Film

The Nest

Name: The Nest
Genre: Thriller, Science Fiction, Horror
Released: 1988
Cast: Robert Lansing, Lisa Langlois, Franc Luz, Terri Treas, Stephen Davies

Other titles called The Nest: the 2020 film, the 2020 series (BBC One).

A 1988 creature feature where genetically modified cockroaches turn carnivorous and terrorize a New England island. It's B-movie mayhem—practical effects, dubious science, genuine nastiness toward minor characters. Perfect if you love creature horror without pretension, the kind of film that knows exactly what it is and leans in hard.

TMDb rating

2.6

If you liked this

Creepshow1982

Anthology horror with practical creature effects and dark humor. Genuinely gruesome moments balanced by a campfire-story tone that keeps it fun rather than bleak.

But The '80s aesthetic and comic-book framing might feel too stylized if you want straightforward scares.

Tremors1990

Giant underground creatures terrorize a small town. Sharp writing, character chemistry, and practical monsters create something genuinely tense that never takes itself too seriously.

But Considerably more polished and clever than The Nest—if you want messier, cheaper thrills, this might feel too assured.

Arachnoquake2012

Spiders menace a Louisiana community after an earthquake. Lower-budget creature chaos with a knowing attitude and practical creature work that prioritizes spectacle over logic.

But Feels slightly more modern and self-aware; lacks the genuine weirdness of '80s creature horror at its most innocent.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from The Nest

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Blue Velvet1986

Both films are obsessed with contamination—the way something wrong infects a place and spreads, turning the familiar into a nightmare.

Lynch's film doesn't feature creatures or spectacle, but it shares The Nest's fascination with something grotesque and alive lurking beneath an ordinary surface. The dread is architectural rather than biological.

But Deeply psychological rather than visceral; the threat is human and sexual rather than monstrous, and it's deliberately paced and surreal.

Ants

Giant mutant ants attack Los Angeles. The original atomic-age creature feature—impressive practical effects for its era and a genuinely apocalyptic tone despite the premise.

But Slower pacing and black-and-white cinematography; the science-gone-wrong setup is less graphic than you might want.

The Deadly Spawn1983

Cheap, gruesome alien horror with genuine practical effects that still hold up. Made by fans who understood what makes creature horror work: mess, ingenuity, and commitment.

But Ultra-low budget means the scale is intimate rather than epic; some sequences drag despite the runtime being brief.

Q1982

A giant prehistoric bird nests atop the Chrysler Building. City-under-siege creature mayhem with character and style, practical effects that impress, and real stakes for bit players.

But Tonal shifts between crime thriller and monster movie might feel uneven if you want genre purity.

Slugs1988

Mutant killer slugs infest a small town. Same year as The Nest, same commitment to practical effects and graphic kills. Pure visceral creature horror without apology.

But The premise—killer slugs—tests credibility even for genre fans; some effects look cheaper than others.

All Monsters Attack1969

A boy befriends a young Godzilla; low stakes but immense charm. Creature effects fundamentally different from American monster movies, with a gentler worldview.

But Far lighter in tone; if you want American creature-horror nastiness, this whimsical approach might frustrate.

Shivers1975

Both center on a biological agent that strips away civility and exposes something animalistic in human nature. The real horror is what creatures make us become.

Cronenberg's debut: a parasitic organism infects an apartment complex, transforming residents into violent, hypersexualized versions of themselves. Practical body horror at its most audacious and unsettling.

But Aggressively sexual and transgressive in ways that go far beyond monster-movie violence; some viewers will find it exploitative rather than thrilling.

The Quiet Earth1985

Both are products of 1980s creature/sci-fi B-filmmaking traditions, but this one asks what happens after the experiment fails—the existential version of The Nest's visceral panic.

New Zealand sci-fi: a man wakes to find he's alone on Earth after a technological experiment fails. Isolation and wrongness rather than creatures, but the same sense of a world made hostile by human hubris.

But Philosophical and introspective; if you want spectacle and action, this meditative apocalypse will feel slow and lonely by design.