Midnight Movie

"**Midnight Movie**" is the fifth episode of the Eventide Media Center series, created by Aiden Chick.

## Synopsis

The episode beings with a VHS recording from Friday, September 22nd (year unknown), as the viewer flips through channels. They first encounter commercials for a fast-food restaurant, PitStop, then the time and temperature from the Somberville Local Bank. Finally, a commercial from "Halloween Supplier" offering a sale on plastic spiders is shown.

On channel 8, the viewer catches the tail end of an old 1950s horror movie; the title, however, is not seen. The end credits then roll with the cast and crew, with the usual disclaimer of the film being a "work of fiction." However, an instant later, a split-second glitch occurs, and the wording has been altered, now stating that the events of the film *might* have been real.

At the end of the credits, an "In Memoriam" section appears. Shockingly, the majority of the cast and crew that worked on this movie is featured in this section. In addition, almost all appear to have died in the same year: 1953 (the year of the film's copyright).

During this segment, a crack is visible in the background, getting bigger as the names of the deceased appear on the screen. Finally, at the end of the memorial list, the crack bursts open to reveal a skeleton of sorts, partially covered in webs, and at last the film's name: *Attack of the Somberville Spiders*.

The video then rewinds back to the final shot of the movie: a city in ruins and covered in webs, as a giant spider bears down on a terrified woman. As she screams, the movie abruptly cuts out to an advertisement for "Spider Shield" insect spray.

The Eventide Media Valley logo credit then rolls.

## Transcript

Note: All errors in spelling, grammar and punctuation are original to the video, and are not typos made by the editor(s) of this article.

"CH 5

PITSTOP

$3.59

For a limited time only

NOW OPEN IN MASSACHUSETTS"

"CH 6

SOMBERVILLE LOCAL BANK

Time & Temperature

1:23 AM

Friday, September 22

52°

*Banking Made Easy.*

*1-800-555-9000*

WSIO-TV SOMBERVILLE"

"CH 7

Halloween Supplier

Somberville, Massachusetts

Sale!

Only $10.99

Halloween Supplier

Somberville, Massachusetts

Now Open

Open for a limited time only. Visit stores from now until November 20. Open in Somberville, Eventide Valley, and Ashenfield."

"CH 8

THE END"

"DIRECTED BY HOWARD A. JASON

SCREENPLAY BY DANIEL HALL

MUSIC BY DIMITRI CLARK

DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY

XAVIER UNDLING

STARRING

SAMANTHA ART AND LAWRENCE BROWN

CO STARRING

RANDY FALKE

JOYCE HARRISON

HAILEY SETH

MARGO EVERETT

WITH

RYAN BARETT

JUDE HUGHES

RONIE JOHNSON

LEON KLINE

TIA SMITH

MEGAHN HEATHERS

TRAVIS ANGELO

BRADY ROBERTS

RAYMOND GREEN

LAUREN LYNN

TIM BOYES

ISABELLA COOK"

"Music Co-ordination

Fred Silvera

Art Director

Clark Jennings

Set Decorations

Heather Helens

Justin Wolcott

Film Editor

Jack Halley, A.C.E.

Sound by Earl Mills

Shelby Bell

Costume Designer

Allison Grey

Somberville

Massachusetts

ELI Sound System

MA FILM

18766"

"Makeup Artist

Jasmine Kelly

Jacob Del Rio

Hair Stylist

Ashley Holberg

Unit Manager

Anthony Ladder

Assistant Director

Griffin Burns

THE CHARACTERS AND EVENTS DEPICTED IN THIS PHOTOPLAY ARE FICTIONAL AND ANY SIMILARITY TO ACTUAL PERSONS, LIVING OR DEAD, IS PURELY COINCIDENTAL.

THE CHARACTERS AND EVENTS DEPICTED IN THIS PHOTOPLAY MAY REPRESENT REALITY AND ANY SIMILARITY TO ACTUAL PERSONS, LIVING OR DEAD, MAY BE INDICATIVE OF HISTORICAL EVENTS."

