User reviews

In Desert Rock, Arizona, a disfigured man is found dead and identified by Professor Gerald Deemer (Leo G. Carroll) as his assistant and friend Dr. Eric Jacobs, who would suffer from acromegalia. The country doctor Matt Hastings (John Agar) is puzzled with the mysterious disease and decides to investigate further about acromegalia. Professor Deemer omits that Dr. Eric Jacobs and Dr. Paul Lund were researching with him a nutrient to increase the food supply in the world and they have been affected by the experiment. Soon Paul Lund, who has also been affected and is mad, breaks and sets the laboratory on fire and a huge tarantula escapes.

Meanwhile, the gorgeous Stephanie "Steve" Clayton (Mara Corday) arrives in town to work with Dr. Jacobs, and Dr. Hastings drives her to Professor Deemer's house in the desert. She is hired by Deemer and she finds that he is sick. When cattle bones are found in a farm, Hastings collects material and flies to a laboratory, where he learns that the sample is of tarantula's venom. But the scientist does not believe that one tarantula could ever produce such quantity of venom. The doctor returns to Desert Rock sure that the species is part of Prof. Deemer's experiment and the locals are threatened by the dangerous tarantula.

"Tarantula" is a typical sci-fi of the 50's and a surprisingly good film. The screenplay is very well written and the movie is supported by good direction, performances, cinematography and special effects. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Tarântula!" ("Tarantula!")

Note: On 16 Sep 2018 I saw this film again.

Ostensibly a quickie b-flick targeted at matinée audiences, "Tarantula" certainly isn't High Art but it does take a refreshingly serious tack on its story. Mad scientist in small desert town experiments with growth serum, accidentally unleashing one humongous spider on the terrified locals. Very nice atmosphere, decent special effects, not-bad performances. John Agar is the stalwart hero, and of course he's coupled with a pretty girl prone to screaming (Mara Corday as Stephanie, whom Agar affectionately calls 'Steve'). Probably more fun today for nostalgic adults than modern preteens, and certainly not as gripping as "Them!", but still a well-enough produced creep-show. Look fast for Clint Eastwood in an uncredited bit. ** from ****

Tarantula is a classic example of a 1950s science runs amuck movie. It's a fairly simple movie and plot with all the characteristics of a sci fi, horror movie from the 50s. Nothing very special or unique about it but the film is still a lot of fun to watch. It's has the excitement and dramatic scenes that would have made this a great drive in movie or late night show. As long as you don't take things too seriously, just sit back and relax, it can be a nice reminder of the past that is still interesting to todays viewer. If you liked watching other sci fi, horror movies made in the early to mid 50s, you will also enjoy this one. I don't think you will be disappointed.

The archetypal '50s big bug movie, Tarantula sees a rapidly growing spider—the result of an experiment involving nutrients and radioactive isotopes—escaping from a laboratory to crawl around the countryside devouring cattle and the occasional rancher. Eventually, the eight-legged horror reaches such massive proportions that the air-force is called in to prevent it from trashing the town of Desert Rock.

John Agar plays town doctor Matt Hastings, the first to suspect that it is an over-sized arachnid that is causing the trouble; Mara Corday is Hastings' love interest, beautiful lab assistant Stephanie 'Steve' Clayton; Leo G. Carroll is over a barrel as Professor Gerald Deemer, who winds up hideously disfigured by his own experiment; and Clint Eastwood saves the day as a plucky U.S. fighter pilot, his face mostly hidden behind a breathing mask, although his squint is unmistakable.

Matters get very silly at times, especially with the humongous, hairy spider somehow managing to wander around the desert unseen (at one point, it peers into Mara's bedroom, the woman blissfully unaware of the huge eyes and mandibles at her window), but the hokey nature of the plot only adds to the overall enjoyment. Excellent special effects (for the day) and solid performances also go to qualify Tarantula as a must-see sci-fi/horror classic.

