Swarmed

This movie handles about a wasp-invasion in a little town called Dundas, Indiana. I'm not sure if the town has a high-school football team, but if they do, they should rename themselves the Dundas Yellow-jackets and adopt a guy in giant wasp suit as their mascot! Just an idea...

"Swarmed!" is a typically made-for-TV killer-insect horror flick from the early 2000s. That doesn't automatically make it terrible, it simply means you must take into account a few standard shortcomings, like clumsy and cheap-looking CGI effects, derivative storylines, barely any (intentional) humor, and pretty poor performances.

A local research institute experiments with a new type of pesticide against yellow-jacket wasps, but it doesn't really work as planned, since the liquid makes the critters even more aggressive and their first sting deadly already. As a matter of course, bottles accidentally get mixed up, and a killer swarm of yellow-jackets heads towards town to partake in the annual BBQ-contest.

There we have the inevitable "Jaws"-copy! The mayor, sponsor and chief of police obviously refuse to cancel the town's big publicity event, and they'll live to regret it! "Swarmed" is a silly and insignificant creature-feature, but fun enough to watch once thanks to a couple of hopelessly idiotic moments. There's a notable sequence in which the mayor's secretary goes after a single wasp with a shotgun, and for some reason the wasps seem to specifically target the "bad people". While hundreds of people are running around and form easy targets, the yellow jackets prefer to kill the sponsor who ingeniously hid himself in a barrel of water. Smart wasps!

Another day, another Sci Fi Channel TV movie, this time from Canada. SWARMED is, unsurprisingly enough, a film about killer wasps, although it's not enough for them to be mere killer wasps. They're genetically engineered killer wasps, don't you know, ones which escape from the lab and go on a low budget rampage for the film's duration.

You get exactly what you expect in a film like this and nobody disappoints you. Director Paul Ziller has made a string of cheap and cheesy movies with titles like ICE QUAKE, STONEHENGE APOCALYPSE, and SEEDS OF DESTRUCTION, and SWARMED fits into his resume quite neatly. It's certainly not one of his better films as this isn't even so-bad-it's-good kind of viewable for half the time as there are long boring stretches where nothing much happens.

The usual B-movie flaws of bad special effects are present here (the appalling CGI is something to behold), along with wooden acting from the lead star Michael Shanks. The old-timer part is played by Tim Thomerson with less screen time than they usually give to these familiar faces. The film follows the age-old storyline that originated in the likes of JAWS and PIRANHA and never for a moment does it offer anything out of the ordinary.

Enjoyable easy going watching, saving the community from killer wasps hooray. Nothing very complex or deep, basic plot well executed Good rainy afternoon viewing.

This made for TV film is another in a long line of science fiction human versus nature films, and unfortunately it is not one of the best of the genre. The directing, cinematography, pacing, script, and acting are poor. It may fulfill cable TV's need to fill a time slot with inexpensive fare, but does not compare well with the vast selection of viewing available to the modern cable viewer.

Who will like this film? If you relish watching bad guys get their due, you'll get plenty of satisfaction. If you like films that are so bad that they are funny, you'll get plenty to mock and laugh at. If you love the B films of the 1950's, you might find this a entertaining way to waste ninety minutes. If you like the campy and quirky, check out Richard Chevolleau's portrayal of Q, the exterminator.

Chevolleau does a great job in the role and is a pleasant distraction in an otherwise dull and plodding flick. I did not recognize him as the same actor who played Marcus 'Augur' Deveraux in "Earth: Final Conflict" or Charlie in "Flowers for Algernon" (2000). His performance made me want to re-watch both.

Who will dislike this film? Any die hard science fiction fans will be disappointed by the lack of thought in the plot and the unoriginal scenario. Special effects junkies will be in heavy withdrawals by the cheap effects. The scientifically inclined will be at a loss with the weak to absent science and logic in this flick. Connoisseurs of fine film will be horrified than the horror occurred behind and in front of the lens.

In all, there is not much to recommend in "Swarmed." As I was voting at IMDb, I was conflicted in giving it as low a score as I did. If it was that bad, why did I watch the whole thing? Was it such a train wreck that I could not pry my eyes away? Was there a belief that it had to get better? In the end, it was one actor's performance and a desire to be intellectually honest in this review.

Should you watch? Well if you are actually thinking about it, probably not. This is more a movie for a mindless moment.

Did you know that you can kill a deadly mutated yellow jacket wasp with a shotgun? You'll find out if you watch this SciFi channel flick. The script is intentionally campy and funny with lines such as, "Why don't you go out and play with the cows or something?" The acting runs the gamut from Joe Namath level to a screamingly funny performance by the awesome bug buster Richard Chevolleau with a trusty Robin-like assistant he is sort of keeping out of trouble. Tasty Sauce King Phineas Washburn (Tim Thomerson) is almost as hilarious. Don't miss Miss Washburn Tasty Sauce 2005.

Don't expect anything on the level of "Them" or "Arachnophobia" and you won't be disappointed. The special effects are really cheesy and the ending is as predictable as the sun going over the mountain. Otherwise, it's fun all the way right down to the comical stereotyping of the rather stout, donut-loving police chief everybody calls Tiny. And, oh, yes, the satirical commercials within the film are better than the real-life commercials that appeared during the showing. Actually many of them are much better.