8 Legged Freaks

Come Oscar time, there are a few films that all right-minded film pundits will have big money on. The Two Towers, The Road to Perdition, and, of course, 8 Legged Freaks. Almost a definite Best Picture, hopes are high for Arquette's first (of many) Best Actor speech and a couple of nods for supporting players.

In every department 8 Legged Freaks screams quality at you, whether it be the carefully developed back story, the subtle nuances of the lead characters, the breathtaking cinematography or the ground-breaking special effects. However, it is in looking beyond these strengths that the true brilliance of this movie becomes apparent - the simple fact that it has legions and legions of MASSIVE FUCK-OFF SPIDERS.

Little spiders, big spiders, and indeed the aforementioned MASSIVE FUCK-OFF SPIDERS - this film is really one for arachnophobes. When a toxic waste spillage means that a selection of exotic spiders are fed infected crickets, the spiders soon grow to frankly ludicrous size and start terrorising a small, decaying mining town. As the locals are taken down one by one, it falls to the local sheriff (Wuhrer) and recently returned prodigal son Chris (Arquette) to round up the survivors and fight back against the MASSIVE FUCK-OFF SPIDERS.

Okay, this nothing more than a B-Movie with fantastic special effects, but its also quite possibly the most fun you're going to have in a cinema this year. A film which has no concept of "over the top", "8 Legged Freaks" is exactly the kind of film any right-minded kid wants to make. Spiders, guns, explosions, and lots of laughs combine to make this an absolutely perfect Friday night movie. And, for the scared, its not scary AT ALL.

Greg Taylor