Man, with as many creature features like this that I've seen, I gotta say it's one of my favorites. I keep tarantulas as a hobby, and I've seen first hand how ferocious and awful they can be to their prey. The story is a great concept too, science being used for the good of mankind going awry when the movie makes its plot twist. The Spider is indestructible and it plays on the natural fears of mankind. The little clues it leaves behind, such as a puddle of venom in one scene, leads up to the main story perfectly. It leaves scientists in the fill scratching their heads, to make you feel as if it's truly happening. If you're a big fan of Retro science fiction, this film is a must see for you!

I watched this movie a hundred times while growing up and I've seen it at least a hundred more times as an adult! Great story. To me it's the greatest big bug movie ever made. Interesting side story of the effects of the nutrient on humans, also. I fell in love with Mara Corday after the first time I saw this as a young child and I still think she was one of the great beauties of the screen. I think the main reason the film holds up today is the special effects are still quite impressive and there is nothing that todays audience would find hokey or cheesy. The only thing that "Bugs" me is the sound effect of the tarantula growling as it attacks. But thats just nit-picking. Its also fun spotting a young Clint Eastwood. Great sci-fi and great entertainment! A film viewing must!

I was eight when I saw Tarantula on the not-so-big screen. My youthful fear of death led me to a greater concern for the disease caused by the "nutrient" than by a very large spider. It contains a classic moment found in many 50's big monster "movies." Two guys are left behind in a car (which, of course, is in bad need of a tune-up and won't start) with a couple of puny rifles. They, of course, provide an evening meal for the spider. This was probably most people's first exposure to napalm as well.

After Creature From the Black Lagoon, this is the best of Universal's monster movies of the 1950's, and the best giant bug movie of the 1950's after Them!

The movie includes haunting desert locations and good special effects. The giant tarantula especially looks impressive. Good performances from the cast which includes British actor Leo J Carroll (The Man From U.N.C.L.E.), who was responsible for the tarantula to grow so huge. A young Clint Eastwood is responsible for the tarantula's death.

If you are a fan of giant bug movies like me, this is a must.

Rating: 4 and a half stars out of 5.

This one has a special place in my memories ! I grew up in New Mexico near the desert, and whenever they showed this one on the late night science fiction Saturday night TV thriller show, I was afraid to walk to school and back on Monday! As I have grown up over the last forty years, I have come to appreciate it as a well crafted science fiction near classic! Jack Arnold directed many good sci-fi movies in the 1950's, but there is no doubt this was the creepiest! Next to the superior "THEM", released the year before (at a different studio), this UNIVERSAL STUDIOS chiller was , for my money, the second best of the giant bug movies of that decade! You will never look at the desert the same way again. Actress MARA CORDAY impressed me so much in this one, that I named one of my daughters after her! JOHN AGAR gave a great performance, and this one led to him doing a string of more horror and sci-fi movies for the next decade or two! It helped that they used a real Tarantula (named TOMORROW), instead of a fake one, and Clifford Stine's special effects will convince you that spider is really 100 feet tall! Another plus is Henry Mancini wrote some of the music score! So, I recommend this one to all those that hate creepy crawlers of any kind! Get out the can of RAID! But, you had better make it a really big can !!!

Signed, Baron Beast

One of countless 'big bug' features to come out of the U.S. during the 1950s, Jack Arnold's Tarantula is one of the most enjoyable of its kind. After Gordon Douglas' Them! really kicked off the fad in the previous year, Tarantula has everything audiences came to love about the genre; a dusty, middle-of-nowhere Arizona setting, the handsome yet charisma-free hero, the screeching love interest, the shady doctor who certainly knows far more than he is letting on, and, of course, the giant, 'terrifying' monster. What makes this film slightly more interesting than others of its ilk is the fact that it doesn't blame radiation on the deformed beast, but actually attempts to tell a story.

After renowned biological research scientist Eric Jacobs (Eddie Parker) is found dead in the desert, apparently suffering from a rapid form of acromegaly, Dr. Matt Hastings (John Agar) is called in from a nearby town to investigate. When Hastings suggests an autopsy to figure out what brought on such a rare disease and how it killed Jacobs so quickly, Dr. Gerald Deemer (Leo G. Carroll), one of Jacobs' colleagues, refuses his request and signs the death certificate himself. Back at Deemer's isolated desert research lab, it is revealed that the doctor has been experimenting on animals in a bid to save the future planet's food shortage, and has increased the size of a number of his subjects, including a tarantula. After a fire destroys Deemer's lab, the Arizona landscape is soon overshadowed by the giant, hungry arachnid.

