Ah, giant bug movies. If you're like me, you fondly remember films like "Them," "Tarantula" and maybe even "Eight-Legged Freaks." "Insecticidal" aims for that same genre...sort of. The premise is simple: a sorority house gets attacked by giant bugs. You know how this movie will go. People will be hacked apart by the merciless arthropods, the house will be turned into a battleground, and yes, there will be lesbians.
In all truth, there are decent parts to this film. The movie doesn't take itself too seriously, acknowledging at points its own cheesiness. The actors and actresses who play our main characters pull off their less-than-Shakespearean lines pretty well. And, of course, there is eye candy to be found here.
Unfortunately, the film suffers from painful amounts of stupidity when it comes to the bugs and pretty much anything involving them. For instance, Cammy, the nerd (we know she's a nerd because she wears glasses) creates the monsters by accident. That would work for this setting, except for the REASON behind it. She states that she was mocked by her professors for her outlandish theory that "insects used to be the dominant species," and that she was experimenting on them to prove that they had "dormant genes." A combination of these experiments and some pesticide exposure activated these genes and made the bugs grow huge.
First, the claims that bugs were once dominant on Earth: No @#$%, Sherlock! Back in the Carboniferous period (300 million years ago) arthropods DID rule the world. There were dragonflies with 3-foot wingspans, centipede/millipede relatives from 5 to 10 feet long and scorpions 3 feet long. The idea that any modern scientist would mock Cammy for stating what's already true is just idiotic.
Second, the whole "dormant genes" idea: It's possible (although REALLY unlikely) that modern arthropods do hold dormant genes from their Carboniferous ancestors, but how the heck did Cammy manage to turn those genes on? It remains a mystery.
"Insecticidal" also suffers from what I like to call pseudo-intelligence. When the filmmakers want you to think that a character is smart, they have him or her use really long words, even if those words make no sense. When the giant praying mantis appears, Cammy classifies it with a long, Latin-sounding name. The problem is that the praying mantis's REAL scientific name is simply "Mantis religiosa" The final thing that hurts this film is that the special effects aren't so special. If brought to life effectively and accurately, the giant insects, arachnids and other invertebrates in "Insecticidal" could be terrifying. The praying mantis (a major enemy in the movie) has a ridiculous Kermit-the-frog mouth and the annoying habit of knocking people to the ground and apparently whacking them repeatedly with its forelegs. A real praying mantis attack is far more disturbing: it's spiny forelegs snatch prey in the blink of an eye and simply hold it there while the insect's blade-like mouth-parts methodically chew through the living victim. That would have been far more frightening than being slapped to death by Kermit the bug.
There are so many things wrong with this movie (herbivorous stag and rhinoceros beetles are shown eating people, as well as everything I already mentioned) that I can't rank it highly. That said, I'm actually recommending this film. It's so incredibly bad that you can have your own Mystery Science Theatre night with it.
