So I have watched a ghost story, a monster movie, and for this third in the series of indeterminate length I selected a giant monster flick. Of course the giant monster films divide into two broad categories: giant beasts & insects and Kaiju, started by the classic film Godzilla: King of the Monsters. Tarantula is part of that American tradition started by the movie Them! of giant animals, usually insects, terrorizing the north American southwest.

Generally I do not consider the giant bug movies to be actual horror films. Horror is a deeply personal emotion and to convey it in a story you generally need deeply drawn and identifiable characters, while  giant bug movies are more about spectacle and disaster. However I recognize that I am in a lone minority with this opinion and so monster films or all types will be open to the film series.

Tarantula, perhaps best immortalized by Richard O’Brien with the lyric “… Leo G. Carroll was over a barrel when Tarantula took to the hills...,”is not really the best of the big bug movies, though it is far from being the worst. The story is very simply, a pair of scientists working to prevent world-hunger by developing an artificial nutrient, accidentally create a giant tarantula that takes to the deserts of Arizona. In truth there isn’t a lot of giant spider in this movie. Most of the film concerns the local doctor, played by John Agar, trying to sniff out what the scientists are hiding when one turns up mysteriously dead and deformed. The super-sized spider only appears in the last act and when the authorities call in the military it is dispatched rather quickly. (Though you have to wonder what that town smells like after they burn the thing to death with Napalm. Suitable for all your pest control needs.)

The film is competently directed by Jack Arnold, who brought us the first two Creature from the Black Lagoon movies and a little know feature that has always had a fond spot in my heart simply due to it most unusual giant monster – The Monolith Monsters. Arnold brings in a few actors from his previous films, the afore mentioned John Agar, along with his second screen appearance in a genre film, albeit with his face covered by a fighter pilot’s oxygen mask, Clint Eastwood. The effects are credible and hold up decently considering budget and time. The biggest strike against this movie is the script. The protagonist does very little protagging and because of that the narrative has terribly weak momentum. Overall I can’t really recommend this movie except to complete your knowledge of classic films of this type from the 50s.