About the film (courtesy of Well Go USA Entertainment):
After raising an unnervingly talented spider in secret, 12-year-old Charlotte must face the facts about her pet—and fight for her family’s survival—when the once-charming creature rapidly transforms into a giant, flesh-eating monster.

Let me tell you, as someone who gets the shivers at the mere mention of a spider, the title Sting wasn’t exactly a selling point for me. But morbid curiosity – and perhaps a perverse desire to test my limits – made me click ‘Play’ anyway. Friends, I regret my choices.

The premise itself is simple enough – a genetically modified spider starts wreaking havoc in an old apartment building. It’s a classic B-movie setup, the kind that could be campy fun as long as the spider-to-human ratio is kept under control.

Sting, however, throws that notion out the window. This thing isn’t just a spider; it’s a spider on steroids. It’s not just big; it’s enormous, with legs the size of tree branches and a body that makes my skin crawl. Charlotte (Alyla Browne) – ironic, considering how, aside from sharing the name of probably the most famous spider ever, far from that sweet little storybook character it is, raises this spider with reckless abandon and unconditional love.

The worst part? Writer/director Kiah Roache-Turner clearly understand an arachnophobe’s terror, and plays on it relentlessly, using every trick in the book. There’s the way the spider scuttles with unnatural speed, moving from shadows to darkness in the blink of an eye. There are the closeups of her fangs, dripping with venom, and her bulbous, unblinking eyes that seem to see right into your soul. Even the sound design is pure nightmare fuel, with skittering legs and eerie clicking noises that follow you long after the screen fades to black.

This film doesn’t go easy on the jump scares either. Expect to see the spider lunging from unexpected corners, dropping from the ceiling, or bursting out of…well, I won’t spoil the worst one. Let’s just say air ducts won’t ever be the same for me again.

Now, as a horror fan, I can appreciate well-crafted creature effects. The special effects in Sting are undeniably impressive, making this eight-legged beast sickeningly realistic. But it’s a double-edged sword for me. On one hand, I applaud the artistry. On the other, I want to curl up and never uncurl again.

The human characters are, frankly, secondary. There’s Ethan (Ryan Corr), Heather (Penelope Mitchell), Helga (Noni Hazlehurst), Gunter (Robyn Nevin), the plucky exterminator (Jermaine Fowler), and a handful of doomed tenants. They do their best in the face of an arachnid apocalypse, and there are some surprisingly touching moments amidst the chaos. But you’re not watching Sting for the character development.

Should you, a fellow arachnophobe, see this movie? That depends. If you’re up for a challenge and you have a strong stomach, it’s a wild ride. But if spiders normally make you break out in a cold sweat, you might want to skip this one. There are better ways to spend an hour and a half than revisiting your deepest fears. Trust me on that.

Sting crawls to select theaters starting Friday, April 12. Get ready to itch, squint and look away!