Curse of the Black Widow

Private eye Franciosa is hired by nervy Mills to investigate her husband's death, only to find this leads to a series of murders of men close to her, where the victims are coccooned and filled with venom. Cop Morrow is suitably exasperated and encourages Franciosa to find a solution he can put in a report. This picture allows Curtis full rein to create an outlandish horror story, populated by distinct characters, played by versatile actors. Special effects are excellent and used sparingly. Franciosa is effortless as the insouciant detective whose initial scepticism crumbles as he learns more about Mills family, including mom Lockhart and icy sister Duke.

**_Were-Spider By Night_** Some men are dying in horrific ways in SoCal and a private investigator seeks the answers (Tony Franciosa) while the detective in charge tries to keep a lid on the unusual details (Vic Morrow). A woman hires the private eye, who has a twin (Donna Mills and Patty Duke). "Curse of the Black Widow" (1977) is similar to other spooky thrillers of the 70s by Dan Curtis, like "The Night Strangler" (1973), "The Norliss Tapes" (1973) and "Scream of the Wolf" (1974), all of which were made-for-TV. One critic said it’s unintentionally funny, but I didn’t see that. Sure, it’s an outlandish state of affairs, which is acknowledged by the players, but the tone is kept serious with the cast respecting the material. Aside from Duke and Mills on the feminine front, Roz Kelly appears as the private eye’s assistant, Flaps. You might recall Roz as Pinky Tuscadero on Happy Days. I was expecting something along the lines of 1987’s “Black Widow” with Debra Winger, Theresa Russell and Dennis Hopper but, no, this is more in the vein of the aforementioned flicks mixed with Marvel’s Werewolf By Night. The F/X at the end aren’t bad considering this was a television production long before CGI became in vogue. While a couple things in the story are predictable, e.g. the epilogue, there are also some interesting bits and one or two really creepy scenes at the dilapidated farm. Meanwhile Franciosa makes for a surprisingly good protagonist and his relationship with his spunky subordinate is entertaining. The film runs 1 hours, 40 minutes, and was shot in 20th Century Fox Studios in Century City and other spots of the Los Angeles area, i.e. Piru Mansion, Malibu, Buena Park, Culver City and West Hollywood. GRADE: B-/B