Ice Cream Man Review – Eli Roth’s Children of the Cone Is Deliciously Twisted

No, Eli Roth’s Ice Cream Man isn’t based on W. Maxwell Prince’s Image Comic series, but it very well could be. Much like in the comics, a mysterious ice cream man appears and everything goes to hell in a handbasket.

In this story, which also isn’t a remake of the ’90s film, the Ice Cream Man is played by Ari Millen. One hot summer day, he arrives in a sleepy town bearing sweet treats for the kids. Not too long after this event, the town’s children revolt, brutalizing the adults in the most disgusting ways imaginable. Jared (Charlie Zeltzer) is unaffected, though, since he’s lactose intolerant and didn’t eat anything given to him by the Ice Cream Man. Now, it’s up to him to find the others like him who are still sane as they try to stop the massacre taking place in their town.

Someone on social media referred to Ice Cream Man as “Children of the Cone,” and I don’t think there’s a better analogy out there. This is an ’80s slasher idea through and through, and what you see is what you get as the children run amok and kill the adults here. Sure, Roth has an explanation for why this happens, as well as a backstory for the Ice Cream Man character, but the point is that the brainwashed murder-kids are the main hook here.

If you have ever watched an Eli Roth movie, then you’ll know what to expect on the visceral front. The filmmaker believes in subtlety as much as a pro wrestling promo. For him, the more violent and gorier, the better. Even by his own standards, there are a few scenes that had me closing one eye and hoping it would make it less bloody somehow. If you fear the dentist’s drill, for example, let’s say you will hate it even more after this film – and this occurs just in the first act.

Much like Thanksgiving, though, Roth brings a sense of tongue-in-cheek humor to Ice Cream Man. The horror is almost so over the top that you can’t help but laugh at some of the kills – and yes, there are a few characters in the movie who get their just deserts, and you’ll pump the air with remorseful delight when they perish. Restraint has never been Roth’s strongest suit, but the all-out gruesome assault mixed with sugar and spice works well here, especially since the film’s colorful design mimics the ice cream flavors.

It’s difficult to pinpoint one standout performance in Ice Cream Man, since it’s mostly a bunch of kids running riot and looking like they’re having the time of their lives doing so. Ari Millen nails down the creepiness of the Ice Cream Man, but even he is outshone by all the child actors who act and behave like rabid zombies. Having said that, there’s a nice subplot involving Jared and his sister, Lizzie (Sarah Abbott), that plays into the history of the Ice Cream Man, and both of them convince as characters desperate to help their friends and stop the madness.

There’s franchise potential in Ice Cream Man – that’s for sure. It’s a simple but tidy concept that knows how to do a lot with so little. If this were the ’80s, this would be the kind of film you rented out on a Friday night based on the poster alone, and it would become a firm favourite among your group of friends. Really, it has all the potential in the world to become a legen-dairy cult classic!

Ice Cream Man hits theaters nationwide August 7, 2026. No streaming date yet — check the official site for tickets.