Parents

Michael Laemle is a young boy growing up in a 1950s American suburb, where his parents Nick and Lily work hard to present the picture of a normal, respectable family. Michael is troubled by nightmares and a growing unease around his parents, and he comes to suspect that the meat his father brings home and his mother prepares is not what it seems. He tries to share his fears with his new friend Sheila and with a school social worker, but convincing the adults around him proves difficult.

Bob Balaban directed the film, working from a screenplay by Christopher Hawthorne, with Bonnie Palef producing. Randy Quaid and Mary Beth Hurt play the parents, Bryan Madorsky plays Michael, and Sandy Dennis, Juno Mills-Cockell and Kathryn Grody appear in supporting roles. The film mixes comedy and horror and runs just over eighty minutes.

Made for about 3 million dollars by Great American Films Limited Partnership and Vestron Pictures, it was released in January 1989. On TMDB it holds a rating of 5.9 out of 10 from 199 votes, a mixed response that suggests audiences found it uneven rather than widely embraced.