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Slither
Universal Pictures


6.5

based on 27 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 37 votes
Read user comments
Rate this movie

MPAA RATING: R for strong horror violence and gore, and language

Starring Nathan Fillion, Elizabeth Banks, Michael Rooker, Gregg Henry, Tania Saulnier, Brenda James, Don Thompson, and Jennifer Copping

Slither is an edgy blend of heart-stopping terror, wry humor and surprising humanity from genre-bending screenwriter James Gunn, whose "Dawn of the Dead" became one of 2004's most surprising hits. (Universal)

GENRE(S):	Comedy \| Horror \| Sci-fi
WRITTEN BY:	James Gunn
DIRECTED BY:	James Gunn
RELEASE DATE:	DVD: October 24, 2006 Theatrical: March 31, 2006
RUNNING TIME:	minutes, Color
ORIGIN:	Canada / USA

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

TV Guide Maitland McDonagh

If your idea of fun involves zombies, monstrous physical transformations and alien slugs bent on world domination, look no further than James Gunn's gleeful homage to all things gross and horrible actually makes good on the "horror comedy" label by being both flat-out creepy and darkly funny.

Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum

There are times (and plenty of them) when Slither slops over from smart, affectionate homage into unmodulated frat goofiness as Gunn cannibalizes so many horror plots with such high spirits.

The Onion (A.V. Club) Scott Tobias

Though it occasionally dips too deep into a well of redneck humor, Slither cleverly exploits the nervous laughter that fills a theater whenever a horror movie gets too frightening to bear.

LA Weekly Scott Foundas

It's the kind of movie that used to be called "trashy good fun," only there's nothing trashy about it: Gunn, who scripted the 2004 "Dawn of the Dead" remake, is clearly punch-drunk with horror-movie love; Slither is, among other things, a freewheeling homage to "The Blob, Invasion of the Body Snatchers" and just about everything by George Romero.

Variety Joe Leydon

Slither begins briskly, gradually accelerates and eventually achieves a breakneck momentum that makes the wild ride even more exhilarating.

Empire James Dyer

Undeniably funny and gooey to boot, Slither may not be groundbreaking but it is a rarity: a horror-comedy that does both its genre-parents proud.

Austin Chronicle Marc Savlov

Of course, Slither isn't for everyone, but if you've a yen for gallons of grue and a smart, sassy story to boot, you couldn't do better than Gunn's hellishly fun horror show.

Boston Globe Ty Burr

The acting is playful aces all around: Fillion gives good exhausted incredulity, Banks gives good virginal idiocy, and Rooker gives great conflicted monster arrogance even before the aliens get him.

San Francisco Chronicle Neva Chonin

In a variety of forms, Slither excels in imaginative gore and shows that first-time director James Gunn has learned much about the joys of linking humor and horror.

New York Daily News Jack Mathews

Slither is neither repetitive nor reverent. It is a dark and hilarious spoof of those movies, one in which both the characters and the audience seem to be in on the jokes.

Chicago Tribune Michael Phillips

Aside from Henry, Gunn's cast is on a collective wavelength. Banks, whose perkiness carries a slightly demented edge, matches up well with Nathan Fillion, who plays the lovelorn police chief.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer Winda Benedetti

A funny, freaky, fiendishly good flick that might just find a following beyond the standard cadre of horror fanatics.

Philadelphia Inquirer Steven Rea

Like "Tremors," only ickier, Slither is a tongue-in-cheek horror flick that skewers the genre while delivering seat-squirming scares.

Chicago Reader Jonathan Rosenbaum

Gross-out horror comedy is my least favorite genre, but this movie's so skillful I have to take my hat off to it.

Slate Josh Levin

This is not a thinking man's horror movie. I wouldn't be surprised if there were slugs that could find gaping holes in the plot. But there's something winning about this grab bag of orally fixated invertebrates and mucus-covered Noids.

The Hollywood Reporter Michael Rechtshaffen

Gunn maintains the ideal glib pitch for most of the picture, flirting with camp but never hanging around it long enough to water down the squirm-inducing stuff.

