In der Gewalt der Riesenameisen

Based very loosely on the short story "Empire of the Ants" by H. G. Wells, the film involves a group of prospective land buyers led by a land developer, pitted against giant, mutated ants.

This was one of Bert Gordon's final films, and from a technical standpoint it is among his best. The production value looks much higher than his earlier work, and the star power of the cast is evident. The ants, while still relying on a few cheap effects, are overall pretty effective -- though why must they be screeching the entire time? But really, what makes this only a "good" film rather than a "really good" film is the length. This is clearly a 60 or 70-minute film stretched out to 90 minutes, and that allows for the ultimate sin to creep in: boredom.

Shortly before seeing this film, I saw Bert I. Gordon's other giant killer animal flick, The Food of the Gods, and on the basis of these two films, I've discovered two things about a director I previously knew nothing about; first of all, he obviously enjoys making films about giant animals, and secondly; he has very little in the way of directorial talent. My main complaint with The Food of the Gods, in spite of the fact that I knew it was going to be a somewhat less than brilliant film, was the fact that it was boring - unforgivable since it's about giant animals! The plot we have here is very similar to the earlier film, as a bunch of people travel to a secluded place and end up being attacked by animals which are larger than normal. This time, the group is lead by the scheming Joan Collins, who leads a bunch of property buyers to Florida on the promise of some bargain property. The property turns to be fake, Joan Collins a fraud and that barrel of toxic waste washed up on the beach has given the ants a growth spurt!

The obvious films to compare to this one are fellow giant ant movies such as the classic 'Them' and the interesting, but fairly boring Sci-Fi Phase IV, and this film isn't as good as either as those. The special effects are important in a film like this, and they're even worse than those seen in The Food of the Gods. The ants are just enlarged shots of real ants superimposed onto the screen, along with a couple of puppets to fill the gaps. As you can probably imagine, this doesn't look good; and it's hard to be convinced by a film with effects like these - cheap or not! The film stars Joan Collins, and she reaffirms what a shame it is that she went crazy with the plastic surgery as the pre-surgery Joan Collins is actually quite hot! The plot itself is nothing exciting - just your average monster flick stuff - running from the monsters, fighting the monsters etc. There's also a subplot involving the ants' pheromones that doesn't come off well at all. Overall, Empire of the Ants just misses the 'fun bad film' mark and ends up just being a bad film! It's not completely terrible - and it's better than The Food of the Gods - but I still don't recommend it!

I absolutely love this movie and would highly recommend if you're looking for something fun to watch! There are only two or three clips of ants that are consistently overlaid and recycled and it just gets funnier every time. Not sure if this is quite what H. G. Wells saw in his mind, but so happy it exsists!

I guess I'm the only one who noticed the potential "love story" here. Don't believe me? From the beginning it seems very clear that Robert Lansing's Dan Stokely has a thing for the bitchy Marilyn Fryser (played by everyone's favorite bitch, Joan Collins). Check out that elongated "stare" they share on the boat. Then there's Jacqueline Scott's droopy, whiny, bitter, button-obsessed Margaret Ellis. She has a thing for Dan, but Dan tries to brush her off by saying he doesn't need any buttons. The clincher, however, is when Marilyn decides to go it alone through the forest, but is immediately confronted by those annoying picnic pests. Take note how she runs back right into Dan's waiting arms. Note also how he eagerly holds her tight and caresses her. And make one final note at Margaret Ellis's reaction -- you think she was bitter before?

That one scene provides more drama and suspense than anything else in the film! For example: Does Margaret really love Dan? Does Dan really love Marilyn? Does Marilyn really want to give up her life as an independent and successful woman for the macho Dan? Will Margaret kill Marilyn so she can sew buttons for Dan? Will Marilyn kill Margaret and steal her buttons so SHE can sew them for Dan? Will Dan say "to hell with the buttons," rip off his shirt and have his way with both women? Or will Dan say "to hell" with both women and offer them up as sacrifices to the ants?

Alas, the movie never answers these questions. But wouldn't it be cool if it had?

Bert Gordon gave this film a good shot - and the results were not altogether bad. It was pretty well cast, too. What really kills it is the cinematography and some of the staging. The ant attacks are just not convincing and the special effects are horrid (especially the boat blowing up). The leads do an OK job, but the script just had tons of dead air and there's not much good dialogue. The bit where Margaret Ellis (played well by Jacqueline Scott) reminisces in the boat about her being fired after 20 years of working for the same boss is nicely delivered, but falls painfully flat. Things perk up a bit when Albert Salmi comes in as the sheriff. I guess Joan Collins' character got what she deserved in the end, but she doesn't seem like a truly evil person. Some sense of fulfillment is reached in the end when the two couples (seemingly in love) manage to escape. Still, a good drive-in flick and the whole set-up of the "real estate sales outings" seemed to be popular in the late 70s/early 80s when the market was really starting to boom. I guess I like this flick because four of the actors (Jacqueline Scott, Albert Salmi, Robert Lansing, Irene Tedrow) starred in episodes of "The Twilight Zone" and this movie certainly has elements of that great TV series. Bert Gordon's daughter, Susan, also starred in a "Zone" episode.