It’s 2013. George Zimmerman’s trial dominates the news, the horrifying “What Does The Fox Say?” video goes viral, and actor Paul Walker passes away in a fatal car crash. Yet something even faster, and more furious, was about to be released upon the world. And of course, I’m referring to the Mike Mendez film Big Ass Spider!
Alex Mathis is a poor, easy-going exterminator from L.A. While he is on a job saving an old lady from rats, he ends up getting bitten by a poisonous spider and sent to the hospital. Although this seems like a setup for a mediocre super hero franchise that can be rebooted about three times, let me assure you there is nothing magical about this particular spider bite.
In the basement morgue of the hospital, a mortician gets attacked by a rat-sized spider that crawls out of a fresh corpse. Upon hearing this news, Alex offers to take care of the spider in exchange for free medical treatment. With the voluntary help of a hospital security guard named Jose, the duo goes on the hunt.
After encountering the spider in the ventilation system, it seems to be way bigger than originally described. Could it be because the spider is actually an alien? *cough cough yes cough* Is this somehow related to a mysterious military unit that is taking over the hospital? Will the spider grow so enormous that it wreaks widespread havoc on the city? And is the actor who plays Jose the same man who voiced Raul the penguin in Happy Feet?
All of these questions and more can be answered by logging into Netflix and watching the awesome Big Ass Spider!
The writing is fantastic, effects are decent and the acting truly drives this homage to big crappy monster films. You can really tell that the director cared about this project, despite the campy premise and low budget. To make the budget work, Mike Mendez actually used his Facebook friends as extras since he couldn’t afford to pay any. This movie exceeds expectations and is a really fun watch. Check it out and let me know what you think of it in the comments below.
Be the first to comment