Village Voice Matt Singer

Gunn doesn't reinvent the wheel but he does tighten its spokes a bit with some terrifying sequences and a witty, deadpan screenplay, and he leaves the audience hungry--for "Slither 2."

Dallas Observer Jordan Harper

Slither is what it is, unapologetically, and unlike Gunn's work on "Dawn of the Dead," it's probably too weird to be a crossover hit. Either you've got worms in your heart or you don't.

The New York Times Manohla Dargis

While Slither sometimes feels like a monster-mash, what makes it work is how nimbly it slaloms from yucks to yuks, slip-sliding from horror to comedy and back again on its gore-slicked foundation.

Los Angeles Times Kevin Crust

Slither is a gross, disgusting, but undeniably amusing treat laden with homages and in-jokes.

New York Post Kyle Smith

This is one horror film that could make the syllabus at Bob Jones U. The way the squid blasts its tentacles into doe-eyed girls seems designed to steer your daughters away from sex until they're about 40.

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Rick Groen

This is well-crafted retro horror, too familiar to be really scary but smart enough to be fun. And funny too, with the kind of pure laughs that grow organically from the script, untainted by the chemical spray of irony.

ReelViews James Berardinelli

Let's get this straight from the start: Slither isn't great art, but that doesn't mean it isn't good entertainment.

USA Today Claudia Puig

Slither is old-school gooey, slimy, silly B-movie fun.

Washington Post Teresa Wiltz

Slither purports to be a "horror comedy" but in embracing the hybrid, it falls flat, never committing full-out to mining for giggles or gasps.

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

There are better movies opening this weekend. There are better movies opening every weekend. But Slither has a competence to it, an ability to manipulate obligatory horror scenes in a way that works.

Film Threat Don R. Lewis

B movies are fun because they're rinky dink. I got the joke and just didn't like the joke even though I respect Gunn for doing what he wanted to do.

The average user rating for this movie is 6.5 (out of 10) based on 37 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

buzz_clik gave it an8:
I'm stumped. I just don't understand how people can say this film isn't funny. It's absolutely bloated with humour, be it subtly through character quirks and interactions, great one-liners (mostly from the mayor) or obvious gross-out gags. It's also a skillful homage to all those aliens-taking-over-the-earth movies (and there's a definite 'slug' subgenre in those which it ably echoes). Sure, it's not as brilliant as Shaun of the Dead, but it's still canny enough with its directing and script to easily please true fans of horror. Actually, now I've said that I should amend my opening statement: I actually can see how people don't get it, but I don't understand what those people were doing watching this film in the first place. Bottom line - If you're a horror buff who likes a laugh and appreciates a fellow fan doing it right, this film's right up there.

Dawn L gave it a7:
If you're looking for amazing and genre defining cinema you do not go to Slither. But, if you're looking for an enjoyable, humorous and overall fun movie then give this a watch. Nothing ground breaking but sometimes you just need to kill the substance with something a little more accesible and light on the mind.

Simon O. gave it a1:
really awful. don't watch under any circumstances! i was willing to give this a go and enjoy it cos i picked it up on the cheap from tesco and was aware it had a surprisingly decent metascore but oh my god it's awful. basically its meant to be a horror comedy and it doesnt scare or amuse at all

hulk h. gave it a0:
watch this movie is like a someone hit you with a jab in the cheen, absolutly painful. a waste of reel film and time

joseph l. gave it a0:
this movie dont diserve any good reviews, it´s was a crapfest from beginning to end, funny, what funny?, horror, look in another movie not here, and idiot group of actors and the worst ending in the story of cinema. I recomend instead the movies shaun of the dead and severance both of UK and success in the mix of horror and humor.

Donna H gave it a9:
Such a fun movie! Nathan Fillion is charming, as always, and Gregg Henry is hilarious as the foul-mouthed mayor. Kudos to James Gunn for hitting all the right notes, and making a wonderfully entertaining little film.

Matt O gave it a10:
Great special effects, good story, and enough campy humor to make it enjoyable. Those that said it was boring or bad probably think every Friday the 13th movie after the first is the best movie they have ever seen.

Slither Universal Pictures

Slither
Universal Pictures