‘STING’ Is A Bloody, Fun & Heartfelt Old-Fashioned Creature Feature [Review]

FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVE YET TO SEE “STING”, THIS IS A NON-SPOILER REVIEW.

This is a fantastic week for fans of monster movies… as not only are we getting the Nic Cage vs. nighttime beasts in Arcadian this weekend, but we are also getting the giant man-eating spider movie Sting.  Which one should you go see?  Well, if you are looking for a schlocky B-movie throwback to monster movies of yesteryear that has just as much heart as it does blood & guts, Sting is going to be right up your alley.  

WHAT IS “STING” ALL ABOUT?

Sting follows Charlotte, a rebellious 12-year-old girl obsessed with comic books. Despite her stepfather Ethan’s best efforts to connect with her through their comic book co-creation Fang Girl, Charlotte feels isolated. Her mother and Ethan are distracted by their new baby and are struggling to cope, leaving Charlotte to bond with a baby spider she discovers in her auntie’s apartment. Keeping it as a secret pet, she names it Sting. As Charlotte’s fascination with Sting increases, so does its size. Growing at a monstrous rate, Sting’s appetite for blood becomes insatiable. Neighbors’ pets start to go missing, and then the neighbors themselves. Soon Charlotte’s family and the eccentric characters of the building realize that they are all trapped, hunted by a ravenous supersized arachnid with a taste for human flesh – and Charlotte is the only one who knows how to stop it.

HOW DOES A FILM LIKE THIS, HAVE A WHOLE LOT OF HEART?

I had so much fun with this movie that the running time flew by so quickly, I was shocked when it was already coming to its conclusion.  And while this movie will not be for everyone, it was definitely my cup of tea… and I’m hoping Sting becomes a word-of-mouth hit for people who are fans of these types of horror films and want to see more.  Let me break down my pros and cons to hopefully help you decide if this horror flick is right for you.

Director Kiah Roache-Turner who helmed the apocalyptic zombie movies Wyrmwood, injects just the right amount of zany humor, creature scares, and cheesy ridiculousness into his film.  It’s the type of schlocky B-movie horror that we don’t get very often (at least in theaters) that doesn’t take itself too seriously, but also seriously enough to make you care and give you the heebie-jeebies.  Sting also has a surprising amount of heart and that’s what I think gives this movie its special sauce.  The relationship between our lead 12-year-old heroine Charlotte and her step-dad Ethan adds so much depth to this story and a payoff that really tugged at my heartstrings.  

THIS FILM IS A CRAZY MIX OF KOOKY HUMOR, FAMILY DRAMA AND MONSTER HORROR…

There’s a balance of tones here that really worked for me, but will not work for everyone.  It’s like a mix of E.T The Extra Terrestrial and Evil Dead Rise… one minute it’s goofy, nostalgic and charming and then the next minute curse words are being thrown about and the blood and guts are flowing.  It’s a difficult juxtaposition and sometimes it is jarring, but I think our director gets it mostly right.  

HOW REALISTIC AND SCARY IS THE MAN-EATING SPIDER?

I also have to commend all of the VFX work in the film, never once did I not believe this was a real spider.  And anyone with arachnophobia is going to completely freak out over this movie.  I’m not even that paranoid about spiders, but this movie got under my skin and I even had nightmares over it.  And that doesn’t happen often for me, even with the scariest of horror films.  The way this spider keeps growing and how it sneaks around this apartment, trapping it’s prey and then going inside of bodies to eat them from the inside.  It’s absolutely gnarly and it will make your skin crawl.  So, not only does Sting get the humor, coming-of-age and heartfelt moments right… but, for me at least, it also landed when it came to the creature horror elements.  

THE DRAMATICS CAN FEEL A LITTLE HEAVY-HANDED AT TIMES…

I do have to say that the film does spend an awful lot of time developing the family drama of this story, and I know that has been a downside for a lot of viewers.  The spider takes a backseat for quite a lot of the run time, to follow this struggling family… and not all of these moments work.  Some of the acting from the parents is a little wooden (although our lead Alyla Browne is pretty fantastic) and these scenes tend to drag on, when you really want the movie to just get to the gore and the action.  I understand that we needed these moments in Sting to really connect to these characters and the pay-off probably wouldn’t have worked so well if we hadn’t, but it did seem like a bit of overkill.

I also love the idea of setting this movie in a high-rise and having all of the tenants be potential victims for this spider, but I don’t think Roache-Turner took full advantage of this.  We only really get to know four other tenants, two of which are related to the family… And I would have liked a larger ensemble of eccentric characters in this film, especially because that would have raised the body count, as well.  Lastly, you will probably find this movie extremely predictable and if you don’t like that, then I would probably stay away.  Our director does some pretty obvious foreshadowing throughout the entire film that I wish was more discreet.  I don’t personally think the predictability takes away from the overall impact, but others might disagree.

SHOULD YOU GO SEE “STING”?

Still, I had so much fun with Sting that those things really didn’t bother me.  This is a creature feature with all of the gore, awesome effects, and crazy action that you could want, but it also wears its heart on its sleeve. If you’re okay with your horror films also being goofy, over-the-top and sentimental… then you will probably have a blast with this as well.  Just be forewarned, if you are scared of spiders, Sting is pure nightmare fuel.  

Sting premieres in theatres April 12.

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