Sting review

Image Source: IMDb.com

Movie: Sting

Production Company: Pictures in Paradise, Screen Australia, Align, See Pictures, Screen New South Wales

Director: Kiah Roache-Turner

Producers: Chris Brown, Will Gammon, Mark Gooder

Main Cast: Jermaine Fowler, Ryan Corr, Alyla Browne, Noni Hazlehurst, Robyn Nevin, Penelope Mitchell

Release Date: 31st May 2024

Running Time: 92 minutes

Certificate: 15

Introduction: This wildly squirmy creature feature will leave shivers running down your spine… and you checking underneath your bed every night.

Synopsis: A young girl raises an alien spider in secret and must save her family when it turns into a giant, flesh – eating monster.

Analysis: ‘Your biggest fear just got bigger’ is what the tagline says. This is just one of many, many ways ‘Sting’ knows how to crawl under your skin and unsettle you the most. Yes, I do have severe arachnophobia as I’m sure most of the planet does which made this (possibly) the most difficult film I have ever sat through (I apologize to my fellow cinemagoers in my showing as I was constantly fidgeting uncomfortably in my seat the whole way through). Monster flicks have always been a staple of cinematic history, dating all the way back to the 1950s. ‘Them!’ in 1954 and ‘Tarantula’ in 1955 are the most prominent examples that relate most to our terrifying new example here. Decades later, we would also see such titles as ‘Arachnophobia’ starring Jeff Daniels in 1990 (the only spider film I was not uncomfortable watching), and the utterly ridiculous CGI mashup that is ‘Eight Legged Freaks’ in 2002 (the effects in that made the film even more unbearable), although, I can’t quite decide which was the worst viewing experience, that or this.

Despite it’s shoestring budget, ‘Sting’ utilizes absolutely everything to it’s advantage and I was left very impressed as to what it was able to achieve. A plethora of equally creative POV shots of the creature are shown throughout: scurrying camera work along floorboards and cinematography from the ceilings in which anything could drop down at any moment. Yet, it does not stop there. I lost count of the amount of times we see something slowly moving in a corner or descending slowly from a web ready to pounce on it’s unsuspecting victim. I am shivering uncontrollably at the thought whilst writing this. It is the subtlety and awareness that makes it work. Despite a couple of slightly jumpy moments, ‘Sting’ is not an out and out horror film that you might expect (although it is rather easy to gather that from the trailer). Instead, it opts to go for scungy violence and some parts left me genuinely surprised at how nasty it gets.

Upon contemplation, I am still (somehow) intrigued to also see ‘Infested’, the French language equivalent of this film in which not just one, but a whole nest of giant arachnids descend on a flat of people (the only reason it has sparked my interest is that I am aware it’s been well received). From what that trailer implies, that film instead does use CGI (whereas this appears to have avoided it to some extent) which will make everything look even more real and thus even worse for my case. ‘Sting’ is a very welcome, old school return to the monster genre that knows exactly what it’s doing. I knew it would be a tricky watch, but it somehow managed to be even worse than I had anticipated. Part of me is angry at the filmmakers for doing this (as it is absolutely my worst nightmare) but I am equally as glad as they have done an excellent job here bringing everyone’s fears to life. If you are brave enough, tread with caution is my best advice (I pray that this does not kickstart yet another trend in Hollywood).

In cinemas Friday.

Overall Rating: 7.5/10 – Good

Target Audience: 15+

Content Warning: strong violence, bloody images, threat, language

Recommendation: Yes