The horror community has been long overdue for a creepy critter movie, and 2024 delivered! April has two spider movies raining down on us: Infested and Sting. While Infested has another two weeks before it hatches on streaming, you can catch Sting on the big screen now. It’s about a young girl who finds a spider and keeps it as a pet. Her entire building deals with the consequences of her actions. If you are a fan of movies like Arachnophobia and Eight-Legged Freaks, Sting should be on your hit list. Here’s why you should check it out.
The Creepy And The Crawly
The film incorporates a combination of natural horror and over-the-top spider activities to keep viewers on the edge of their seats. Horror movies that involve spiders can dig their heels into the audience with a basis in reality. For example, some spiders can jump up to fifty times their height. A fact like that can be used to the filmmaker’s advantage by expanding on that ability. Sting uses several realistic spider facts to increase the creature’s threat level. This spider can quickly grow, jump, paralyze, and blind victims. It’s also powerful; this isn’t surprising because some spiders can lift up to fifty times their weight. Spiders are adept predators, which makes them an excellent focus for horror.
If the natural horror isn’t enough, psychological horror is also a drawing factor. People are already afraid of spiders and there’s probably one hanging out somewhere in your house; The soil is fertile for deep-rooted horror. Not only does this film present a formidable arachnid foe, it presents everyday situations that may happen to us. For example, locating a spider in your home and suddenly losing its location; now a free-range spider is taking a tour of your home’s nooks and crannies. This brand of horror is guaranteed to stick with you if you have an aversion to spiders.
R-Rated For A Reason
Sting is not afraid to lean into the blood! The spider starts small by killing other insects, but the killings quickly escalate to the human variety. I was pleased to learn that it would be rated R, and the filmmakers do not waste that rating. Audiences can look forward to blood, guts, and webs throughout the movie; There’s also a surprising amount of ooze. Although Sting is rated R, the gore isn’t too over-the-top, so I would allow a teenager to watch it. It’s the perfect ride for a weekend movie trip.
The horror aspects of the movie are well-done. The humor was middling, but it can be difficult to get a chuckle out of me in general. The overall tone is campy and the movie doesn’t take itself too seriously. I am still unsure how to feel about the optics of the only Black character being the comedic relief and being killed. That may not bother others, but that left a sour taste in my mouth. Jermaine Fowler’s performance is charismatic, but I would have liked a different story for his character. The pacing works well until a point; something about the final battle feels too drawn out, but it’s only the last 15-20 minutes. Overall Sting is worth a trip to the theaters for a dose of creature feature fun; It’s a solid 7/10.
