The black sheen of their bodies, the unsettling speed, that sound... There’s a particular kind of revulsion insects inspire, a deep-seated unease that crawls right under your skin. Now imagine them weaponized, swarming, burrowing. Imagine being trapped with them on an isolated spit of land, the grey Atlantic churning on all sides. That's the primal fear They Nest (also known sometimes by the wonderfully blunt title Creepy Crawlers) taps into, a direct-to-video creature feature from the cusp of the new millennium (2000) that feels like a glorious throwback to the bug-invasion flicks of yesteryear.
Island Getaway Gone Wrong
Our guide into this chitinous nightmare is Dr. Ben Cahill, played by Thomas Calabro, a face many would instantly recognize from the glossy drama of Melrose Place. Here, he's shed the nighttime soap persona for something far more frayed. Cahill is an alcoholic doctor, stressed and burnt out, seeking refuge from his mainland demons on the remote Orr Island, Maine. He’s bought a fixer-upper, planning to dry out and maybe mend his fractured life. Of course, this being a creature feature, peace is the last thing he finds. Instead, he stumbles into a local ecosystem gone horribly wrong, spearheaded by a particularly nasty species of African cockroach with a penchant for using humans as living incubators. It's the classic "outsider discovers the town's deadly secret" setup, but the specific vector of horror – those skittering, flesh-invading roaches – gives it a distinctly unpleasant edge.
That Creepy-Crawly Feeling
Director Ellory Elkayem, who would later lean into more comedic creature chaos with Eight Legged Freaks (2002), plays it relatively straight here. The film aims for genuine chills, leveraging the isolation of the (actually British Columbia-shot) island setting effectively. There's a damp, claustrophobic feel to Orr Island, a place where everyone knows everyone, secrets fester, and outsiders are met with suspicion. When Cahill starts finding desiccated bodies and linking them to the unnervingly intelligent cockroaches, the locals, including the gruff Sheriff Hobbs (John Savage, bringing his trademark intensity seen in films like The Deer Hunter), are naturally resistant. This builds a familiar but effective tension – Cahill fighting not just the bugs, but paranoia and disbelief.
Adding a touch of seasoned genre cool is the always-welcome Dean Stockwell (Quantum Leap, Blue Velvet) as the local store owner (and former Navy cryptologist, naturally!), Doc. Stockwell lends a certain gravitas, becoming Cahill's slightly eccentric ally against the tide of disbelief and mandibles. His presence, along with Savage's, elevates the material, giving it that comfortable B-movie feel where familiar faces ground the outlandish proceedings. I distinctly remember seeing Stockwell's name on the VHS box back in the day and thinking, "Okay, this might actually be pretty decent."
Bugs on a Budget
Let's talk about the stars: the cockroaches. For a film likely made on a modest budget (it premiered on the USA Network, a haven for such fare back then), the effects are surprisingly effective in that late-90s/early-2000s way. There's a tangible quality to the hordes of roaches, achieved largely through practical effects – reportedly using thousands of live insects alongside convincing props. You get those skin-crawling moments of them pouring out of orifices, skittering across floors, and, in the film's most memorable sequences, the truly disturbing implication of what they do inside their hosts. There’s undoubtedly some early CGI blended in, particularly for moments requiring more complex animation or impossible numbers, and while those shots might look a bit dated now, the reliance on the physical presence of the bugs gives the horror a visceral weight. Remember how impressive even slightly ropey CGI looked mixed with practical stuff back then? It sold the illusion. The body horror aspect, while not excessively graphic by today's standards, is effectively unsettling, preying on that universal fear of invasion.
The Verdict: Nesty Fun or Just Buggy?
They Nest isn't high art, nor does it pretend to be. It’s a meat-and-potatoes creature feature, delivering exactly what it promises: isolation, creepy crawlies, mounting tension, and a race against time. Thomas Calabro makes for a sympathetic, if standard, troubled hero. The supporting cast adds flavour, and the cockroach menace is realized with enough practical gusto to make your skin prickle. It doesn't reinvent the wheel, borrowing liberally from classics like Jaws (the outsider vs. stubborn locals) and The Thing (body invasion paranoia), but it does so with a certain earnest B-movie charm. It’s the kind of movie that would have been a perfect Friday night rental, maybe watched with the lights down low, feet tucked safely up on the couch. Did the climactic sequence involving a flare gun and a whole lot of roaches feel satisfyingly explosive back then? Absolutely.
Rating: 6/10
Why a 6? They Nest delivers on its simple creature feature premise with effective atmosphere and genuinely creepy practical bug effects for its time. It’s hampered slightly by its predictable plot and TV movie origins, but anchored by committed performances from its recognizable cast. It doesn't quite reach the heights of the genre's best, but it’s a thoroughly entertaining slice of late-era VHS horror that understands the fundamental power of a good swarm.
It might not be remembered as a stone-cold classic, but for fans of straightforward monster mayhem with a heavy dose of insect-ickiness, They Nest still provides a satisfyingly creepy crawl down memory lane. Just maybe keep a can of bug spray handy while watching. You know, just in case.