"IN MEMORIAM

*Of those who lost their lives between December 1952 and October 1953 working under Somber Film Company. This film is dedicated to the families and friends of those deceased.*

SAMANTHA ART (1928-1953)

RYAN BARETT (1926-1953)

SHELBY BELL (1911-1953)

TIM BOYES (1908-1953)

LAWRENCE BROWN (1913-1952)

GRIFFIN BURNS (1901-1953)

ISABELLA COOK (1933-1953)

JACOB DEL RIO (1921-1953)

MARGO EVERETT (1924-1953)

RANDY FALKE (1919-1953)

ALLISON GREY (1910-1953)

JOYCE HARRISON (1919-1952)

MEGAHN HEATHERS (1913-1953)

JUDE HUGHES (1914-1953)

HOWARD A. JASON (1902-1953)

RONIE JOHNSON (1899-1953)

JASMINE KELLY (1909-1953)

LEON KLINE (1890-1953)

ANTHONY LADDER (1897-1953)

LAUREN LYNN (1914-1953)

EARL MILLS (1910-1953)

BRADY ROBERTS (1928-1953)

HAILEY SETH (1911-1953)

FRED SILVERA (1903-1953)

JUSTIN WOLCOTT (1908-1953)

XAVIER UNDLING (1897-1953)

*May their souls rest in peace."*

"SOMBER FILM CO PRESENTS

ATTACK OF THE SOMBERVILLE SPIDERS

COPYRIGHT MCMLIII SOMBERVILLE FILM CO, INC, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED."

"SOMBER FILM CO PRODUCTIONS"

"Now."

"SPIDER SHIELD

only $17.99

plus $2.99 shipping & handling

CALL NOW

1-800-555-7988."

## "Bulletin"

On September 27, 2020, the official Twitter posted a movie poster for *Attack of the Somberville Spiders*. It mentions some of the cast and crew listed in the entry.

## Trivia

* The events of this episode (the film itself) are the first in chronological order for the series, having taken place in 1952-1953 (not counting the Twitter post of The Face from "Oceanview Forecast.")
* It is theorized by YouTuber Captain KRB that the entry was recorded in either 1989 or 1995, the latter year being more likely.
* The Somberville Spiders may have a connection to the episode "Within Static," especially with the presence of spider webs seen on the Local Watch Map. The town of Somberville is also referenced in that episode (which could indicate that Somberville survived the events of 1953 but suffered a resurgence of the spiders 20 years later).
* Based on the logos at the end of the initial credit run, it is heavily implied that the movie was filmed on location in Somberville, adding to the idea that the events of that movie actually happened.
* If the film was scheduled for midnight, based on the timing from Somberville Local Bank and the credits, then the total run time of the movie is one hour and thirty minutes.
* Out of the entire cast, only Tia Smith, Travis Angelo and Raymond Green are not on the list of those who died between late 1952 and the publication of the film. Of the crew Daniel Hall, Dimitri Clark, Clark Jennings, Heather Helens, Ashley Holberg and Jack Halley were not on the list. It is possible that more of the crew survived because they did not have to be on location for filming or in frequent proximity to the cast and director.
	+ The majority of those who died were under the age of 60, with most being between age 40 and 50. Obviously, considering the time span of filming and the age of the cast and crew, this is highly suspicious.
	+ The youngest of the casualties was Isabella Cook, who would have been 20 years old. The oldest was Leon Kline, aged 63.
* Two people, Lawrence Brown and Joyce Harrison, are listed as having died in 1952 as opposed to most of those in the Memoriam segment. Both are displayed as major members of the cast on the movie poster.
* It is interesting to note that the screenplay writer, Daniel Hall, was one of the survivors.
* It has been speculated, due to the appearance of web-like threads and membranes present in several episodes, that the Somberville Spiders are the main link between the entries, but this has never been confirmed.
* Ashenfield and Eventide Valley are briefly referenced in this entry, seen at the end of the Halloween Supplier advertisement.
* The skeleton appearing in the crack during the film title reveal is partly covered with spiderwebs. The skeleton in the open grave of the short "Funeral" is also shown anchored to its grave by visually identical webs.
* The film is reflective of typical 1950s golden age films about the attacks of giant insects and arachnids, such as Bert I. Gordon's "Earth vs. the Spider" and "Beginning of the End."