Empire of the Ants (1977)
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0% of critics liked it
(16 reviews) -
27% of users liked it
(1,949 ratings)
In the '50s, Bert I. Gordon made a career out of sci-fi movies about gigantic mutated insects (Beginning of the End, Earth vs. the Spider), lizards (King Dinosaur, Serpent Island), and even people (The Amazing Colossal Man), and in 1977, he was still up to his old tricks with this picture,… More In the '50s, Bert I. Gordon made a career out of sci-fi movies about gigantic mutated insects (Beginning of the End, Earth vs. the Spider), lizards (King Dinosaur, Serpent Island), and even people (The Amazing Colossal Man), and in 1977, he was still up to his old tricks with this picture, loosely adapted from a story by H.G. Wells. Marilyn Fryser (Joan Collins) is a less than scrupulous businesswoman who is trying to sell shares in a worthless Florida housing development to a group of naive souls. However, both Marilyn and her potential customers have bigger things to worry about than low property values, when they discover that a large stock of nuclear waste was dumped near the development site, and the result is a pack of gigantic mutated ants with a nasty disposition and a taste for human blood. The supporting cast features Robert Lansing, John David Carson, and Albert Salmi. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Directed By
- Bert I. Gordon
- Written By
- H.G. Wells, Jack Turley
- Genres
- Horror, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Cult Movies
PG,
- In Theaters
- Jun 29, 1977 Limited
- Studio
- MGM
Critic Reviews
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Variety Staff, Variety
Periodic moments of good special effects are separated by reels of dramatic banality as players flounder in flimsy dialog and under sluggish direction.
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, Time Out
It's all drastically boring.
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A.H. Weiler, New York Times
The movie swarmed into local theaters yesterday; unfortunately, the insects and the people in this mélange of ersatz science-fiction and dull adventure deserve one another.
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, TV Guide's Movie Guide
Laughable exploitation film results in a complete waste of time and talent.
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Chuck O'Leary, Fantastica Daily
One of those movies that's a nailbiter for a little kid, but laughable when revisted as an adult.
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Cast
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Joan Collins
as Marilyn Fryser
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Robert Lansing
as Dan Stokely
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John David Carson
as Joe Morrison
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Albert Salmi
as Sheriff Kincade
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Jacqueline Scott
as Margaret Ellis
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Pamela Susan Shoop
as Coreen Bradford
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Robert Pine
as Larry Graham
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Edward Power
as Charlie Pearson
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Brooke Palance
as Christine Graham
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Tom Fadden
as Sam Russell
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Irene Tedrow
as Velma Thompson
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Harry Holcombe
as Harry Thompson
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Jack Kosslyn
as Thomas Lawson
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Ilse Earl
as Mary Lawson
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Janie Gavin
as Ginny
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Norman Franklin
as Anson Parker
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Florence McGee
as Phoebe Russell
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Mike Armstrong
as Jim
