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The MONTH of HORROR - Day 20: Mimic

Mexican director Guillermo Del Toro sure does love his bugs. It seems like he always finds a way to incorporate them somehow into each one of his films, so naturally he'd want to make an entire movie based on giant, slimy, disgusting, and deadly bug-like creatures. And where would be the best city setting for a story about nasty, sub-terranean dwelling mutant insects? The Big Apple, of course!

New York City, and cockroaches go hand in hand, just like peanut butter and jelly (although not nearly as tasty), and when pest control is needed, who ya gonna call? Mira Sorvino, of course! She plays epidemiologist Dr. Susan Tyler, and it's her brilliant idea to introduce a new predator species of insect that will obliterate the underground roach population--within three years, her plan has worked, and the roaches are kaput. Give this woman the Nobel Prize! Oh, wait, you mean she didn't have the foresight to realize that sometimes when you bring in a foreign contaminant that it can become wildly out of control? That happens here, alright as this new insect species cross breeds, and over time develops into a massive, vicious winged creature with a taste for human blood! You thought the cockroaches were bad, wait'll you see a hive of these nightmare inducing bastards baring down on you.

I love a good creature feature, and this is a pretty good one! Slickly directed by Del Toro, although sometimes the cinematography is a tad too dark however the film only loses minor points for that, it's still fairly easy to follow the action on screen. If you have a bug phobia then I can see you being grossed out by some of the disgusting bug "autopsies" on display--who knew you'd get something nasty when makeup master Rob Bottin of 'John Carpenter's The Thing' fame is on the payroll? I'm a big fan, and supporter of practical effects, and there are some great ones here.

I understand that Guillermo Del Toro is not proud of this flick because of the constant studio interference while he was making it, something David Fincher was all too familiar with while filming Alien 3, and it's really too bad that he feels that way because honestly 'Mimic' isn't terrible at all! I know it's tough when your original vision isn't realized, and you can't stop someone else's hand from raiding your intellectual cookie jar but he should think twice about outright dismissing this from his filmography. It's not the best monster movie you'll ever see, it's far from revolutionary but it's entertaining for the entirety of its runtime, and it'll probably make you hesitate from ever wanting to venture into the NYC subway system!

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