Spider Baby (Widescreen)

 

 

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I love a handful of director Hill's films like The Big Bird Cage, Coffy, Foxy Brown, and Big Doll House. I've seen this over a decade ago and didn't like it so much. Sid Haigs role was the only character that stuck to my mine. Now hundreds of exposable films later I found out that I was mad. After watching this last night it turned out to be a fantastic film. Like Karloff, Lon Chaney Jr. (Brono) was allowed to shine in the twilight of his career by a low-budget director who let his actors do what they do best. He watches over the isolated Gothic house where the last generations of the wealthy Merrye clan reside. Cursed by a debilitating disease brought about by inbreeding, the family members have regressed to a state of "pre-human savagery and cannibalism. When some distant relatives and their shyster lawyer appear trying to commit the family to a home and put Bruno out of a job, Bruno knows it's not going to end well for anyone. Yes, those residing at the old family mansion are pretty far gone, but they're much happier than Leather face's slaughterhouse family, marching toward their inevitable doom with cheery, reckless abandon.

He is supported by the incredible talents of Jill Banner who plays the title character, Virginia, who thinks she is a human spider and lurches around the house with daggers drawn searching for prey. Her sexy and disturbing "spider dance" as she taunts her male victim is mentioned in many of the reviews I've read, and with good reason. The eldest, Ralphie (Sid Haig), prowls around the yard snatching up felines to roast for dinner. Carol Ohmart, the stunning beauty who appeared as Vincent Price's wife in "House on Haunted Hill" delivers a thrill by being quite scantily clad by the finale. And The Devil's Rejects (Unrated Widescreen Edition) fans will be delighted by the young Sid Haig's of course with his silent physical performance as the feral and deteriorating older brother

The eerie black-and-white cinematography and freaky performances (tempered by Chaney's laid-back, sympathetic turn as the caretaker) go a long way toward smoothing over the film's low-budget limitations. And, in case you weren't sold yet, Chaney sings the title song, which is a crazy spoken-word anthem about a cannibal orgy that's "strange to behold," with priceless lyrics such as: "Frankenstein, Dracula, and even the Mummy are sure to wind up in somebody's tummy." I can see why some folks wouldn't dig it - the payoff is in creepiness and atmosphere, not in thrills and gore. But for pure gratuitous weirdness, this one is hard to beat.

How does one describe SPIDER BABY? Well, take "The Addams Family", add "The People Under the Stairs", toss in "Arsenic And Old Lace", blend in a tablespoon of the attitude of "Little Shop Of Horrors" with just a pinch of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre", and stir violently. That comes about as close as I can get to describing it. Jack Hill has created a macabre masterpiece, full of frights and fun from beginning to end! The Merrye family have "Merrye Syndrome", a rotting of the brain, caused by generations of inbreeding. The kids Virginia (Jill Banner), Elizabeth (Beverly Washburn), and Ralph (Sid Haig) are real cut-ups! They've been isolated in a big, secluded house on a hill, watched over by Bruno (Lon Chaney Jr.) for their entire lives. Now teenagers, things are about to change. A pair of distant relatives (played by Quinn Redeker and Carol Ohmart) have come, with sleazy lawyer in tow, to take control and institutionalize the children. Unfortunately for these invaders, they don't know just how crazy the kids really are. They are also ignorant of the fact that these siblings are cannibals! If they had known, they would never have spent the night! SPIDER BABY relies on a cool story, great acting, dark humor, and creepiness to overcome it's microscopic budget (just think of all those mega-budget stinkers over the years). It's an ensemble effort that pays off. Buy it now...