While a radioactive isotope does crop up at one point, the 50 foot spider is purely the handiwork of a scientist with good intentions rather than government nuclear tests, and therefore Tarantula creates an interesting and conflicted character in Caroll's Deemer. Caroll certainly chews every scene, but proves a far more appealing male lead than the bland Agar. Yet the real star of Tarantula is the creature itself. The combination of matte effects and the use of a real spider, which would later be used on The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957) have aged spectacularly well, only failing to convince during the brief close-up shots of the last thing a few poor (and seemingly blind) souls see before they're gobbled up. While the climax is over before you know it, there's fun to be had in trying to spot a young and uncredited Clint Eastwood as a fighter pilot. It's no longer scary (was it ever?), but it has charm by the bucket load.

"Tarantula" is a combination of a science-experiment-gone-wrong movie with a monster movie. Though tame by today's standards (it shies away from any graphic violence), it still boasts nearly-excellent optical effects, nearly-seamless trick photography, and creepy "deformative" makeup. A talkative first half gives way to an eventful second. **1/2 out of 4.

Jack Arnold's "Tarantula" is mostly your typical '50s sci-fi flick, this time focusing on a typical member of the family Theraphosidae* whom a scientist is using as a test subject in a series of experiments aimed at increasing the world's food supply: the experiments involve making animals grow really quickly. Sure enough, the arachnid gets loose, and so there's an eight-legged, 100-foot killing machine stomping through the desert, devouring anyone in its way.

The professor mentions that the world population was growing by about 25 million every year. Nowadays it's closer to 80 million every year (about the population of Egypt or Germany). The professor predicted a world population of 3.6 billion in the year 2000, while in reality it reached 6 billion the previous year, and reached 7 billion last year. It's predicted to be 9 billion by 2050. Meanwhile, resources are drying up. The professor would have to work a lot harder nowadays (preferably without releasing a giant spider).

OK, too much analysis. It's mostly the usual, fun sci-fi/horror flick from the era. Starring John Agar (Shirley Temple's first husband), Mara Corday (the October 1958 Playboy centerfold), Leo G. Carroll (Mr. Waverly on "The Man from U.N.C.L.E."), Raymond Bailey (Mr. Drysdale on "The Beverly Hillbillies") and an uncredited Clint Eastwood.

*That's the taxonomic family to which tarantulas belong.

An excellent example of early 50s horror. This is a black & white thriller that lets your imagination fill in the gory details. The aftermath is there to fuel the fear of the over grown tarantula. Leo G. Carroll plays a professor experimenting with a synthetic food stuff with intent to feed the crowded earth in 2000. His experiments on animals cause them to mature in three to six days. A rat can grow to the size of a dog in about 12 days. Two assistants die after injecting themselves with the secret supplement. The professor is injected while fighting off one of his dying helpers that is setting fire to the lab. An oversized tarantula escapes the fire to terrorize the area.

John Agar is the county doctor that leads in the destruction of the hairy legged menace. Mara Corday is the new assistant to the dying deformed professor. Character actors Nestor Paiva and Hank Patterson also star. And of note: very brief screen time for unknown Clint Eastwood as a jet fighter pilot and Bing Russell as a deputy.

I remember seeing this at the Saturday Kiddie Double Feature. My Milk Duds and Cherry Root Beer didn't last very long. Besides both hands were needed to hold on to the seat. This was pretty darn scary back then. Not to say it wouldn't scare a few grade schoolers today. Catch it on AMC or SFN and relive those days when we were frightened by an over grown anything. Bigger the scarier.

By 2023 standards, this is amateurish, but by 1955 standards, this was state of the art. I love seeing old technology and thinking about how it has evolved over the years. In 1955, we did the best that we could with the tools that we had available. John Agar comes across as a potentially leading Hollywood A-film actor, very handsome and charismatic. Apparently his short marriage to Shirley Temple had a negative impact on his career. Really enjoyed this flick, thought it was well done for the time period And just a fun way to spend 80 minutes.

