Alan Helerstein

Alan Helerstein’s “Tarantulas and Other Conveniences” (1999) is one of those indie oddballs that kind of worms its way into your brain, whether you want it to or not. The plot? Oh, it’s not exactly your classic Hollywood formula. Instead, you get this quirky little slice of life about a guy—let’s just call him a lovable loser—trying to keep his head above water while working at a failing pet store. Except, this isn’t your average pet shop. We’re talking tarantulas everywhere. Like, actual eight-legged monsters crawling around in tanks, giving you the heebie-jeebies just looking at them. The main character’s juggling a mess of problems—dead-end job, weird customers, a love life that’s basically D.O.A., and a landlord who’s pretty much one parking ticket away from losing his mind. There’s a sort of dry, almost deadpan humor that runs through the whole movie, and it doesn’t shy away from the weird or slightly uncomfortable. Honestly, some of the best scenes happen when the tarantulas escape (yeah, that happens more than once), and chaos erupts. People screaming, pets running loose, it’s a disaster in the most hilarious way possible. But there’s heart, too. Underneath all the awkwardness and offbeat banter, you get these moments of real connection—like when the main guy bonds with a regular customer over their mutual loneliness. The film’s got this scrappy, low-budget vibe, but that’s part of its charm. It’s not polished, but it feels honest. Kind of like life—messy, weird, and sometimes surprisingly sweet.