Starring: John Agar, Mara Corday, Leo G. Carroll, Nestor Paiva, Ross Elliott Directed By: Jack Arnold Average Rating: Audience Rating: Unrated Binding: VHS Tape Format: Black & White, Closed-captioned, HiFi Sound, NTSC Number of Items: 1 Release Date: May 26, 1994 Running Time: 80 minutes Studio: Universal Studios Theatrical Release Date: December 14, 1955
Amazon.com: When the radiation-spawned giant ants of Them! swarmed over American screens to become one the most successful films of 1954, it didn't take long for the rest of the insect kingdom to follow suit. The best of these mutant bug movies is Jack Arnold's giddy Tarantula, with Leo G. Carroll as a scientist whose experimental, radiation-treated nutritional supplements transform the title creature into a rampaging monster. The hungry arachnid graduates from rabbits to cattle to people as it grows and creeps across the barren countryside in search of food, dwarfing the desert hills in simple but unsettling special effects shots. John Agar plays the square-jawed doctor who tries to warn the local populace of the impending menace and Clint Eastwood has a bit as an Air Force pilot called in to bomb the now mountain-sized spider. It's an essentially silly story with plenty of heroic dashing about and monster-movie tropes ("See its mandibles crush cars like a tin cans!"), but Arnold, one of the most talented and thoughtful genre directors of the 1950s (It Came From Outer Space, The Incredible Shrinking Man), creates a surprisingly eerie mood with his austere visual style and winds the film up with his tension-building rapid pacing. Composer-playwright Richard O'Brien liked the film so much he immortalized it in the Rocky Horror Picture Show: "Leo G. Carroll was over a barrel when the Tarantula took the hills." The film still straddles the line between nostalgic goofiness and smart sci-fi thrills. --Sean Axmaker
Horror from the Fifties ^ A man is lost in a desert, he collapses and scratches the sand. The background shows life in those days. The doctor returns and is called by the Sheriff to look at a corpse. Professor Deemer indentifies the body and the disease. Eric Jacobs was his best friend. Back at his house Professor Deemer continues with his tests; is there something strange going on? There is a struggle with a creature. The bus arrives in town and young woman goes to the hotel. She wants to go to the Deemer place. A 4x5 Speed Graphic is used for pictures. Professor Deemer tells of his plans for an expanding population. Can more food be produced in less time by the use of synthetic compounds? [Hormones or steroids?]
The desert there was once the bottom of the ocean. A sudden fall of rocks alarms the doctor and Steve. Dr. Hastings asks to see the rabbits; how did they grow so big so fast? Experimental research is always confidential! The Sheriff is called to a ranch; something is eating the cattle. Their bones were stripped clean. Who will be the next victim? What is that white stuff? What happened to Steve? Professor Deemer explains what happened to his laboratory. A big spider would be a ravenous killer. Will the machine guns of the police stop it? Will Air Force planes arrive in time? "Holy Cow!" F-84 Thunderjets attack with rockets and fail. Then napalm is used and the film ends. We are saved from a final lecture by a figure of authority.
This film had a low-budget. The big house in the desert does not seem authentic for that dry rustic setting. The special effects were great for that time. Note the message of this movie: only the Federal government can save you from alien threats. In an earlier time the unity of the people would have ended the threat. I once read that the breathing of insects limits their size; they could never grow that big (except in Hollywood). I wonder if they are putting "synthetic compounds" into animals today? What happens to those who eat this treated meat?
CLINT EASTWOOD VS TARANTULA THIS IS ON DVD! ^ This is a classic 50's sci-fi movie about a giant tarantula terrorizing a small town. Very good special effects and a very well written story make this one a top notch sci-fi adventure! Look close in the final moments of the film as it is a young Clint Eastwood who saves the day as the jet squadron leader who saves the day! Even when he was just starting out he was a hero! This is a must have movie and is part of a 5 movie collection called Classic Sci Fi Ultimate Collection! Don't confused this with "Earth VS the Spider" which is good too! The DVD transfer is sweet! "CB" Harry saves the day again!
FINALLY -- OUT ON DVD ^ [..] Sci-Fi Ultimate Collection: There's nowhere to run and nowhere to hide as five incredible science fiction films crash down on DVD for the first time ever in The Classic Sci-Fi Ultimate Collection! This fascinating, collectible set will shock, terrify, and captivate you with film favorites from the golden age of Hollywood including Tarantula, The Mole People, The Incredible Shrinking Man, The Monolith Monsters, and Monster on Campus. Featuring amazing, ground-breaking special effects, these classics set the standard for all sci-fi terror to come! Tarantula An experiment to create a growth formula that could end starvation evolves into a nightmare when a contaminated spider grows gargantuan - with an appetite to match! The Mole People Deep below the surface of the earth, three scientists stumble upon a tyrannical tribe of albinos who have enslaved a mutant- and dangerous- race of mole people. The Incredible Shrinking Man After encountering a mysterious radioactive mist, an ordinary businessman finds his physical size diminishing as his ordinary household becomes a terrifying trap of doom. The Monolith Monsters In a desperate race against time and nature, a geologist and a scientist must find a way to stop the effects of killer outer-space rocks that are literally petrifying people with fear! Monster on the Campus Terror sweeps a college campus when the discovery of a prehistoric fish turns animals and humans that come into contact with it into bloodthirsty monsters.
A 1950'S CLASSIC! ^ Sometimes I really wish I had been born 15 years earlier so I would have been able to enjoy great films like "Them" and "Tarantula" at a drive-in movie. That really would have been fun. Tarantula has always been one of my favorites in the Giant insect genre of films and I rank it right up there (almost) with "Them".
Professor Deemer is working on an experimental nutrient to solve the worlds hunger problem. During a fight with an assistant, a Tarantula that had been injected with the experimental formula escapes and begins to mutate, growing large and larger. Soon the giant arachnid is out feeding on livestock, ranchers, and just about anything else that gets in its way. A local doctor played by the great John Agar eventually is able to determine that white stuff found at the site of the attacks is spider venom. Soon the local police and residents take on the giant spider but bullets and even dynamite don't slow it down. Finally its decided to call in the Air Force where we get a brief glimpse of Clint Eastwood in an early, uncredited role as an air force pilot.
Sure the special effects are cheesy by today's CGI standards but this is still a great movie and wonderful fun. The type you want to watch on a summer night at the drive in with a big bowl of popcorn.
CLASSIC SCI-FI THRILLER*****DVD PLEASE ******** ^ So when is this great old film coming out on DVD?????? Many of us are eagerly waiting for this one to add to our library. I put this one right up there with "The Day the Earth Stood Still" & "Creature From the Black Lagoon". These are always great for repeat viewings on Sunday afternoons..
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