Skeeter

When first told that we would be watching "Skeeter" for our nightly movie-fest, my first reaction was "Oh great, Not another lame low budget horror flick that stars some no name actor and some other leading lady with big breasts and well you know how it goes". Sorry not going to happen with this film my friend! Skeeter had me on the edge of my seat. I was horrified to think that this could really happen. Our government is hauling things up and down our highways every day that could easily morph your average mosquito or scorpion into a huge, human devouring beast. I think Skeeter should be used as an example and shown throughout the world, that if we dont start to take care of our environment, were going to have huge skeeters flying about sucking our life force. Bottom line, if you want to be scared to death, watch this movie.

This movie has everything. First there is deputy Boone (Jim Youngs) doing a marginal Clint Eastwood imitation. Then, there is a crazed (is there any other kind?) Michael J. Pollard feeding his pet giant mosquito by letting it suck blood from his own arm. Not enough for you? How about Charles Napier playing a lecherous, corrupt sheriff? What's not to like? Besides the numerous eccentric characters, unintentional humor abounds, starting with the mosquito's which look like "Creepy Crawlers" on steroids, and capped by our hero taking time out to weld together a flamethrower while his girlfriend is trapped in a mine with the giant mosquito's. Creative location photography, decent character development, and an interesting soundtrack, can't overcome the obvious. This is not a good movie. - MERK

I watched this one late last night. With a name like "Skeeter", I was expecting another b-flick that would have me rolling with unintentional laughter. While there were a few (the dialogue slips sometimes) I found "Skeeter" to be a somewhat enjoyable monster movie that kept me entertained all the way through. It didn't have the standard "look" of a straight to video flick, but the effects were a little cheap in places (you could tell they used two screens) but other than that, the acting is quite good, the directing was competent (could've been a little tighter) and the leads were pretty likeable.

I approached this film with my usual open-mindedness, then wished I hadn't bothered. The whole idea was clever, giant mosquitoes and the "first mosquito" perspective was well done but the characters were quite uninspired and their motives seemed rather pathetic. Definitely not worth £2.50 from Blockbuster.

Drake is a greedy mining magnate (Robinson) turning the sleepy rural town of Clear Sky into a prospect, lining the pockets of corrupt local officials in the bargain, until water poisoning results in over-sized mosquitoes sucking the lifeblood out of the locals. Local deputy and part time metal sculptor (Youngs) isn't on Drake's payroll and decides to engage the services of a chemist (Sanderson) to ascertain the cause of the pollution. Naturally, Drake and his cronies try to hinder the process, until finally the mutated "skeeters" become the common nemesis.

Despite its disjointed, pedestrian pace, the vast array of familiar faces and corny set-ups are almost redeemable qualities in this otherwise meandering mish-mash. There's some nice photography and amusing dialogue, and the effects aren't so bad they're unwatchable, but continuity is the chief concern, with so many scenes of limited relevance that characters are reduced to cameo appearances (recognizable faces like Pollard, Putch & Flower are virtually bit parts).

The primitive tension between goodbye girl Griffith and her former companion Youngs manages to simmer to a gentle boil for one, romantic interlude in the sheds – by candlelight of course. It's one of the hallmarks of the weakly conceived storyline, or its interpretation, that the mood can switch so frequently from scene to scene as it does in this film. In some passages, it seems almost as if the "skeeters" are a sub plot such is their lack of relevance; in reality, the film carries so much peripheral baggage, it can't successfully meld them cohesively. Lots of location work, stunts and pyrotechnics to show off some semblance of a movie budget, but the connective tissue is so malnourished, it's barely alive.

So while the cast is attractive (see Trainor & Edwards in all too brief roles), capable (Napier particularly) and with some exceptions sincere in the performances, the fatal lack of connectivity or momentum consigns this one to trash-video status. Not to be avoided at all costs, but don't expect much in return.