Not gonna lie: I was kinda-sorta traumatized during my misspent youth when I witnessed a humongous arachnid attack rock-'n-rollin' teens in Earth vs. The Spider. Indeed, I vaguely recall screaming out loud and running into the lobby of the theater during a matinee screening of that infamous '50s cheapie-creepie -- and refusing to be coaxed back inside the auditorium even after Revenge of Frankenstein, the second feature on the double bill, began.
Ever since then, I've had slight aversion -- to put it mildly -- to sci-fi flicks involving giant-sized bugs of any sort. And I don't think I'm alone in this regard. In fact, I'm absolutely convinced that Eight-Legged Freaks was a box-office under-achiever a few years ago because arachnophobia is much more widespread than the producers of that movie expected.
So why I am actually looking forward to seeing something called Big Ass Spider! next week at SXSW? Well, for openers, the above trailer makes it look like it'll be a laugh-out-loud hoot. And for another... Well, I have the lede for my review already written: "In the grand tradition of Penn and Teller Get Killed, Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay and Death of a Salesman, Big Ass Spider! earns credit right from the get-go for truth in advertising."
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2 comments:
So .. You didn't like "Tarantula" , or "Them"? You missed out on the fifties Dude!
I actually saw Them! on late-night TV a couple years before my Spider trauma -- so that one never had quite the same effect on me, even during repeat viewings. As for Tarantula -- can't say I've ever seen that one, even though I consider myself a Clint Eastwood completist.
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