Although the title of this 1995 science fiction movie is Mosquito, the story does not follow one single mosquito. That would be a pretty cool movie though. If done right, of course. In reality, we will be following a scourge of overgrown mosquitos attacking a bunch of poor campers. So, yes, this is another one of those movies. You know the ones I’m talking about, where some sort of a killer animal or an insect, in this case, is trying to kill our heroes. There were quite popular in the fifties although the eco-horror subgenre revived them in the seventies and eighties.
Mosquito was supposed to be a much bigger movie, with an elaborate story and a decent budget for that time. Unfortunately, the final budget, after the cuts, was just $200,000. However, what we ended up with is actually not bad. This is a classic cheesy B movie with a couple of nasty scenes. The practical effects are effective albeit outdated and this will become quite apparent within the first five minutes of the movie. We will spend the next half hour on pretty cringy attempts of comedy until the action finally kicks off again. Granted, some of the jokes actually work, especially the ones with Park Rangers.
Megan and Ray are a couple on the way to Megan’s new job when they hit something. Something big and nasty. Megan thinks it’s a giant mosquito but Ray is doubtful so they move on. What they don’t know is that just miles from their location there’s a crashed alien spaceship. Unfortunately, all the aliens are dead but that didn’t stop one mosquito to take advantage of them. However, alien blood is not the same as human blood as we’re soon about to find out.
This is a movie for fans of the genre although I’m certain others will enjoy it too. It’s unpretentious, amusing, and has this strong nostalgia vibe about it. A genuine B movie experience that’s also an homage to some of the great horror and science fiction movies of the past. Night of the Living Dead, Alien, and War of the Worlds are just some of them.
The cast is mostly unknown although we will have the pleasure of seeing Gunnar Hansen, best known for his role as Leatherface in the original The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. Actually, he said that this is his favorite movie and the character of Earl was the best character he ever played. And in case you’re wondering, yes, he will wield his chainsaw once more.
So, choose your method of inebriation and let the fun begin. You can also continue in the same fashion by checking out Ticks, a 1993 movie about, you guessed it, giant ticks. Finally, Subversive Rabbit offers a huge selection of Natural Horror Movie Lists, so be sure to take a look at it. Enjoy.
Director: Gary Jones
Writers: Tom Chaney, Steve Hodge, Gary Jones
Cast: Gunnar Hansen, Ron Asheton, Steve Dixon, Rachel Loiselle, Tim Lovelace, Mike Hard
Fun Facts: Matt Hundley joined the crew midway through the production to do the special effects. The original special effects artist said “I’ll be right back, I’m going to get a pack of smokes,” and never came back.
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IMDb Link: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0113858/
