Big Ass Spider, a movie review
For some reason there are horror
movies with spiders sometimes incorporate a level of humor that is generally
lacking in monster movies. The
Arachnophobia movies used beloved comedic character actors from the classic
television series Cheers, which clued the audience in to the fact that
funny things were likely to happen.
Big
Ass Spider by it’s title alone also hinted that along with the expected
gore, and standard figures including; uptight military figures, children in
danger, shapely actresses in tight uniforms (almost enough to tempt men into
enlisting) and a dedicated weird scientist, the audience could expect more than
a little fun.
In this opus, the hero/nice guy who
couldn’t get a date if his life depended on it is an exterminator who takes
jobs for a little old lady who pays him with baked goods. He teams up with a Mexican security
guard. Their interactions are reminiscent of early Cheech and Chong without the
drug mentions. At times their
interactions seemed stereotypical, bordering on racist but the security guard
proves heroic. Most of the time
the exterminator is even more clueless than his buddy.
The exterminator’s motivation seems
to be a mix of protecting the innocent and hoping to get a date. I caught some of the references to
classic movies slipped into the dialog and scenes as inside jokes. (Attack of the Killer Tomatoes, The Caine
Mutiny, 2001 and, of course, King Kong to mention just four.) I’m
certain I missed some also.
The city that takes a beating in
this movie is Los Angeles. The background
location shots are spot on. The
spider climbs to the top of the US Bank Tower for the final confrontation. The
exterminator and his buddy have to save the actress before an airstrike comes
in to kill the beast and, unavoidably, thousands of innocent citizens.
Spider II.
Sounds like something I need to put on my "to be watched" list.
ReplyDeleteWarren, a good review. I might be afraid of a Big Ass spider, but in general, I'm not afraid of spiders so it wouldn't be as terrifying for me as it would for those with arachnophobia.
ReplyDeleteHmmm, Big Ass Spiders or Sharknado? Too many choices in horror movies these days!
ReplyDeleteI like parodies, but I'll pass on this movie, Warren. Even on a rainy day, I don't have time to watch movies or TV. You never said if you liked it. Did you? Was it fun?
ReplyDeleteI confess...I watched it. It had a compelling title and seeing Los Angeles (even if it's destroyed by a big ass spider) brings back good memories. My husband used to work in the US Bank Tower.
ReplyDelete