This film is apparently based on horror writer Guy N.Smith's series of books involving giant crabs mutated by pollution. I've always wondered what it would be like to have a story I've worked long and hard on televised as complete rubbish (but then, the money from the film company who bought the rights for the film did enable GNS to buy a new house in the country, so he can't have been that disappointed). Anyway, Island Claws is the tale of crabs which go on the rampage. I'm sure this film is very scary if you've a phobia of ordinary-sized crabs. For me, the army of little crabs just inspired humour. The human characters are pretty one-dimensional, and the film ends in a showdown with a totally laughable, inoffensive giant crab. Apparently there wasn't the budget for lots of giant crabs, but a sixties Dr Who story gave the impression, through the use of trick photography, that there was an army of giant crabs (and '60s Dr Who was hardly known for having a Hollywood-sized budget). And even their silly-looking giant crab was more convincing than the thing on display here. Worth watching once for a laugh, maybe.
Review of Island Claws
