Earth vs. the Spider (TV 2001)

A shy, obsessive comic book fan gets injected with an experimental serum of a lab that is studying how to give humans the abilities of spiders. At first he develops minor abilities such as ... See full summary »

Director:

Scott Ziehl

Writers:

Mark 'Crash' McCreery (story), Cary Solomon (story),

Stars:

Dan Aykroyd, Devon Gummersall, Amelia Heinle

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dan Aykroyd	...	Det. Insp. Jack Grillo
Devon Gummersall	...	Quentin Kemmer
Amelia Heinle	...	Stephanie Lewis
Theresa Russell	...	Trixie Grillo
Christopher Cousins	...	Officer Williams
Mario Roccuzzo	...	Nick Bezis
John Cho	...	Han
Randall Huber	...	Midtown murderer
Zia Harris	...	Gutterpunk #1 (as Zia)
Lloyd Lowe Jr.	...	Lloyd (gutterpunk #2) (as Lloyd Lowe)
Michael Keenan	...	Willie
Ted Rooney	...	Coroner
Dan Martin	...	Huge cop
Rob Hill	...	Liquor store cop
Brian J. Gilbert	...	Photojournalist

Storyline

A shy, obsessive comic book fan gets injected with an experimental serum of a lab that is studying how to give humans the abilities of spiders. At first he develops minor abilities such as increased strength, which allows him to fight local criminals and bullies, thus living out his dream of being a superhero, and impressing his attractive next-door neighbor. Things start to get more odd when he is able to shoot webs out of his abdomen. Then he loses control over the force with which he applies his increasingly deadly abilities, as well as his judgment to discern between criminals and jokesters. His dream becomes a nightmare when he starts growing large spider body parts, he's in constant pain, and he develops a nearly insatiable hunger. A detective with a traumatized wife begins investigating when bodies covered in cobwebs and spider venom start piling up.

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Plot Keywords:

spider | detective | comic book | superhero | spider web | 

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Taglines:

Science made Quentin a mutant. Nature made him a killer.

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Genres:

Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and violence

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 October 2001 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Spider

Company Credits

Production Co:

Creature Features Productions LLC

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The character Quentin Kemmer is named after Ed Kemmer, star of the original _Earth vs the Spider (1958)_.

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Connections

Featured in Troldspejlet: Episode #28.4 (2002)

User Reviews

echoes of greatness...

This may not be the best film ever, but the writing and direction manages to be fresh around every bend. You'd expect lots of dumb noise-swell scares, cheesy one-liners, etc, but you'll find none of that here. Good old fashioned horror is alive and well here, and although this movie isn't the most involved or beautiful film you'll ever see, give it a chance.

The direction and cinematography is surprisingly good, and the transformation of the spider is done just right -- you don't see too much too soon, but just enough to keep it creepy and interesting. I really can't say enough about how this film avoided the pitfalls into which most big-budget movies stumble. Horror movies in particular, having made a big comeback in the last few years, suffer from cheap jump-out-at-you thrills, poor plot, and weak plot twists. This movie keeps it good and simple.

My favorite part is that you can sympathize with all the characters, which is especially awesome with the "villian." Oh, and the spider looks FRIKKIN AWESOME. But just as a forewarning, the ending is a little disappointing.