After raising an unnervingly talented spider in secret, 12-year-old Charlotte (Alyla Browne) must face the facts about her pet—and fight for her family’s survival—when the once-charming creature rapidly transforms into a giant, flesh-eating monster.

For in-depth thoughts on Sting, please see my colleague Dom Fisher’s review from its original theatrical release here.

Video Quality

Sting comes to Blu-Ray with a faithful AVC-encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. The transfer shines in its impressive level of detail in the subtlest aspects of the house and practical effects work. Small details such as the fuzz on the creature provide texture that is crisply defined. The picture is largely clear with only brief instances of murkiness during a few darker scenes. The film delivers some softer shots for creative reasons, but nothing that would detract from the viewing experience. The film sports some fetching cinematography that renders well. The hues that saturate the frame are rich and natural from the landscapes to the pops of color in the clothing and light sources. The color palette mostly remains natural, but some scenes favor a cooler push. Black levels could strive to be slightly deeper, but there is not much in the way of crush. Well Go USA has put forth a strong effort for this one.

Audio Quality

The film comes to Blu-Ray with a fantastic DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track that succeeds in all aspects. The movie offers a pretty distinct workout with environmental sounds that yield an unsettling immersive atmosphere for the story. The low end of the track is particularly active during moments of terror. Dialogue and sound effects are appropriately balanced with the music where nothing gets overshadowed in the track. Surround channels get some significant activity during the outdoor scenes and any encroaching thrills. This track is a force and will be appreciated by horror fans who pick up this disc. Optional English SDH and French subtitles are provided.

Special Features

Behind The Scenes: There are three featurettes provided in which the cast and creative team discuss the ideas behind the narrative, what attracted the performers to the project, the special effects, and more.

- Creating The Monster (6:03)

- The Director (6:17)

- The Cast (7:02)

Trailer: The two-and-a-half-minute trailer for Sting is provided. There are also trailers provided for The Last Stop In Yuma County, Monolith, and A Creature Was Stirring.

Final Thoughts

Sting is a pretty fun creature feature that has a nice balance of unsettling thrills and darkly comedic inflections. There are a few weak links among the ensemble, but strong personalities like Jermaine Fowler keep things lively. The gnarly makeup effects enhance this one quite a bit for horror fiends. It is not a new classic in this subgenre, but it is an entertaining outing. Well Go USA Entertainment has delivered a great A/V presentation and a smattering of special features for those who do decide to check out the film. If the premise appeals to you, you should give this one a shot. Recommended

Sting is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray and DVD.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Well Go USA Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.