Most of you, like me, recently discovered that 2026 Peacock series, The ‘Burbs, staring Keke Palmer is actually a semi-remake of a 1989 film of the same name. You might also be wondering, “How much of the series is the same as the movie?” I’m here to tell you…not much. Let’s revisit, or introduce, this movie, shall we?
You might have seen in the series a picture of the founder of Hinkley Hills, branded as the safest town in America, and wondered, “Why is the founder of this town Tom Hanks?” It was a nod to this original film. Corey Feldman, who is also in the original, has a small cameo in the series. I wonder if they have a season two will we get Hanks himself? Ok, enough about the series. Back to the movie.
Tom Hanks plays Ray Peterson, and Ray is supposed to be on a weeklong vacation from work. Apparently, sitting still is not one of his strong suits. After hearing strange noises coming from the house across the street, a house where no one knows the people who live there, Ray and his neighbors convince themselves that the Klopeks must be performing some demonic ritual in the basement of their home. The HOA President in me says we should be weary of a homeowner doing weird things in their basement, but the Black woman in me says to mind my business because that’s not my basement. Ray, Art, and Mark spend all of Ray’s vacation plotting to see what’s really going on in the house after seeing someone come out of the house with a garbage bag they beat into their trashcan. They also then rolled it down the street.
My question during this entire movie was what do Mark and Art do for a living? We are told Ray is on vacation, so I understand why he’s home all day, but Art and Mark, why are you also home all day (or so it seems)? I also love that this film makes the men nosy and not women, and the sheer ridiculousness of the shenanigans. It was the 80’s so a lot of the physical comedy towards the end of the film felt like Kevin tearing Marv and Harry up in Home Alone, but I had a good time talking to these characters through my TV because why are you bothering these people? Did they end up being right Yes, but that’s besides the point. Ray had a great monologue after he blew up the neighbors house. The real villains of the movie were Ray, Art and Mark. So what if their neighbors stayed to themselves? It’s their house and they deserve that peace, but also, the neighbors never made an effort, until they wanted to get into the house, to get to know those neighbors.
What I would say to do, for this movie and the series, is what the series first, and then go back to watch the movie. It works better that way and not because that’s how I did it. Let me tell you my two favorite scenes. One was when Ray and his wife, Carol (played by Carrie Fisher), were arguing in the kitchen while Mark was throwing trash outside of the garbage truck onto the street outside. Tom Hanks has a way of yelling that is so funny to me. At a certain point in the argument she reminds him that he’s on vacation and he should be tanning, and he screams, “How am I going to tan and I’m in pajamas?” I laughed way too hard at that line. My second favorite scene is small. Mark and Art come to collect Ray to continue their snooping but are stopped by Carol who simply says, “Ray is on vacation and cannot come out.” Both Mark and Art look like two kids asking their best friend’s mom to come outside. Ray sits on the front porch with sunglasses on ignoring them. Again, I laughed way too hard.
Are there any of you from the 80’s who remember this movie and why Ricky (played by Corey Feldman) kept touting that the pizza guy was coming? I don’t know why that bothered me so. And then, when the pizzas came, and I wondered, “Where did he get the money for all these pizzas?” I also want to know what became of the burned down house. Who gets the property now?
