User Reviews

Tales from the Darkside: Beetles is set in England where amateur archaeologist Arthur Hartley (Rod McCary) has taken delivery of a sarcophagus he recently discovered & stole from a sacred tomb in Eygpt. An Egyptian man named Hammid Bey (Sirri Murad) visits Hartley & warns him to return the sarcophagus & artifacts he stole or risk the wrath of the ancient beetle god of Egypt, Hartley declines his advice & opens the sarcophagus in which he finds several valuable jewels. Jewels he intends to sell but Hartley soon finds out he has to pay a high price for stealing them...

Episode 1 from season 4 this Tales from the Darkside story originally aired in the US during September 1987, directed by Frank De Palma one has to say Beetles is a pretty average way to kick of the fourth & as it turned out the final Tales from the Darkside season. It's quite surprising just how average, predictable & forgettable Beetles is when you realise it was written by famed horror author Robert Bloch. After having written horror & sci-fi screenplays & novels for the best part of 25 years by the time he wrote Beetles you would have though he'd have come up with something a little better but alas it wasn't to be. Beetles is your typical average & throughly predictable yarn about some archaeologist who ignores warnings from locals to open a sacred tomb & the sarcophagus inside for his own greedy benefit & pay the ultimate supernatural price as the Egyptian curse strikes. Been there, done that & seen it all before quite frankly.

Like a lot of Tales from the Darkside episodes Beetles is set in one location, a cottage but judging by the clothes & decor this is a period set episode. There's nothing overly scary or horrific in this episode but the final shot may make you squirm a bit if you don't like insects. The actually Mummy special effect is poor. The cast are alright with Colm Meaney going on to star in quite a few episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987 - 1994) & Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993 - 1999) as Chief O'Brien.

Beetles is a very lacklustre & predictable way to kick off the fourth season, it's watchable, at least it only lasts twenty odd minutes & at least it's straight horror but you will have forgotten all about it within a few hours.

Honestly, I can't really say "Beetles" did much for me. A one-person show all the way, Rod McCrary is essentially tasked to carry this one almost exclusively, with Sim Murad appearing as a nemesis in the classic sense of Egyptian mummy horror, undermining the riches-obsessed archaeologist who is responsible for stealing the sarcophagus of a priestess with rubies placed where her eyes were. He also spots hidden gems hidden within the bandages, but before long a curse involving beetles makes McCrary's life a miserable experience. Murad is one of those loyalists to the Egyptian gods who will forewarn the white man of his plundering his people's graves for priceless artifacts. McCrary is basically a greedy thief, as Murad point-blank calls him. A flute could further inflame the curse and the beetles that derive from it. The episode remains inside and just outside McCrary's home. Spending time with him really wasn't particularly worthwhile. The beetles come and go, and I imagine thoughts of Creepshow and EG Marshall might just *creep up on you*. Colm Meaney (probably not even recognizable) has a very small guest spot as a constable who discovers McCrary in a rather unflattering state. For whatever reason, the beetles weren't skin-crawling enough…maybe how little of them there are and how sparingly they're used could be the problem.

Greedy and amoral archaeologist (a spot-on slimy portrayal by Paul McCary) finds himself on the receiving end of a deadly curse after he steals ancient expensive jewels from a mummy. Director Frank De Palma, working from a smart script by noted horror writer Robert Bloch, offers a flavorsome period atmosphere, relates the involving story at a quick pace, and does a solid job of crafting a spooky mood. Sirri Murad contributes a sturdy supporting performance as the wise Hammid Bey while Colm Meaney pops up at the very end as a constable. Joseph D. Urbanzyk's sharp cinematography provides a nice stylish look. Best of all, the titular beetles are quite icky and unsettling, which leads to a deliciously macabre closing image.