Arachnophobia

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Arachnophobia

PG-13

1990

1h 49m

Mystery & Thriller

Comedy

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

93%

Tomatometer

45 Reviews

55%

Popcornmeter

100,000+ Ratings

After a nature photographer (Mark L. Taylor) dies on assignment in Venezuela, a poisonous spider hitches a ride in his coffin to his hometown in rural California, where arachnophobe Dr. Ross Jennings (Jeff Daniels) has just moved in with his wife, Molly (Harley Jane Kozak), and young son. As town residents start turning up dead, Jennings begins to suspect spiders, and must face his fears as he and no-nonsense exterminator Delbert McClintock (John Goodman) fight to stop a deadly infestation.

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Critics Consensus

Arachnophobia may not deliver genuine chills, but it's an affectionate, solidly built tribute to Hollywood's classic creature features.

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Gene Siskel

Chicago Tribune

[Goodman] is a quiet hoot, fancying himself as the last samurai in the battle against bugs. His performance takes the edge off the horror and makes ''Arachnophobia'' palatable for people of all ages.

Rated: 3/4

Mar 7, 2021

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James Ivory

Sight & Sound

The dexterity of the spiders as they merrily look for their prey is matched by the dexterity of Frank Marshall's direction in its nimbleness and sense of fun.

Jan 11, 2020

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Variety Staff

Variety

Frank Marshall's sophisticated feature directing debut never indulges in ultimate gross-out effects and carefully chooses both its victims and its means of depicting their dispatch.

Mar 26, 2009

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Rene Jordan

El Nuevo Herald (Miami)

The film is passable entertaining. [Full review in Spanish]

Nov 16, 2022

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Eve Tushnet

The Post NZ

Great pacing, great payoffs for all its setups, exactly enough characterization but not too much–and, of course, spiders. What more can you ask for?

May 23, 2022

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Ryan Murphy

Miami Herald

Its screams are likely to be drowned out by a cacophony of joyful wails reverberating in the theaters when Arachnophobia creeps toward an edge-of-seat conclusion.

Rated: 3/4

Aug 17, 2021

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Brad S. R

While thrilling in all the right places, this adventure/horror flick also packs some wry satire and a much-needed send-up on the hostility of small town communities.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/24/25

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Jonathan O

The title speaks to itself for those who are very very afraid of spiders and it did very well made to make us scared and laughed to protect of those who are afraid of spiders and Frank Marshall who've produced all Spielberg's films you can tell what Frank is cooking and knows Spielberg work in the 80's and really fantastic cast and really clever writing and amazing spiders effects because there are scenes that which one is real or fake just like Hitchcock's The Birds.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

10/27/24

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Michael B

The movie isn’t a full on horror, but will scare some arachnophobes, decent acting. The film really pays tribute to animal-against-human movies, and the special effects are solid. Good movie to see if you like these jaws-inspired movies.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

10/20/24

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Daniel J

Still in the top 5 of my favorite animal horror movies: Ambience, actors, acting, cinematography, athleticism... everything is just right. Found out here that the movie is rated so poorly here because people don't like spiders... then don't watch it and don't rate it. It's not called "Arachnophobia" for nothing!

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

06/20/24

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Célian D

It is old... But it is still a must see and to me the BEST spider horror show ever.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

06/12/24

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Lucas t

Not as good as I remember, I rewatched it with my mum, probably last month and it didn't hold up, still good tho. 7/10.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

11/08/24

Full Review

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Frank Marshall

Director

Jeff Daniels

Dr. Ross Jennings

Harley Jane Kozak

Molly Jennings

John Goodman

Delbert McClintock

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Synopsis

After a nature photographer (Mark L. Taylor) dies on assignment in Venezuela, a poisonous spider hitches a ride in his coffin to his hometown in rural California, where arachnophobe Dr. Ross Jennings (Jeff Daniels) has just moved in with his wife, Molly (Harley Jane Kozak), and young son. As town residents start turning up dead, Jennings begins to suspect spiders, and must face his fears as he and no-nonsense exterminator Delbert McClintock (John Goodman) fight to stop a deadly infestation.

Director: Frank Marshall
Producer: Kathleen Kennedy, Richard Vane
Screenwriter: Don Jakoby, Al Williams, Wesley Strick
Production Co: Hollywood Pictures, Amblin Entertainment
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 9, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $53.2M
Runtime: 1h 49m
Sound Mix: Surround

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