Despite the widespread fear of spiders, horror movies that tap into that fear are surprisingly minimal. Of the ones that do exist, the majority incorporate a lot of camp or humor to offset the unrelenting arachnophobia. Which is what makes Itsy Bitsy so refreshing, regardless of its cutesy kiddie rhyme title. It takes a folkloric base to spin a web of (mostly) practical effect driven, spider induced nightmares.
After a cold open that sets up the deadly spider’s origins, the movie introduces its key players; single mom Kara Spencer (Elizabeth Roberts) and her two kids Jesse and Cambria. Kara has uprooted her family from New York and whisked them off to small-town America, where she’s picked up a new job as the caregiver to older archaeologist Walter Clark (Bruce Davison). Walter happens to be on the receiving end of the stolen object from the opening scene, which lets loose one deadly spider the size of a small dog. And it’s taken up residence on the property of both households.
Director Micah Gallo makes his feature film debut with Itsy Bitsy, but he has an extensive background in visual effects (Hatchet, The Innkeepers). That background, combined with the creature effects crew, vfx and makeup effects teams, means that the spider work is fantastic. Or rather, extremely creepy. Even though the cold open is indicative of something more supernatural, it’s clear Gallo wants this larger-than-life creature to behave as authentically as possible. The hunting, the movement, the dangling from its silk thread, molting, and the biological instincts to ensure its species’ survival. The deaths are few, but satisfying.
The downside, though, is that Gallo takes a Spielberg/Jaws approach to this creature feature. Meaning less is deemed more for the creature as it puts the human characters front and center. It makes perfect sense as the cast is pretty small, therefore not a whole lot of fodder for spider chow, but the drama isn’t quite strong enough to sustain the bulk of the runtime. It’s clear from the outset that Kara has some serious demons to work though, and enough clues are layered in to connect dots long before her secrets are revealed. In trying to ignore those demons, though, Kara puts herself at odds with her eldest, Jesse, who’s left to parent his younger sister nearly round the clock. The third act is a thrilling showdown, but when the dust settles, it feels as though a band-aid was slapped over the conflict that the film had spent so much time building up. There’s no real resolution to a messy setup.
Gallo closes out with a post-credit hook that teases the potential for a bigger scaled sequel, but it’s one that almost makes you wish you got that movie instead. Davison and Denise Crosby, in a small role as the town sheriff, bring their experience to help balance the oft grating Spencer family drama. It’s well shot and looks like a bigger budgeted feature than it is. Above all, though, the true star of the film is the spider effects. Itsy Bitsy handles its monstrous spider with terror-filled precision and gruesome effects that aim to instill arachnophobia in even the toughest of viewers. The movie warrants a watch based on the creature effects alone; it’s just a shame the scenes that feature the spider are fairly sparse. We don’t care as much about the Spencer family as we should, so the emotional pull is lost. Even still, it’s a big step in the right direction.
Itsy Bitsy will be available in select theaters, digital and on VOD August 30.
