This movie could have been something truly special, but they're decision to keep it as tame as possible is not only baffling, but completely ruined what could have made this a horror movie for the ages. I honestly wouldn't even call this movie a horror film, per se, as much as it could be a drama with scary elements. The fact of the matter is, this movie was made for a limited audience, and if you aren't scared of spiders (I love them, BTW), there really isn't anything here that can really constitute it falling under the horror banner.
Let's look at the elements that would make this movie geared more towards adults instead of teenage girls with a ik for arachnids;
Is there blood? Minimal, and what is shown is shown in darkness, rendering it black. It looked more like oil for most of the movie.
Death? Most of the deaths are suggested, and although there are dead bodies, there is nothing scary about them. Again, if you don't fear spiders, you won't feel anything, really.
Sex or Nudity? NONE.
Violence and gore? Minimal. People fight, throw blows, get hit with batons and guns. None of it lasts for longer than a few minutes, and none of it is excessive or particularly graphic.
In all honesty, this movie really dropped the ball by not being graphic enough. I wanted to see spiders exploding from bodies, coming out of mouths where the person is still alive, seeing limbs being dismembered by creatures that have 40X's their body mass in strength. Even the scenes where people were dying from the poison were tame and somewhat lame. You'd think a spider that size would make your blood boil inside your body. What we got was a bad allergic reaction to a bee sting.
Overall, while I was entertained (primarily due to the fantastic acting throughout) the movie itself was a huge letdown, solely due to the fact that its audience was that of teenage girls, meaning it was tame in every single area. If we could have gotten a more competent creative team that would have really pushed the envelope in terms of raw & visceral visual appeal, this movie would have been an instant classic. Instead, it's probably going to end up like Night Swim, a movie no one ended up truly liking despite what the internet wanted to tell us.
A missed opportunity in almost every single regard, but the amazing cast and their talent made it bearable. It won't be remembered favorably, though. I almost guarantee it.
Let's look at the elements that would make this movie geared more towards adults instead of teenage girls with a ik for arachnids;
Is there blood? Minimal, and what is shown is shown in darkness, rendering it black. It looked more like oil for most of the movie.
Death? Most of the deaths are suggested, and although there are dead bodies, there is nothing scary about them. Again, if you don't fear spiders, you won't feel anything, really.
Sex or Nudity? NONE.
Violence and gore? Minimal. People fight, throw blows, get hit with batons and guns. None of it lasts for longer than a few minutes, and none of it is excessive or particularly graphic.
In all honesty, this movie really dropped the ball by not being graphic enough. I wanted to see spiders exploding from bodies, coming out of mouths where the person is still alive, seeing limbs being dismembered by creatures that have 40X's their body mass in strength. Even the scenes where people were dying from the poison were tame and somewhat lame. You'd think a spider that size would make your blood boil inside your body. What we got was a bad allergic reaction to a bee sting.
Overall, while I was entertained (primarily due to the fantastic acting throughout) the movie itself was a huge letdown, solely due to the fact that its audience was that of teenage girls, meaning it was tame in every single area. If we could have gotten a more competent creative team that would have really pushed the envelope in terms of raw & visceral visual appeal, this movie would have been an instant classic. Instead, it's probably going to end up like Night Swim, a movie no one ended up truly liking despite what the internet wanted to tell us.
A missed opportunity in almost every single regard, but the amazing cast and their talent made it bearable. It won't be remembered favorably, though. I almost guarantee it.