1970s SF film

[peteryoung]

The Giant Spider Invasion, 1975, USA   DIRECTED BY BILL REBANE
This is a movie from which aspiring film makers can actually witness the mistake of shooting with the wrong backing, as well as inadequate funding, for whatever vision for your film you may have. The Giant Spider Invasion was always going to be a B-movie, but director Bill Rebane ended up with something more resembling a pioneering work of before-its-time gonzo film-making, having had a total of five producers during its creation and a shooting schedule that went ahead without ever having a complete script from which to work. The plot is hokum enough: a meteor crashes to Earth in Wisconsin and opens up an interdimensional gateway that somehow enables giant spiders to hatch from stone eggs and terrorise a small town. This is car-crash scriptwriting with added nonsense science, and while it was always intended as a send-up of ’50s monster movies Rebane clearly found himself struggling to keep the tongue-in-cheek vibe going, working against enormous production problems and a budget of a mere $300,000 from which to wrestle a passable movie. The final committee-designed script borrows clichés from everywhere, and provides a variety of small-town sub-plots that try hard to keep the interest up but are nothing more than a vehicle for some weak jokes and very mild titillation. Rebane also got some of the lowest-rent special effects of any ’70s skiffy movie, best being a VW Beetle effectively disguised as the biggest spider of all, with its red tail lights serving as the spider's eyes. Possibly the weakest aspect of all is the cinematography, with outdoor scenes poorly shot and devoid of any adequate lighting: it's often hard to see what's going on but if you could you'd definitely see the join. One thing I did like was the cast who all seem to share a "let's make a crap monster movie!" vibe, and there are some bigger names involved including Alan Hale Jr. from Gilligan's Island. Rebane himself is the first to acknowledge this film's many flaws calling it "The Giant Spider Disaster"; yes it's rubbish but in a strangely lovable way, and if Rebane had been able to defy his producers and flaunt its faults instead of trying to hide them, this film could have been far more admirable than it eventually turned out.

(Cross-posted with cult_movie)

Comments

[hnpcc]

best being a VW Beetle effectively disguised as the biggest spider of all

Surely that should be "ineffectively disguised"? I love this movie, having encountered it via MST3K (probably the best way to see it actually). And every time we finally see the Giant Spider I go "brrooooommmmm!!" Especially as it motors up that hill. I had no idea the budget was that low, but it does kind of figure.

I actually particularly like the quite random mob scenes. "Quick everyone! Grab pitchforks and shovels! We're gonna get us some Giant Spider!"

And the random mob car crash (MST3K: well you can't blame the spider for that.)

Best MST3K line: "I injected a paralysing toxin into the sheriff... but I did not inject a paralysing toxin into the deputy..."

a vehicle for some weak jokes and very mild titillation.

And a fair amount of revulsion actually. That thing with the extremely creepy guy and the woman in the nightie is just wrong.

I really do like this movie, it's one of my favourite Spider monster movies. OK, it's on a short list.