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Alright now. There's gotta be some other shrew-heads out there.
First time seeing this as a kid in the 60's, it scared the daylights outta me. The concept of being eaten alive was something new to me and didn't settle well. Still, I liked the film and the ending solution especially. After multiple viewings in the 70's on local UHF, it started to become one of my favorites (and my older sister's too). Every time we'd be gorging ourselves on Kentucky Fried Chicken and really enjoying it, we'd kid each other about being like shrews.
This film has become a camp classic for many. People can laugh about the cheapo effects and brush off this little gem, but if you actually sit and watch it, the film is impressive in many ways. The pacing is great - the movie never drags. The characters and dialogue grow on you (well, maybe like a fungus, but that's ok). The music is appropriately creepy. The house with the deteriorating adobe walls becomes claustrophobic, as the storm enables the shrews to gain easier access. The movie's great for a Saturday afternoon viewing with popcorn, or late at night in a dark room right before bed. I've gone to sleep many a night with this on my tube. Sometimes I actually sleep better after viewing this old friend again.
Our late, great local horror host Dr. Shock once introduced it as the WORST OF BEST. I always thought it was actually one of JAMES BEST’S BEST. He did go on to have an interesting career and found fame on DUKES OF HAZZARD, but for me, he’ll always be Captain Thorne Sherman.
Ken Curtis (Festus of GUNSMOKE fame) produced both this and THE GIANT GILA MONSTER. Too bad he couldn’t have made more monster/horror films as these are both loads of fun.