I spotted the Freddy Krueger actor before I read the plot of the film, which did admittedly sound relatively worth a go, but I knew it was most likely going to be terrible viewing. Basically in the small town of Black Rock is where a few years ago pest control man Dan Hall (Sebastien Roberts) was killed by a swarm of killer bees, and only now has Detective Sheriff Jane Kozik (Sarah Allen) returned to her home with the daughter she had with him, Kelsey (Rebecca Windheim). It is a quaint quiet town where everyone knows each other, but this will change soon with the appearance of a swarm of genetically enhanced killer bees. Mysterious local townsman and beekeeper Eli Giles (Robert Englund) is responsible for this failed secret military experiment, where the bees can not only travel from nest to nest, but they can take over humans to become zombie like drones. Also in town returning to his roots is the identical twin brother of Dan, Devin (also Roberts), who has taken over the pest control business, and he is first to spot that there a new kind of bee in town. Soon enough he and Jane, with the help of the overly curious little Kelsey sneaking around Eli's underground lab, they discover the truth about his research and the government conspiracy. Eli admits he has tried to find what out what happened to his swarm and a way to contain the problem, using such things as a dog whistle and pheromone filled peaches, Kelsey has eaten on of these and the bees believe she is their queen. Katherine Randell (Jayne Heitmeyer) is one of the government personnel who knows the truth about the experiment too, and she determined to do everything she can to make sure it doesn't get out but remains, even kill Eli. Delvin finds out at one point he is actually Kelsey's father, and he and Jane eventually find her trapped inside the large cocoon protected as the queen, with Katherine there to stop them getting out. Eli comes back as well, having survived a gun shot to the arm and bee stings which he is immune to, and they get out of the building all the bees are in, that is blown up by helicopters, and Eli sacrifices himself to let the others escape. Also starring Michel Perron as Mayor Blatz, Sheena Larkin as Beverly Rowe and Robert Higden as Father Francis. Englund is both a little creepy but likable as the mad scientist, a nod to the Elm Street films is seen too, the bees are reasonably scary, but there is no tension to be had, the characters are actually relaxed when Englund tells them about the trouble he has made, a pretty slightly horror film. Adequate!
Review of Black Swarm
