A goofy, creature-feature horror-thriller with a clear B-movie lane: a kid secretly raises a spider, and chaos follows. It has some fun practical-creature energy and a few effective suspense beats, but the tonal wobble, thin character work, and uneven pacing keep it from fully clicking.
9% ☆☆☆☆☆ (72,908)
Sting
Where to watch: Buy
Movie · Horror · Thriller · R
2024 · 1h 32m · ★ 9% (72.9K)
Your biggest fear just got bigger.
Director: Kiah Roache-Turner
Starring: Alyla Browne, Ryan Corr, Penelope Mitchell
Overview
After raising an unnervingly talented spider in secret, 12-year-old Charlotte must face the truth about her pet and fight for her family's survival.
Director
Kiah Roache-Turner
Production
See Pictures, Align, Pictures in Paradise, Cumulus VFX, Spectrum Films, Cornerstone Films
Cast
Alyla Browne, Ryan Corr, Penelope Mitchell, Kate Walsh, Robyn Nevin, Noni Hazlehurst, Danny Kim, Silvia Colloca, Jermaine Fowler, Tony J. Black, Alice Piccinelli, Alcira Carpio, Lee Perry, Jett Berry, Kade Berry
Curator Review
Verdict
A goofy, creature-feature horror-thriller with a clear B-movie lane: a kid secretly raises a spider, and chaos follows. It has some fun practical-creature energy and a few effective suspense beats, but the tonal wobble, thin character work, and uneven pacing keep it from fully clicking.
Best for
Viewers who like creature features and spider-centric horror
Fans of light, self-aware B-movie thrills
Audiences looking for a family-under-siege setup with monster mayhem
People who enjoy horror that leans more playful than brutal
Skip if
You want polished suspense or strong character writing
You dislike cheesy effects or tonal inconsistency
Creature horror involving spiders is an immediate no
You prefer horror that stays tense and scary throughout
Overview
Sting is the kind of horror movie that knows its hook and mostly commits to it: a secret pet spider, a cramped apartment, and a family slowly realizing they are in over their heads. When it leans into creature-feature mayhem, it can be a decent time, with enough arachnid menace to satisfy genre fans and a few moments that feel engineered for audience squirming.
Worth noting
The problem is that the movie spends too long getting to the good stuff, and the human drama never quite earns the emotional weight it wants. The tone keeps shifting between domestic comedy, sci-fi creepiness, and straight horror, which makes the film feel a little clunky even when it is trying to be fun.
Bottom line
Still, there is a scrappy, late-night-movie energy here that some viewers will appreciate. If you come in expecting a polished horror standout, it will likely disappoint; if you want a modest creature feature with a few effective scares and a knowingly pulpy premise, it can do the job.
Top Letterboxd reviews
Joe A (2.5★) · 1146 likes
Someone turn on the god damn lights so I could see what is going on.
mariano (2★) · 846 likes
that twitter sound effect every time she was posting on fucking instagram triggered the hell out of me 😭 how did they get that so wrong
Jim Caddick (2★) · 451 likes
Worst documentary of The Police I’ve ever seen
Sydney🚀 (2.5★) · 446 likes
You know what… on one hand this was the clunky/generic stuff I expected, but on the other hand the whole end is trying to do Alien/Aliens and it doesn’t completely fail so I respect that. Not everyone will recognize your game, Sting (that name is a cool reference, too). None of the characters are all that likeable and it gets very tonally confused on its mission to B movie status, but at least there’s something going on here (read: clearly inspired by movies
𝙨𝙖𝙢𝙢𝙢𝙗𝙚𝙣𝙣𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙩 (2★) · 418 likes
the movie doesn’t actually start until an hour in just to let you guys know