Kingdom Of The Spiders
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Movie Reviews of Kingdom Of The Spiders
Movie Review: A Man Named Rack and the Spiders He Loved
Summary: 5 Stars
Kingdom of the Spiders was a childhood favorite of mine once upon a time, always feeling me with a sense of fear when I thought about the Midwest for a couple of reasons; one being mounding-building web-spinning tarantulas and the other being scary, overacting creatures like William Shatner. Now that I've grown up a bit I no longer fear those web-spinning, mound-building tarantulas nor do I fear William Shatner, because I know that they are both figments of some director's overactive imagination and nothing more. The movie begins with "Rack" Hanson (Big Willy) - nicknamed because of a pool-playing humiliation he suffered at the hands of his brother and not because of his fortitude with the ladies - introducing us to his family life, that of taking care of his dead brother's lovely wife and her strange young daughter. Besides those duties, which include wrestling with his deceased brother's wife until she calls him by the wrong name as they ride through the country on horseback, Rack also enjoys being the town veterinarian. This job puts him in a rather curious situation as Walter Colby, Rack's rancher friend, brings his calf in that "was going to win first prize in the upcoming county fair." Well, Big Willy does all he can to save the poor beast, taking blood and staring at it profusely, but nothing seems to help and, before he knows it, the beast dies. Fearing some possible need for quarantine, he then sends the cow's blood off to be tested and is greeted a week or so later by a female entomologist (Rack's weakness) named Diane Ashley that tells him that the cow died from a massive dose of poison. Both he and Colby think that this is some sort of joke at first until it happens again and then they discover those strange spidermounds on his property, ones that the Mayor of the town refuses to let be quarantined for fear of the repercussions it would have on his fair, and then the "five times the venom of a normal spider" fun really begins.
For anyone expecting a movie that could be anything more than some fun with some dying, a lot of it in fact, and a less-than-happy-ending, think again. Still, for anyone looking for a good way to burn some of that B-movie, insects-taking-over-the-world midnight oil, this is the perfect place for a picnic.
Movie Review: One Of The Best "Nature Gone Wild" Films
Summary: 5 Stars
Version reviewed: GoodTimes DVD, "Special Twenty-Fifth Anniversary Edition", 2002, 95 minutesMy personal enjoyment rating: 10 out of 10
My recommendation rating: 9 out of 10. Explanation of recommendation rating: "A must see for everyone who is a fan of the genre. Anyone seriously or casually interested in film should enjoy it or at least find something interesting about my view, this is one of the best entries in the "Nature Gone Wild" subgenre of horror. While it's firmly entrenched in its mid-1970's style--which means that fans looking only for lots of gore, action, big-budget special effects and lots of gratuitous nudity should look elsewhere (although none of these elements are quite absent)--director John "Bud" Cardos (who also directed the underrated _Mutant_ in 1984) manages to make the film surprisingly visceral and downbeat, especially in contrast to an almost "made-for-television" sheen. The real triumph of the film is that, fueled by the performances (including a great one from star William Shatner), it begins like an intriguing and slightly comic drama, and gradually turns into a nihilistic shocker, with all the atmosphere of (and a couple literal nods to) Alfred Hitchcock's _The Birds_ (1963) and George Romero's _Night Of The Living Dead_ (1969), and it has a serious environmental and philosophical subplot/subtext to boot (as does _Mutant_).
On the negative side, this GoodTimes DVD, despite the "Special Edition" moniker, only contains a decent transfer (it's clear with good sound, but a bit wobbly a couple times), in full screen (which may or may not be the original aspect ratio), and no special features. Still, despite this drawback, it's great to have this film on DVD, and you shouldn't pass it up.
Movie Review: What Can I Say? I Love This Movie!
Summary: 5 Stars
I have been a fan of this movie for a long time so I'm happy it finally came out on DVD. Needless to say, I have this DVD and it is probably one of my favorite movies. It was made in 1977 and stars William Shatner and Tiffany Bolling. The basic plot is that tarantulas take over a small town, forcing the survivors to lock themselves into a hotel, hoping that no spiders get in. What's not to like? It's B-rated movies at it's best! Not to mention it stars good ol' Captain Kirk, and I'm a Trek fan.
I really do enjoy the movie. It's really amazing. Unlike spider movies made today, these are real spiders and really do give me the heeby jeebies. There is one scene that really sticks out in my mind and that's when the little girl that is hiding in the hotel with the rest of the survivors screams and you see that her entire bed is covered in spiders and she it trying hard not to be bitten. This movie is awesome.
It has a really good story with excellent effects, the entire town is taken over by spiders with people dead in the streets with spider webs covering them. And the ending is great, one of the best endings to a spider film ever! Overall, I can't say it enough, this film is fantastic.
Movie Review: Captain Kirk vs. The Spiders
Summary: 5 Stars
This one has Shatner in the Captain Kirk mode;against (Gasp) spiders! Shatner's has many what I call Kirkian moments and reacts just as Kirk would if he was a bad vet who beamed down to a planet of people who didn't have the sense to evacuate the town when they first appeared. Just like in the movie Jaws they didn't want the people to panic so they stayed there....and wound up as spider food.
Shatner truly phones this performance in as a Kirk/vetnarian. He truly comes from the canned ham school of acting. All his reactions are well practiced. Worst of all is he thinks he's a leading man on the level of a Cary Grant or today's Tom Cruise.
If you want to see a good campy movie and have a few laughs buy this one from the budget bin.
Movie Review: Interesting idea for ending
Summary: 5 Stars
First off, let me say that, yeah there are a few problems with this movie. However I love it. Its extremly creepy, Probably the creepiest of the spider vs. human movies i have seen. The thing that makes it even more creepy is the ending that i think the director intended. Now i am about to sound crazy to some people, or i might be stating the obvious, but i truly think that the "guy" speaking on the radio in the end, is a spider. Think of it, he is very calm, and plays a song (forgiving the country style) that welcomes the audience to the "Kingdom of the Spiders" with a song titled "A Great Place to Live In." To me, it all fits, and to me it adds a huge demention of creepiness to it...Thank you for your time, just some food for thought.