Arachnophobes, go your way… Or go see Vermin of Sébastien Vaniček but with full knowledge of the facts. There are a lot of spiders in the building of a city inhabited by the heroes played by Théo Christine, Sofia Lesaffre, Lisa Nyarko and Finnegan Oldfield. And when we say a lot, it really means a lot and it’s an understatement to say that they are not fans of humans.
“Spiders suffer from a crime of being dirty even though they are magnificent and not at all harmful,” explains director Sébastien Vaniček to 20 minutes. Vermin shows that they are only aggressive if they feel attacked. » There, they are and not just a little! This diabolically effective first feature film is reminiscent of a strong cocktail between Wretched by Ladj Ly and Arachnophobia by Frank Marshall.
Leggy stars
To surround the performers, Sébastien Vaniček mixed the special visual effects created by the company MacGuff to the real arachnids numbering two hundred on the plateau. “The actresses have gotten used to it,” explains the filmmaker. In the end, everyone got used to the presence of spiders, even the most disgusted at first took them in their hands. » The eight-legged stars were treated very well. As they tired quickly, they were interchangeable and today continue to live peaceful days with their breeder.
“Spiders don’t live very long,” explains Sébastien Vaniček, “but we took great care of them. They were not dangerous in real life. » Vermin is not content to cleverly make you shiver, particularly during a very beautiful scene in a basement with capricious lighting. This unapologetic genre film also evokes animal trafficking and the dangers it can involve.
Against animal trafficking
“Nothing bad would happen if we had left these spiders in their desert,” insists the filmmaker. I would like the film to make the public think about this point while allowing them to admire these superb spiders that I took great pleasure in filming. » If it is not certain that Vermin reconciles spectators with these little beasts, this excellent horror film introduces a very gifted filmmaker.