Starring: Theo Christine, Sofia Lesaffre and Jerome Niel
Directed by: Sebastien Vanicek
Rated: NR
Running Time: 106 minutes
Shudder
Our Score: 4 out of 5 Stars
It’s interesting that Panic Fest 2024 is bookended by spider movies. The first being “Sting,” a fun B-movie about an adorable spider that gets bigger and bigger, while menacing an apartment complex. The second is almost a shade similar, but first you need to take out the B-movie fun and replace it with midnight terror. As for the adorable spider, go ahead and replace that with terrifying spiders that come in all shapes and sizes. Now you have the Shudder instant classic, “Infested.”
“Infested” takes place at a rundown, urban French apartment complex. The 14-story building appears to only be maintained by a short, frail Asian woman and inhabited by impoverished young adults. Kaleb (Theo Christine) struggles financially, making very little off the high-end sneakers he sells, while living with his sister Manon (Lisa Nyarko) who is prepping their inherited home to sell. The two are constantly bickering, but their differences percolate while we watch Kaleb buy an illegal spider from one of his shoe supplies. Kaleb is a creepy crawler lover, so he doesn’t suspect much about the spider. He’s going to add it to his growing collection which features a scorpion, centipede, and other multi-legged bugs and creatures. But as soon as he turns his back, the spider escapes. He simply thinks it’s taking refuge in his apartment, but it’s about to turn the apartment complex into it’s new nest. But first it’s got a lot of breeding and growing to do.
“Infested” throws us into a fresh new arachnophobia hell, as the few spiders that are spotted in the background begin to double in number and size. Soon the spiders become emboldened and we see them in all their detailed horror. While our characters bicker amongst themselves over past issues, their current situation is rapidly deteriorating, but they don’t know it until it’s too late. Every moment someone in the apartment complex peers into the dark, sticks their hand in a hole or generally does something they shouldn’t, the jump scares come fast and heavy. It may be my own arachnophobia speak, but every scare is earned and unique. The movie implements the creepy crawling speed and ferociousness with a heart pounding soundtrack. It’s the kind of film that might even scare the biggest of spider lovers.
While the spiders pick off the tenants, a growing sense of French society begins to come into focus. While they could just leave the apartment, the government has barricaded everyone inside, most likely finding out a spider infestation of apocalyptic proportions is happening. But the police quickly reveal their hand, showing they don’t care if everyone dies inside. “Infested” is also a movie about societal failure, and how the poorest of society are forgotten and easily disposable. That theme isn’t a big factor though because most of the time our heroes are attempting to escape the grasp of thousands of eight-legged freaks.
Sebastien Vanicek, the director of “Infested,” has already been tapped for the next “Evil Dead” movie and it’s easy to see why. “Infested” is the kind of film that gets your adrenaline pumping, your heart racing, and your fears running high. It also manages to squeeze in some hearty laughs, even as you know death and terror are right around the corner. If you aren’t seeing “Infested” in a crowded dark theater, not only are you doing yourself a disservice, but you risk feeling the spiders on you as you watch one of the best horrors of the year at home.