Also known as THE LIVER EATERS, and subtitled THE MADDEST STORY EVER TOLD (a variation on the DeMille movie); this 30th Anniversary DVD of Jack (FOXY BROWN) Hill's horror classic SPIDER BABY is a real treat. For a movie addict like myself, discovering this is like having Xmas come early.
Hill's script deals with an imaginary medical condition known as "Merrye's Syndrome", a "rotting of the brain" a disease so awful many authorities are in denial of its existance. The result of inbreeding, the sufferer experiences age regression, which is to say as the body grows, the mind gets younger. SPIDER BABY tells the story of "that fateful day ten years ago" that Merrye's Syndrome was wiped out forever.
Despite their name, the Merrye family are anything but and make the Addams family look like the Cleavers by comparison.
Horror legend Lon Chaney Jr has one of his best roles as Bruno Schlocker, the Merrye family's new chauffeur- though unknown to him the previous driver was "webbed" by Virginia Merrye (Jill Banner), one of their cute but deranged daughters. As if that wasn't enough the poor chap also had his ears hacked off with a pair of carving knives. What a lovely young lady. The other psychotic daughter is Elizabeth (Beverly Washburn) also cute, but suffering from radical brain rot. And last but not least is Ralph (Sid Haig) an unfortunate fellow who stalks and kills domestic cats, which the Merryes then roast and serve to their guests; who are told they're eating rabbit. Ironically, the Merrye family are all vegans because.... nope. No spoilers.
During dinner one of the guests asks Bruno: "Isn't Ralph a vegetarian too?" to which Bruno replies: "Yes, but Ralph's allowed to eat anything that he catches".
DVD extras include Commentary by Jack Hill: which is actually worth listening to (Unlike some bloated commentaries by Hollywood egoists and talentless film makers); filmographies for Hill and Lon Chaney Jr; plus footage of the 30th Anniversary reunion presented by archivist Johnny Legend as well as an additional 8 minutes of previously unseen footage.
A must have for cult movie buffs; SPIDER BABY is a true original and four decades on it retains its creepy fascination. Buy it and let the SPIDER BABY weave its macabre web on you!!

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5.0 out of 5 stars Not at all what I expected.
This was entirely an impulse buy. I never even heard of tihs film until I saw it on this site and bought it immediately. Honestly, I just liked the cover. Read more

Published on May 16 2003

5.0 out of 5 stars A Pre-Human Condition of Savagery & Cannibalism
Here's a story of one messed up family, afflicted by a genetic condition that gradually deteriorates the mind and reverts the afflicted to a savage state, behold the Merrye... Read more

Published on May 13 2003 by Ryan Costantino

5.0 out of 5 stars How Charles Addams envisioned his cartoon/TV family
If I could give this movie ten stars, that's what it would get! No cult movie collection, B-movie collection, or just movie collection in general is complete without this... Read more

Published on Feb 8 2003 by Ron Wise

5.0 out of 5 stars If you never went to the theatre before the 70s...
...BR>The DVD print looks beautiful and I believe this was Lon Chaney's greatest role from the 1950s up til his death. It's scary! Read more

Published on Dec 27 2002 by John Jordan

5.0 out of 5 stars Loved This Movie
I had never seen or heard of this movie I was browsing the DVD rental store picked it up went home and popped it into the dvd player and then couldnt walk away. Read more

Published on Dec 15 2002 by Victor Robles

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing!
In the past, I have always approached Jack Hill's movies with a little bit of excitement, a little bit of curiousity, and a little bit of trepidation, as I do with any cult movie... Read more

Published on Aug 24 2002 by A. Turner

4.0 out of 5 stars A TRUE CULT FILM....
Another of those neglected films I'd heard about but never found available, "SPIDER BABY" is a genuine find. Wow. Read more

Published on Aug 24 2002 by Mark Norvell

5.0 out of 5 stars Sweet Young Things
Jack Hill's <i>Spider Baby</i> (1964) is a genuinely creepy romp through the finals days of the Merrye family, complete with cannibalism and homicidal jailbait (how... Read more

Published on July 17 2002 by Brandon Blackmoor

5.0 out of 5 stars Have A Merrye Old Time!
Unearthing "Spider Baby" was one of the greatest finds in cinematic history. It features one of the best performances of Lon Chaney, Jr. in his entire career. Read more

Published on Feb 9 2002 by Mike King

5.0 out of 5 stars tHIS MOVIE CULT-ROCKS!
yOU JUST HAVE TO SEE IT. sID HAIG IS A GENIUS. tHE GIRLS ARE REALLY OLD SCHOOL PRETTY. PRETTY PSYCHOTIC. yOU'RE NOT GIONG TO HATE IT, BRUNO TOLD YOU IT ISN'T NICE TO HATE...

Published on Jan 3 2002 by J. M. Gaudreau

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