‘Nature will strike back’
Abyssal Spider aka Mad Spider Sea is a 2020 science-fiction horror film about a giant sea spider crab that attacks a fishing boat.
Directed by Joe Chien (The House That Never Dies: Reawakening; Zombie Fight Club; The Apostles; Zombie 108), the Chinese-Hong Kong-Taiwanese co-production stars Jen-Shuo Cheng (The Tag-Along: Devil Fish), Aggie Hsieh, Chia-Yen Ko (Who Killed Cock Robin?), Kang-sheng Lee, Lee-zen Lee, Andrew Lin, Kung-Wei Lu and Sunny Wang.
Plot:
Sea rescuer Ajie (Wang Yangming) and his companions went to the aid of a reef tanker in trouble in a storm but the captain was stubborn and unwilling to give up. At the same time, a dark shadow haunted the deep sea and dragged everyone into the sea. From then on, survivor Ajie, still bearing the sorrow caused by the death of colleagues, became decadent and disheartened.
Many years later, has Ajie overcome the stress of that tragedy and boards a fishing boat, however, he is constantly provoked by crew member Atai (Zheng Renshuo), Deputy Captain Ading (Li Liren) and others. One day, everyone rescues Xiaojing (Ke Jiaying) who had fallen into the sea due to the overturning of the yacht. Subtle changes occur on the boat due to Xiaojing’s intrusion.
Accidents begin to occur frequently on the boat. Some people fall into the sea and die unexpectedly. Meanwhile, food and drinking water are destroyed. Because of the lack of space and the lack of air and food, people began to clamour and panic, turning from mutual support to self-suspicion.
When the trapped people face the severe test of a storm, they find that there is something far more dangerous. There are unknown creatures under the water. The increasingly desperate people must put aside their prejudices and work together in order to survive…
Reviews:
“Far from a creature feature cheapie, Abyssal Spider laudably fleshes out its characters and contrasts ordinary human ugliness with sea monster dread. Too bad then, that it ends in numbing repetitiveness and frustrating loose ends.” Asian Film Strike
“With the early emphasis on the film’s drug smuggling subplot, Abyssal Spider feels a bit like some older Toho films such as The H-Man, The Human Vapor and even Dagora, the Space Monster. It carries the film through its non-monster scenes quite well and allows the characters to get at least some development […] One of the better recent monster movies to come out of Asia, Abyssal Spider is worth a watch for fans of the genre.” Voices from the Balcony
Release:
Abyssal Spider was released theatrically in China in September 2020.
Cast and characters:
Jen-Shuo Cheng … Atai
Herman Du Plessis … Seaman
Aggie Hsieh
Chia-Yen Ko … Xiaojing
Kang-sheng Lee
Lee-zen Lee … ADing
Andrew Lin
Kung-Wei Lu
Sunny Wang … AJie
Technical details:
106 minutes
Original title:
華語影壇最豪華陣容
Related:
Other recent Chinese giant monster creature films include Crocodile Island, Land Shark and Mega Crocodile
Trailer:
Full film free to watch online via iQIYI
More Chinese monster movies:
Abyssal Spider
Alien Awakening aka Alien Invasion
Alien Monsters
Big Octopus
Big Shark Attack
The Blood Alligator
Bloodthirsty Spider
Bugs 3D
Chang’an Fog Monster
Cockroach Tide
Crazy Spider
Crocodile Island
Death Worm
Dragon Pond Monster
Escape from the Shark’s Mouth
Giant Crocodile
Giant Python
Giant Spider
Horror Shark
Huge Shark
Insect Disaster
Invisible Alien
Iron Blood Guard
Junkrat Train aka Rat Disaster
Killer Bee Invasion
Killer Shark
Land Shark
Mega Crocodile
Monster 731
Monster Attack
Monster Island
Monster of Lake Heaven
Monsters (2015)
Monty Python
Monty Python 2
Mutant Hydra
Mutation on Mars
Rage Centipede
Sand Python Siege
Sea Monster
Snake Girl
Snake King (2020)
Snake King (2021)
Snakes
Snow Monster
Varanus Priscus
Variation Hydra
We Are Werewolves
