She Creature

REVIEW
One of a series of low-budget horror remakes made for Showtime, She Creature is the best of the lot. Carny con man Sewell and his cronies have been duping small-town folk with their faux freaks, with ex-prostitute Gugino pretending to be a mermaid, among other frauds. When a seemingly senile old man shows them a real mermaid he has kept captive, Sewell steals the creature, and the carnival sets sail. If only they'd listened to the old man's warnings about this diabolical beast! Director Gutierrez (who helmed the equally entertaining Judas Kiss) has made an enjoyably old-fashioned, atmospheric chiller, eschewing the many camp possibilities of the premise in favor of suspense and goosebumps, with a nifty monster (by Stan Winston) to boot.