The 80s Grossout Horror Hidden Gem Will Crawl Under Your Skin, Stream Right Now
Not all horror movies terrify audiences with demonic entities or killers wearing hockey masks. Some of the most chilling tales involve attacks from tiny creatures that work to overwhelm their human hosts, with films like Kingdom of the Spiders, The Swarm, and Ants leaving viewers with the unsettling feeling that something is crawling all over them as they sit in their theater seats. The 1988 movie The Nest takes one of humankind’s most reviled insects, the cockroach, and transforms it into a flesh-eating monster that attacks humans in droves.
Set In A Quaint New England Village
The Nest is set in a small island community in New England. The town Sheriff of North Port is startled to find several cockroaches in his kitchen one morning including one swimming in his cup of coffee. Though he’s disturbed by the presence of the insects, he goes about his day.
The Sheriff isn’t the only one noticing the roaches in North Port, and there are plenty of unexplained happenings going on about the island community. The bindings of the books in the library are all damaged from something eating at them, several dogs on the island have been reported to be mutilated beyond recognition, and the bugs have seemed to have invaded the town’s diner.
Visiting Doctor Figures Out The Problem
The Nest employs the “out of town doctor saving the day” film trope and introduces audiences to Doctor Hubbard, who has shown up on the island after being called to investigate the deaths of the local dogs. After a cat she was using as bait is attacked and eaten by cockroaches, Doctor Hubbard begins to study the insects.
Dr. Hubbard’s findings yield grim news. The cockroaches in The Next are asexual reproducers and multiply quickly. These little monsters are also immune to poisons routinely used by exterminators.
Not A Film For The Squeamish
One by one, the townsfolk are picked off (and picked apart) as the cockroaches begin to invade their homes. To make matters even worse, these insects are beginning to rapidly mutate, taking on the characteristics and size of the prey that they begin to consume.
As the details behind the causation of the cockroaches in The Nest are revealed, a race to evacuate the island is on. Genetic engineering gone wrong, a town faced with flesh-eating insects and a massive dose of lethal poison on the way, and grotesque cockroach-human hybrids await the Sheriff as he fights to save the lives of the people of North Port.
Gruesome Special Effects
The Nest follows a tried-but-true plotline about a human-made critter problem solved by the wisdom of a stranger to town. It’s not original in the sense of its plot or its “surprise” ending, but it gets some bonus points for some gruesome special effects and some innovative movie creatures.
The Nest stars Robert Lansing, Lisa Langlois, Franc Luz, and Terri Treas. The film was directed by Terence H. Winkless, and produced by Julie Corman, wife of Little Shop of Horrors director Roger Corman.
Streaming For Free
REVIEW SCORE
The Nest follows a tried-but-true plotline about a human-made critter problem solved by the wisdom of a stranger to town. It’s not original in the sense of its plot or its “surprise” ending, but it gets some bonus points for some gruesome special effects and some innovative movie creatures.
The Nest isn’t a remarkable film but should be viewed by fans of gross-out moments, as the movie has plenty of them. It’s a 2.0/5.0-star movie. It’s worth the watch, but not one that requires much of your attention to get the point.
You can stream The Nest for free on Tubi or rent it On Demand with Prime.