Now I am adding 52 more characters to meet IMDb's silly rules.

This is one of those films which starts off with a bang, slows down with a big lull in the middle section, and then finishes strong.

Kudos to the special-effects people to make the giant tarantula scenes look pretty good, even by today's standards some 50 years after this was made. Many times, the huge spider looks real while it's crawling down the road. I would like to have seen one or two more scenes of it in that middle section which would have kept viewers on edge throughout the film. Instead, it got a bit talky in spots.

Anyway, it still entertained and it was fun for me to see Leo G. Carroll, a guy I saw each week growing up watching "Topper" on television. Carroll played, by far, the most interesting character in this movie.

The acting was good in here, too, once again above '50s sci-fi standards. It was one of the better entries in the recently-released Sci-Fi Ultimate DVD set, offered at Best Buy. A pretty good transfer, too.

A classic in creature features. The best giant spider movie in my opinion!

The characters are unique and the acting is good!

I think this is one of John Agar's better roles, he is able to display a smart man. This proves even if your acting career is a little ruff, with the right script, it can do wonders.

The effects are pretty good for the time as well, the final scene where the air force fights the giant Tarantula is the best part of the film.

But in the beginning of the movie is a little slow. It's a common problem with many 50s sci-fi movies. But when the tarantula finally shows up it's a very thrilling time.

Show this movie to someone that doesn't like old monster movies, it will change their perspective on old sci-fi films.

I have seen this film many times over the years since it was released, including its first theatrical run in 1955. Overall, it is above average for its genre and for the period in which it was made. The acting is passable, the story moves along well, and the effects are better than most of the schlock science fiction that was being churned out during the mid-1950's, although nowhere near the caliber of FORBIDDEN PLANET or THIS ISLAND, EARTH. (Note: Fans of the latter will notice reuse of some of the sound track music themes from THIS ISLAND, EARTH, produced by the same studio a year earlier.)

***SPOILERS AHEAD***

The basis of the plot involves the efforts of two scientists to develop a growth "nutrient" using radioactive isotopes. The stated purpose of this effort is to increase the growth of food sources to supply the booming human population forecast for the future. The "nutrient" formula is very unstable, and produces unpredictable results when injected into experimental animals. Sometimes they grow at an astonishing rate, and sometimes they die. Successful giant animal subjects are being kept in cages in the laboratory.

We now encounter the most major flaw in the plot. The scientists plan to test the formula on human subjects. One of them injects himself with the "nutrient", and quickly becomes the monstrosity seen (in flashback)staggering through the desert and expiring at the opening of the film. What could be the purpose of such an experiment? To make humans grow larger? Doesn't this contradict the whole idea of increasing the food supply to feed an exploding world population?

Before his demise, the doomed scientist from the opening sequence has returned to the lab, attacked his partner (Leo G. Carroll), and injected him with a dose of the "nutrient". During their struggle, a fire is started in the lab (due to the shorting of a huge, unprotected electrical panel, this being a very unlikely and dangerous oversight on the part of the lab's builders) and many of the experimental animals perish or escape (including the tarantula of the films title).

A very attractive woman (portrayed by science fiction mainstay Mara Corday) has been hired as a lab assistant, and arrives by bus in the small desert town. She has no means of transportation to the remote lab, and is offered a ride by the town's physician (John Agar). She introduces herself as "Stephanie", but immediately states that her nickname is "Steve". (Note: This renaming of female characters using male nicknames was a curious and inexplicable practice in 1950's films, and was seen in many other films of the era. Could this have been the precursor of so many male-named women in the present day? But I digress...).

Once she assumes her duties at the lab, "Steve" is instructed in the method of preparing the "nutrient" formula. There is another glaring flaw in the plot at this point. Since they are dealing with a dangerous radioactive substance, the scientist and assistant don protective gear (face masks and gloves), and the formula is prepared inside a shielded enclosure using remotely operated manipulators. A hypodermic syringe is filled with the substance using the same method. Then, unbelievably, the scientist opens a door in the enclosure, reaches in with his bare hand, picks up the hypodermic and carries it around (with an unprotected needle!) as if it were filled with tap water! Certainly, if the mixture were that hazardous, it would not be suitable for use on test subjects, and would be treated with much greater concern for safety in the lab.

