Running time: 99 minutes
Starring: David Arquette, Kari Wuhrer, Eileen Ryan, Scarlett Johansson, Rick Overton,
Rating 7 out of 10
The B-Movie is alive and well in this deliciously camp action-comedy about a small town fighting against giant spiders. Eight Legged Freaks is not for the faint of heart nor anyone easily scared: the big screen positively crawls with hairy critters, of all shapes and sizes.
Prosperity, Arizona, is a bankrupt mining community under threat from property developers, who hope to bulldoze prime land to make way for shopping malls and apartments. Many of the residents are keen to sell up, if only to keep their families out of the gutter, or the ever encroaching desert. Unfortunately, engineer Chris McCormack (David Arquette) and his cantankerous aunt Gladys (Eileen Ryan), who owns a large plot of land including the local mines, refuses to give his approval, putting the entire development in jeopardy.
These political wranglings seem insignificant, however, when a chemical spillage on the outskirts of town infects the nearby spider farm.
Hundreds of formerly contained arachnids mutate into gigantic, man-eating monstrosities, and swarm into town via the labyrinthine mines, eating everyone and everything in their path. Suddenly under attack and fighting for their lives, the townsfolk, led by sheriff Sam Parker (Kari Wuhrer) and plucky deputy Pete Willis (Rick Overton), concoct a battle plan to fend off the fanged invaders.
Eight Legged Freaks is a hoot from start to finish, with plenty of gore and laugh out loud comedy. The script is laden with some great one-liners, including an affectionate poke at one of the summer's other web-slinging blockbusters.
Arquette, Wuhrer et al overact with giddy abandon, so you never forget you're watching a comedy. Indeed, the cast have their tongues planted so far in their cheeks, you fear they might choke, or at the very least not be able to scream their lungs out.
Yet, there is death and destruction aplenty too, and the special effects are excellent as the human residents are overrun by a flood of hungry critters. One sequence, in which five motorcycles attempt to outrun a swarm of jumping spiders, and the riders are picked off mid-air as they leap over sand dunes, is particularly thrilling.
You may need a stiff drink to get through the first shock-filled 20 minutes - just be careful not to throw it down yourself.
