It Came from the Desert

This was really entertaining and we were pleasantly surprised. Some cheesy special effects, but all around good fun. Reminded me of 8 Legged Freaks

Saw this on a pirated dvd. The trailer was enticing n the synopsis n settings more like Eight legged freaks. The opening sequence was more like Starship Troopers, where two military men r firing at giant ants. Cut back n v see some beautiful villas in the desert town n even more better is the amazing dirt bike racing scenes reminiscent of the new Point Break film. Hordes of deadly giant ants attack a group of youngsters partying in the middle of nowhere. The effects of the giant ants were cool n the bike action sequences were really cool, particularly during one chase sequence with the giant ants in pursuit. Remember its a very low budget film n it managed to entertain very well. Also noteworthy is the cinematography. What more could you ask from a monster movie?

I remember playing the "It Came from the Desert" game on Amiga 500 computer back in the day, 1989 or the start of the 1990s. And it was a great game back then. Then forward about 34 years and I happen to stumble upon this 2017 movie by random chance. And the title was an instant flashback to the Amiga 500 days, and of course I had to check out this movie.

Truth be told, though, I wasn't really harboring much of any great expectations to director Marko Mäkilaakso's movie, because it seemed like it would be a questionable low budget movie. Yet, I still opted to watch it and give it the benefit of the doubt.

The storyline in "It Came from the Desert" was based loosely on the storyline from the game, but writers Trent Haaga, Marko Mäkilaakso and Hank Woon Jr. Did their own twist and approach on it, for better or worse. But normally, then movies based on computer games have a tendency of being horrible movies. However, I will say that the script and storyline in this 2017 was actually fair enough.

What held the movie back was some half-hearted acting performances. I didn't really buy into the performances put on by the actors and actresses in "It Came from the Desert", because it was just a bit too wooden, rigid and amateurish. And the performances paled in comparison to what director Marko Mäkilaakso apparently set out to accomplish.

Needless to say that I wasn't familiar with the cast ensemble.

Visually then the CGI in the movie was so-so. It looked okay, but it was just not overly impressive or all that convincing. But it was suitable enough for a movie of this level of accomplishment, I suppose. However, when the giant ants started giggling, chuckling and drinking beer, then I have to admit that I was good and ready to turn off the movie, because that was just too ridiculous.

I managed to sit through the 90 minutes that the movie ran for, and while the movie did spark a nostalgic trip down memory lane to the days of playing Amiga 500, that was just also about that was to it, because Marko Mäkilaakso's 2017 movie "It Came from the Desert" wasn't impressive. Watchable for the cheese that it was, if you have played the game, but otherwise not really worth the effort.

My rating of "It Came from the Desert" lands on a four out of ten stars.

Although this one is better than a lot of garbage coming from mainstream Hollywood producers, it shouldn't be rated against those big budget products.

Meant to be fun entertainment - cheesy lines, gory, reference to the old classics (Them!), intentional over the top acting. Only an idiot can't see that this flick doesn't take itself seriously.

Definitely worth a view.

Well I'm just paraphrasing of course. And the movie did not conquer judging from the voting so far. But comedy is in the eye of the beholder, so if you are not into silly horror comedy, you may feel insulted (by the movie and by my vote). But if you have a heart for low budget movies, who do achieve a certain quality and originality, then you will feel what I did when I watched this at the Fantasy Filmfest last year.

The acting is good, the script had quite some funny ideas and it's really something you can enjoy if you let yourself. I did not expect this to be as much fun as it turned out to be and I'm really happy with what they came up with. The story is not new and what the characters have to go through is not new either. And others have gone the comedy route when it came to this kind of horror ... but it does have a couple of ideas it has that really do work. And the effects are not half bad. So again, this may or may not be for you - but the movie gives it its best shot