Meanwhile, out in the desert, the escaped tarantula continues to grow, and begins to attack area ranches in search of food. It devours several cattle and horses, and one of the ranchers as well. It leaves behind puddles of a white liquid, and this provides the vital clue to the local doctor and sheriff who are attempting to discover the source of the attacks. In another very implausible scene, the doctor (upon discovering a puddle of the liquid) sticks his bare finger into the unknown substance, smells it and then tastes it! One would think that a medical doctor with scientific training would be more cautious than to ingest something he finds in the middle of a pasture! He takes a sample of the liquid for analysis, and it is determined to be spider venom.

The local constabulary is alerted, and soon comes face to face with the now gigantic spider, which is rampaging through the countryside eating everything it can catch (including the unfortunate, now misshapen scientist who created it). Of course, bullets and explosives have no effect on the creature, and the Air Force is finally called in to dispose of it. A minor continuity problem is present due to the use of stock footage of the Air Force jets (i.e., the planes shown taking off are not the same type shown during the attack). As has been stated before, the leader of the attacking jet squadron is portrayed by a young Clint Eastwood, barely recognizable behind his oxygen mask. The big spider is finally roasted to a crisp using napalm, and the world is once again safe from science run amock at the films conclusion.

***END OF SPOILERS***

The problems cited above are merely nagging details, and only a minor detraction from the overall effectiveness of the film. It remains entertaining and well paced, and if the problems are overlooked, it is worthwhile viewing for fans of science fiction.

This is a top-of-the-line Sci-Fi thriller from the studio that did 'em best in the 1950s - Universal-International. Produced by William Alland (who also produced "Creature From the Black Lagoon" and "It Came From Outer Space", and directed by Jack Arnold (who directed those films) it has an intelligent script and good acting all the way around. Arnold does a great job of building suspense as he cleverly keeps the titular monster mostly off-screen for the first 2/3 of the film until it's simply too big to hide. And then --- watch out, folks! As in many another sci-fi story, the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and if there's a villain of the piece, it's the Nuclear Age - the spider of the title is merely doing it's natural thing: searching for food. Except that, thanks to Leo G. Carroll's well-meaning experiments (to increase the world's supply of food), this is one BIG spider with an equally BIG appetite! Universal's special effects department just about out-did themselves here - the matte work is almost flawless (check out Leo G. Carroll's house after the spider's visit), and the make-up department did excellent work as well. This is one of the best of it's kind, and great fun on a rainy Saturday afternoon.

I've always wondered if director Jack Arnold could have raised higher should he have been able to work with big budget products and top stars casts. Arnold was a very smart filmmaker with a most direct and plain style that gave us such "B" classic films in different genres as "The Creature from the Black Lagoon" and "The Incredible Shrinking Man" in the horror/sci-fi line, "No name on the Bullet" (Audie Murphy's best western no doubt) and even the fine comedy "The Mouse That Roared" (Peter Sellers was not a top star then). Who knows?

"Tarantula" is just another of Arnold's little "B" horror gems of the 50's, a most simple movie about insects turning huge to terrorize people, in this case the spider in the title. The film is interesting and enjoyable for fans of the genre (guilty!) and I remember it really scared me a lot when I saw it as a kid.

Though they would have never run for an Oscar John Agar, Mara Corday and Leo G. Carroll where very good in the main roles in a kind of film that was not about acting but about special effects and horrifying situations (just think for a second what it would be like to be chased by a hungry building size tarantula spider!).

All in all, "Tarantula" stands as a good piece in the "B" horror genre released by an intelligent director.

A spider escapes from an isolated desert laboratory experimenting in giantism and grows to tremendous size as it wreaks havoc on the local inhabitants.

There are really only two things going for this film: one, a small uncredited role by Clint Eastwood that few if anyone will catch. And two, the fact the female lead calls herself "Steve". I just think that is the greatest nickname for a woman I ever heard.

Beyond that, it is what you expect. A tarantula in the background with terrorized people in the foreground. Director Jack Arnold uses the same tarantula (I assume) twice, also in "Incredible Shrinking Man"...