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I’m not sure why, but the prospect of
watching “Ice Spiders” was intriguing to me. Perhaps it’s because I just
enjoy movies with giant monsters, or perhaps because many movies with
giant spiders end up a barrel full of laughs, or maybe because I just
enjoy cheesy monster movies. “Ice Spiders” really doesn’t take itself
too seriously, and that’s a great thing considering the ridiculous plot
we’re introduced to. But with all the horrible plot devices against it
from minute one, “Ice Spiders” comes out ahead. Hell, everything in this
movie is utterly solid. I cared about the characters, I thought the
spider attacks were creepy, and Patrick Muldoon is a very good hero who
has to fight off these giant man eating arachnids on the icy slopes he
works in.
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This sets the film up for
another hokey “Jaws” device about a ski resort that refuses
to close down even in the face of these attacks, but hell,
“Ice Spiders” is entertaining enough to forgive it for that.
Hell, there’s even a group of roughneck gun toting
commandoes led by “Melrose Place” actor Thomas Calabro, who
are hunting the spiders and trying to stop them before they
get to the ski resort. |
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But you know as well as I do, that it’s a
losing battle. Writer Eric Miller sets up the pins to fall at the jaws
of the spiders with obvious signs of who will win or lose, but the
tension is thick enough to warrant the audience’s attention. Though not
as goofy as one of my favorite giant spider flicks “Eight Legged
Freaks,” it’s just as morbid and campy as the former, and hell, for a
low budget film, the special effects are often very solid. Though
Takács
slyly keeps the spiders in a distance and fuzzy, the effects create a
realistic feel for the little predators, and I enjoyed watching these
creatures hunting hapless skiers. “Ice Spiders” is gladly a fun little
monster flick, and one that does it all with a self aware smile, and I
enjoyed it for that. And you have to love the way our primary antagonist
dies in the climax. It’s great!
Yes, it’s really cheesy, hokey, and campy,
but it’s also a great little B grade monster mash with killer spiders,
power hungry military men, heroic skiers, and genuine splatter for the
schlock fans out there.
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