jamesgandrew Bruno (Lon Chaney Jr) is a caretaker who looks after three siblings of the Meryee family who suffer from a rare and peculiar disease. However, when various people arrive at the house, mayhem ensues.The film lives up to the title. Jack Hill created a strange story which serves well with the horror comedy genre. Spider Baby was made on a low budget of an estimated $65, 000 and this resulted in some issues with the production. The release was delayed for 3 ½ years due to a bankruptcy of the film's original distributor, however, it finally released in 1967 through David L. Hewitt. After the film's release, it was only available in a pirated VHS format until Jack Hill discovered an original negative and released it as a 'Director's Cut'. Spider Baby has become a cult favourite. All the performances are top notch and the overall tone can be summed up as a mix of fun, shock and dark humour. If you like dark horror comedies this is a must watch!

Mark Turner With so many movies being released year after year there are bound to be some that fall between the cracks when it comes to making appearances over and over again. Such is the case with SPIDER BABY. It made it to the drive-in circuit but never really got the full-fledged TV treatment that it deserved. It disappeared from sight for a number of years. But fans these days are known to be diligent if nothing else. The search went out, it was found and resurrected and now Arrow Video has released what is by far the best version of this movie you can find.If you're not familiar with the story it tells the tale of the Merrye family, a family cursed with a disease that makes them grow older in age but regress in mentality, eventually becoming homicidal maniacs. The caretaker of the Merrye children is played by an aging Lon Chaney Jr. as Bruno. Bruno loves these children with his whole heart and would do anything to protect and care for them. He is not just dedicated to the family, they become his family as well.The movie opens with famous celebrity Mantan Moreland as a delivery man who makes the mistake of peeking in a window of the dilapidated house the family resides in. A quick drop of the window on his head finds him trapped and young Virginia Merrye (Jill Banner) coming at him in her spider mode, net ready to toss on him and then knives to serve as pincers. She kills him before she can get the message, one Bruno finds along with the body. It seems two distant relatives are on their way accompanied by their lawyer with the intent of taking over the family home, dilapidated though it may be.This sends Bruno into crisis management mode where he tells the children they have to be on their best behavior. Along with Virginia are Elizabeth (Beverly Washburn) and Ralph (Sid Haig). Ralph is by far the most gone of the three being the eldest. He's at a point where he can't even speak much less function. Keeping these three on their best will be a challenge for poor Bruno.It's best not to go into detail as to what happens from here but know that the distant relatives Peter and Emily, a married couple with issues all their own, are not interested in what's best for the children. While Peter might care in some ways he's more interested in the secretary of the lawyer. Emily only has dollar signs in her eyes, hoping that there is enough to salvage from the home to make her a wealthy woman. They decide to spend the night and from there things begin to happen.Shot in black and white on a minuscule budget, director Jack Hill gets the most for his money. Not only does he make the locations and sets work for him, he gets some tremendous performances from his cast. Chaney has never quite looked this good in roles he took later in life. The younger, newer members all present themselves quite well here. Banner does an exceptional job and it's sad to realize that she didn't make enough after this film and died early at age 35. The originality of the story is something that is rare in most movies, even more so today, but to come up with something like this that reeks of exploitation but is made so well makes it astounding. I found myself caught up in all that was going on and never felt like I had to have the remote handy with my finger on the fast forward button. The movie entertains and does so with ease. This becomes even more amazing when you delve into the extras that Arrow has provided, something they do better than anyone else, even Criterion (who will charge you far more for their wares). As always Arrow provides so much bang for your buck it's a sight to behold. I've gotten to the point where with new releases I actually dread the extras that they include. Blooper reels seem to have happened on set just to make the blooper reels. Information feels more like promotional pieces rather than information. But the ingredients that Arrow includes in their extras always seem to enhance the movie experience of what you are watching rather than be just tossed on to add something. Because of that when new Arrow titles arrive I am always excited to see them in the mail.This release is not only a great lost treasure it's been placed in a fabulous chest because of the efforts of Arrow Video. For horror fans or those who love lost movies, this is a must add to your collection.

Michael_Elliott Spider Baby (1968) ** 1/2 (out of 4) Jack Hill's cult favorite about a loving caretaker (Lon Chaney, Jr.) who takes care of three mentally disturbed kids who just happen to enjoy killing. Over the past decade or so, SPIDER BABY has become one of the biggest cult films out there and it's easy to see why because it's just so strange and contains such a bizarre atmosphere that you can't help but get involved in its weirdness. I'm not going to sit here and say this is a great film or even a good one. I think there are all sorts of problems with the picture including a pacing issue but there's still enough here to make it worth viewing. For starters, people must remember that this was shot long before NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD so there's some fairly graphic moments here. Another thing that really works well are the performances, which I'd say are the greatest thing going. Chaney gives an extremely good performance and he really makes you feel as if his character loves this kids and would do anything for them. Visually you can tell the actor is in the middle of his alcoholic days and this tough look really just adds to the softness of the character in a strange way. Beverly Washburn, Jill Banner and Sid Haig are all terrific as the three mental cases and all of them really do a fantastic job with their performances. They're not Oscar-worthy performances but they certainly nail the weirdness. Mantan Moreland appears briefly and is very memorable as well. What really separates this film from many other "B" movies that were made during this era is its atmosphere. There's no question that the ultra low-budget helps but there's just something rather creepy about the entire atmosphere. SPIDER BABY isn't a masterpiece but there's certainly not another film out there like it.

mark.waltz Fans of "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" will recognize the plot from that cult musical in this camp horror spoof, the story of four squares who end up in the den of wackos, distant relatives of two of them who are trying to take over the estate. Lon Chaney takes a good ribbing as references to his earlier career are mentioned in his presence. He plays the family retainer, a chauffeur who has promised to keep protecting the three survivors of his late master, since they are suffering from a rare deforming disease which destroys the mind as well as the body. "Spider Baby" is one of two young girls he is protecting, a Wednesday Addams like teen obsessed with playing spider games. Veteran black character actor Mantan Moreland has an amusing cameo as a messenger who finds out the hard way what these spider games are, giving the girls an earful along the way.Veteran soap actor and writer Quinn Redeker ("Days of Our Lives", "The Young and the Restless") is the handsome her, while Carol Ohmart as his selfish sister bears an uncanny resemblance to Meryl Streep. This is pretty enjoyable for schlock, something not to take so seriously as art, but perhaps perfect as "midnight movie" fair for those who like their cinema "wierd".