Clown in a Cornfield (2025) - Review
/
© RLJE FILMS / SHUDDER
Directed by: Eli Craig
Written by: Carter Blanchard, Eli Craig
Starring: Katie Douglas, Aaron Abrams, Carson MacCormac, Kevin Durand, Will Sasso
Runtime: 96 min
Synopsis: Quinn and her father have just moved to the quiet town of Kettle Springs hoping for a fresh start. Instead, she discovers a fractured community that has fallen on hard times after the treasured Baypen Corn Syrup Factory burned down. As the locals bicker amongst themselves and tensions boil over, a sinister, grinning figure emerges from the cornfields to cleanse the town of its burdens, one bloody victim at a time. Welcome to Kettle Springs. The real fun starts when Frendo the clown comes out to play.
© RLJE FILMS / SHUDDER
Editor's Note: Original review was written for Movies We Texted About. Full article can be found below.
REVIEW SUMMARY
Clown in a Cornfield is a pleasant surprise in the 2025 horror landscape. It starts off rather generically - a conservative town, a group of rebellious teens, a masked killer - but quickly finds its own identity through well-crafted social commentary and a strong execution of slasher tropes. With solid performances, confident direction from Eli Craig, and a healthy dose of dark humor, the movie wins over its target audience through gory entertainment and thematic relevance, even if not all of its ideas are fully explored and some narrative decisions feel more convenient than organic. It's a grim but clever portrait of a society in denial, where the past refuses to die… even when it's literally buried in a cornfield.
