Boring psychological drama about a mentally deranged Englishman (Ralph Fiennes) who, recently transferred from a psychiatric hospital to a halfway house, finds himself lost in the memories of his troubled childhood, in which he believed his father (Gabriel Byrne) was cheating on his mother (Miranda Richardson) with a prostitute (Richardson again!).
An intriguing premise, but one that goes nowhere; even the plot twists are both delivered flatly and telegraphed well in advance. When it was all over, I sat there thinking, "So what?"
Spider is handsomely made but forgettable, save for the showy display of Richardson's trademark sinister sexuality in her multiple roles. Hands down, she's the best thing about the movie. Fiennes, for his part, simply mumbles and cowers throughout. It's hard to call it much of a performance, but it grew on me - though it would have been more potent to see an actual homely middle-aged actor in the role; I couldn't get past Fiennes's dashing movie star presence to believe the damaged, crazed loner he's portraying.
Spider is what most critics would call "minor Cronenberg". I just call it dull.