Arachnophobia (1990)

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HALLOWEEN REVIEWS 2021

Director: Frank Marshall

Writers: Don Jakoby and Wesley Strick, story by Don Jakoby and Al Williams

Stars: Jeff Daniels, Harley Jane Kozak, John Goodman, Julian Sands, Stuart Pankin, Brian McNamara



A deadly species of South American spider arrives in an idyllic California town and begins breeding with the local arachnids, producing a deadly, aggressive hybrid.

 


This film follows the conventions of horror films about small towns besieged by unspeakable terrors, but director Frank Marshall keeps the story light and breezy.

 


The resulting movie is a bit of a hybrid itself, flipping between comedy and thriller in a way that never felt well integrated to me.

 


It doesn't help that the comedy bits aren't all that funny, and the thriller bits aren't very scary. 



The spiders never seemed particularly threatening to me, and the larger-than-life comedic presence of John Goodman as the exterminator Delbert derailed any tension whenever he arrived. 



You just know nothing really bad can happen while he is around.








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