The scenery is lovely—the desert landscapes are gorgeous—but the script really lets down “Camel Spiders” (2011). A captain and sergeant, portrayed by Brian Krause and Melissa Brasselle, transport a fallen soldier’s body back from Afghanistan, unintentionally releasing several camel spiders into the Southwest desert, which then proceed to frighten the local population. C. Thomas Howell is in the role of the sheriff, though he's hard to recognize. I enjoy low-budget creature features, but this film serves as an example of how a script can go wrong. The movie begins with an exciting sequence set in Afghanistan (filmed at Vasquez Rocks, just north of Los Angeles), but the filmmakers made a misstep by immediately showcasing the oversized camel spiders, which eliminated any feeling of suspense. This problem is compounded by the cartoonish computer-generated spider effects. The question arises: how did these creatures become so enormous? In reality, the largest species reaches about 5-6 inches, including its legs (though occasionally a few might grow larger). They aren't venomous, although their bite can be uncomfortable. Generally speaking, they pose little threat to humans. So, what caused them to become so dangerous and deadly? The movie doesn’t offer an explanation. The narrative then shifts to the American Southwest, where the captain & sergeant are oddly transporting the body in an Army truck (from the Korean War era). It was easy to think they were still in Afghanistan. To put it mildly, those responsible should have made it more obvious that they were now in the United States. From that point on, the story is somewhat amusing for a low-budget monster movie with touches of dark humor. The isolated Lone Pine locations are spectacular (situated in south-central California, about an hour's drive from the Nevada border, which I mention because the film looks like it was shot in Nevada). While the cast does their best, the characters lack depth, so you don’t get to know them or become invested in their fates. Regarding locations, the characters explicitly state that the events are taking place in Arizona, but all the license plates read ‘California,’ including the sheriff's vehicle. Errors of this kind do not contribute to making a good film. There are a few attractive women (such as Jessica Cameron as Ashley), but they don’t make “Camel Spiders” worth watching. The runtime is 1 hour, 19 minutes. GRADE: D+/C-

Source on TMDB