Spider Baby or, The Maddest Story Ever Told
A caretaker devotes himself to three demented siblings after their father's death.A caretaker devotes himself to three demented siblings after their father's death.A caretaker devotes himself to three demented siblings after their father's death.
- Awards
- 1 nomination
- Bruno
- (as Lon Chaney)
- Peter
- (as Quinn Redeker)
- Roadway worker
- (uncredited)
- Aunt Clara
- (uncredited)
- Aunt Martha
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAccording to Sid Haig, when Lon Chaney Jr. finished the scene where Bruno talks about the toy, the crew was in tears. Chaney also received a standing ovation and wasn't able to leave the set for five minutes.
- GoofsShortly after Peter and Emily Howe arrive at the mansion, a cast member and camera are reflected in the car window as Peter rolls up the side window of the convertible.
- Quotes
[opening titles; sung]
Bruno, The Chauffeur: Screams and moans and bats and bones / Teenage monsters in haunted homes / The ghosts on the stair / The vampires bite / Better beware, there's a full moon tonight / Cannibal spiders creep and crawl / Boys and ghouls having a ball / Frankenstein, Dracula and even the Mummy / Are sure to end up in somebody's tummy / Take a fresh rodent, some toadstools and weeds / And add an old owl and the young one she breeds / Mix in seven legs from an eight-legged beast / And then you're all set for a cannibal feast / Sit round the fire with this cup of brew / A fiend and a werewolf on each side of you / This cannibal orgy is strange to behold / In the maddest story ever told
- Crazy creditsAs the film ends, "THE END" appears on the screen, then suddenly changes to "THE END ?".
- Alternate versionsA special home video version, released by Video Treasures in 1994, features a remastered print of the film (all previous versions being of very dubious quality). This version is also widescreened and features footage (after the film) of a cast/crew reunion at a midnight showing of the film.
- ConnectionsEdited into Pale Moonlight Theater: Spider Baby (2014)
"Cannibal spiders do," retorts Virginia, and this scene sums up everything good about Spider Baby: twisted, funny, and possessing an internal logic that pretty much justifies anything it does, no matter how preposterous.
Originally funded by two real estate developers and locked away for years after a bankruptcy filing, Spider Baby hit the drive-in circuit, made its modest sum of money, and faded away--almost. Somewhere down the line, it developed a cult status despite only being available on low-quality, grainy video. It is now available on DVD in a restored cut that reveals strikingly beautiful black-and-white cinematography. Low-budget it may be, but it's gorgeous to look at.
Lon Chaney Jr. stars as a butler taking care of his deceased employer's children (Washburn, Banner and Sid Haig). The siblings suffer from a hereditary disease that leaves them intellectually childlike but also makes them casual murderers, a problem compounded when distant cousins (Quinn Redeker and the stunning Carol Ohmart) arrive with designs on taking over the estate. The plot is simple and the movie is short (only 81 minutes), but it wastes no time and delivers plenty of creepy thrills, among them cannibalism, implied necrophilia, and midnight chases through the woods.
The acting is a pleasant surprise as well. The entire cast does a convincing job of bringing these oddball characters to life. There are a few missteps here and there: a couple of moments, for instance, when Redeker addresses the audience directly, and it's hard to know if the humor is intentional or not. Overall, however, the quality of each performance is pretty high. Especially touching is a scene where Chaney's character realizes there will be no good end to the situation, and his obvious affection for these mad but dangerous children actually brings a tear to the eye.
Well worth checking out if you're into horror, grim humor, or very, very odd movies.
- time_waster
- Nov 24, 2004
- Permalink
Details
Box office
- Budget
- $65,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 21 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.66 : 1