face value.

Gens and his co-writers don’t want to get too egg-headed about any of the movie’s details. Whenever a character brings up the implausibility of an immense mako picking off Parisians, Sophia changes the subject as rapidly as possible, with a crisp “You didn’t question it when it was a beluga whale !” or a tossed-off comment about climate change and evolution.

Overstuffing the script with characters and plot threads feels like a similar diversion, designed to keep people from thinking too much about what they’re watching. That might be the best explanation for most of the scenes involving Nassim Lyes, the lead of Gens’ hard-hitting recent action movie Mayhem! , as Sgt. Adil, the leader of an eerily militarized River Brigade police force that monitors the Seine, taking down unauthorized divers and kayakers. His group, naturally, first refuses to believe there is a shark, then refuses to entertain the idea of rescuing it instead of killing it.

A surprising percentage of Under Paris ’ 101-minute run time goes toward Adil and others arguing about and trying to prove or disprove the shark’s existence. At times, that’s a tedious process, since the audience already knows the answer. But at least it’s a way to solve one of the biggest problems most ocean-going shark attack movies face: how to keep getting people back into the water, where they can get dramatically eaten. Eventually, though, the action ramps up — and at that point, Gens veers sharply, abandoning seriousness and turning the movie into the pulpy, over-the-top, eye-rolling shlock feature he’d worked so hard to avoid.

If you want to define the “two ways to make a shark movie” split along an even simpler axis, you could also say that the basic paths are “Copycat Jaws for all you’re worth” and “Do literally anything else.” Again, Under Paris has it both ways. At first, Gens and company build unique characters and chart their own path. Then they introduce the Big Important International Swim Event that’s about to take place in the Seine, and the mercenary, won’t-hear-reason mayor who refuses to cancel it just because people keep getting killed. Suddenly, the movie feels like a pale echo of Spielberg’s masterpiece, following its playbook line by line, right down to the obligatory scene where Sophia makes a dramatic discovery during a shark autopsy.

But when the inevitable bloodbath starts, Under Paris seems to be cribbing from much messier shark attack movies instead: an unlikely bisection of a diver straight out of Deep Blue Sea , mixed in with Piranha 3D ’s barrage of over-the-top CG water action. All of which leaves Under Paris feeling like a slapdash attempt to grab every possible audience at once, in a way that doesn’t fully serve any of them.

None of this odd tone-shifting, copycatting, or narrative overcrowding would matter if Under Paris was tense, frightening, and engaging. Scientists and researchers complain that the endless stream of killer-shark movies has driven irrational fear of animals that generally just aren’t that dangerous , but it seems natural enough for viewers to maintain a fascination and dread around primordial killers that most victims will never see coming. Killer-shark movies — of both the winkingly ridiculous “land sharks gone wild” variety and the at least slightly plausible ones — will keep getting made as long as people remember their first experience watching Jaws and hope to recreate that thrilling tension.

But regardless of what mode filmmakers lean into for a shark movie, they need to bring something worthwhile to that mode. Under Paris gets about halfway there on every front — drama, thrills, terror, character conflict, humanity-versus-nature messaging — and not much further than that. It’s a film destined to be outpaced within a year by its own “every shark attack in Under Paris ” YouTube supercut, when someone realizes how easy it would be to whittle this distracted, everything-and-the-kitchen-sink movie down to a much simpler experience aimed at a much simpler audience.

Under Paris is streaming on Netflix now.

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‘The Outsiders,’ a Broadway Adaptation of the Classic Novel, Wins the Tony for Best Musical

The gritty, bloody and relentlessly youthful musical features some of the most effectively vivid violence seen on a Broadway stage.

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By Michael Paulson

• June 16, 2024

“ The Outsiders ,” a muscular stage adaptation of the classic young adult novel about class conflict between a pair of high school gangs, won the coveted Tony Award for best musical on Sunday.

The show, which has been gaining steam at the box office, is set in Tulsa, Okla. , in 1967, and is based not only on the best-selling 1967 novel by S.E. Hinton, but also on Francis Ford Coppola’s 1983 film adaptation.

The musical is gritty, bloody and relentlessly youthful — the creative team eliminated virtually all adult characters, and the show features some of the most effectively vivid violence seen on a Broadway stage, using a mix of fight choreography, strobe-like lighting and percussive sound design to evoke the brutality pervading these adolescent lives. The show is saturated with water and dirt, but also with poetry and literature, as its orphaned protagonist turns to reading and writing to escape the circumstances of his childhood.

The show received mixed reviews from critics ; in The New York Times, the chief theater critic, Jesse Green, wrote that “many stunning things are happening on the stage of the Bernard B. Jacobs Theater — and from the sobs I heard the other night, in the audience, too.” But, he said, “structural problems mean its achievements don’t stick.”

Nonetheless, in recent weeks the show has been playing to full houses, fueled in part by healthy interest from young patrons, and it has been grossing about $1 million a week, which is solid but not spectacular for a show of this scale. The Tony Award should provide the show with a box office boost.

“The Outsiders” features a score from the country duo Jamestown Revival in collaboration with the Broadway musical artist Justin Levine; the musical’s book is by the playwright Adam Rapp, also in collaboration with Levine. It is directed by Danya Taymor — a niece of “The Lion King” director Julie Taymor, she is helming a major musical for the first time — and choreographed by the brothers Rick and Jeff Kuperman.

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