Monster in the Closet

A 1986 monster movie spoof by Troma in which the titular creature emerges from its lair (guess where that is) and begins slaughtering citizens in a small Californian town. It's up to would-be newspaper reporter Richard Clark and scientist Diane Bennett to find a way of killing it. Very very campy, but doesn't take itself at all seriously, and is amusing if viewed in the right frame of mind.


 * Absent-Minded Professor: Dr. Pennyworth, to the nth power.
 * The Cameo: John Carradine plays a blind victim of the monster. Stella Stevens drops in for a quick parody of Psycho.
 * Child Prodigy: 'Professor' Bennett.
 * Da Editor: Played by Jesse White of "Maytag repairman" fame.
 * Expy: The monster pretty blatantly steals some design ideas from the Xenomorph in Alien.
 * For Science!: Dr. Pennyworth's attitude towards life in general.
 * Frickin' Laser Beams: 'Professor' builds one to use against the monster.
 * Fridge Logic: Why would a blind person have a lamp on in his house?
 * General Ripper: General Turnbull.
 * The Glasses Gotta Go: Clark "becomes" literally mesmerizingly handsome when he takes his glasses off.
 * Hot Scientist: Diane, of course.
 * Impending Doom POV: Parodied.
 * Jerkass: Clark's fellow reporter Scoop; you're likely to cheer more when he gets his comeuppance than when the monster is defeated.
 * Large Ham: The two leads are fairly subdued, but much of the supporting cast goes to town with this trope.
 * Meaningful Background Event: The monster lumbers into view behind young Professor while the latter is working in a school classroom.
 * Monster Misogyny / Touch of the Monster: Parodied; see Stealth Pun below.
 * Nigh Invulnerable: The monster; it turns out the only way to destroy it is to
 * Police Are Useless: The sheriff tries his best, but..
 * Shout-Out: The heroes try to kill the monster using an electrocution setup exactly like the one used to destroy the 1950's version of the Thing.
 * Stealth Pun: The movie's title, assuming
 * There Was a Door: The heroes are attempting to lure the monster into a trap, and are waiting at the end of a hallway, with the front door open to the outdoors.
 * Things That Go Bump in the Night