Director: J.T. Petty
Year: 2003
Country: USA
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Creature Feature
Plot:
Stuck inside his apartment complex, a young cancer survivor who's an avid amateur photographer begins to suspect he's capturing a series of giant bug attacks around the building and tries to get the authorities to believe him before the creatures spread into the city.
Review:
There wasn't all that much in here that was really all that good. The majority of what works in this is the gradual buildup of the different methods to show the strange activity around the building, with his absolutely fanatical approach to photographing everything making for a rather interesting spin on the material. Though clichéd, it gives the scenes a distinct sense of voyeurism into something they shouldn't be doing, and adds a distinct sense of danger to the situation that is put on fine display with the searching around in his apartment where they believe it's empty and begin searching only to eventually find something else with them.
As well, a lot of the fun here is due to the final minutes of the film, as the insects are finally let loose and allowed to become the threats they really are. They're involved in two big attacks in that span, both of which are simply fantastic, from the assault on the group out in the street during the purchase, and the insects appear to spoil it all, while the apartment setting is simply creepy. Without a doubt, the best sequence is the refrigerator attack, where one is trapped inside a refrigerator and the insects repeatedly try to break through the door to get in. What makes it work is that it's completely told all throughout by the point-of-view of them inside, and when the door is closed, it's pitch-black inside, only from the light to come crashing in when the door gets pulled open. It lends itself greatly to scares as it's original, inventive, and actually suspenseful when the sudden crashes occur. Coupled with the nice gore, these comprise all the film's positives, as there aren't that many big problems with this film.
The biggest problem is that there's really nothing of real interest for the longest portion of the film. Just about all of the film's time is spent building up the relationship and giving reasons for the adults to distrust them. That this is done in such a manner that you're watching the film from his point, and while it does work in that it gives us a great perspective on the film, unfortunately, it means it holds back on everything you'll have come to watch this film for, the killer insects. The insects eventually decide to show up, but by they're coming in so late in the movie makes the beginning nearly impossible to sit through. How much you'll actually see of them varies from nothing to just a little. They look pretty cheap and are mainly confined to the shadows. In the other films, the insects represented a threat to humanity, and you always felt that there were sufficient numbers of them and they were tough enough to pose a challenge. Here they don't. It's a really disturbing thought that the titular creatures can't even show up inside they're own film until the end. Otherwise, this is at least tolerable.
Overview: **.5/5
A slight disappointment but still enjoyable enough at times, there’s enough here to like that it’s not a complete waste, but it’s still clearly the weakest of the trilogy quite easily. Give this a shot if you’re a fan of the martial present or are needing to get the franchise completed, while most others out there might want to heed caution here.
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