King of the Ants premiered at the 2003 Seattle International Film Festival. The film was released on DVD by DEJ Productions on June 29, 2004. On July 5, that same year it was released by Mosaic. The film was later released by First Look Pictures on August 24, 2005. First Look would release a SteelBook edition of the film on October 6, 2009. Reception Ken Eisner of Variety wrote that although the film has clever writing, a veteran director, and "starts out engagingly enough", it can't decide whether it is a horror film, neo-noir caper, or psychological thriller. Marjorie Baumgarten of The Austin Chronicle rated it 3/5 stars and called it "an intriguing indie effort" that is "refreshingly unpredictable". Ain't It Cool News praised the film, calling it director Gordon's best film. The reviewer praised the film's acting, intelligent approach, and difference in comparison to the director's previous works. Ross Williams of Film Threat rated it 4/5 stars and called it Gordon's best film since Re-Animator. Mike Pinsky of DVD Verdict wrote that the first half of the film has promise, but "the second half of the script is a complete mess." References External links Film's page at The Asylum 2003 films 2003 direct-to-video films 2003 horror films 2003 crime thriller films 2003 independent films 2003 psychological thriller films American horror thriller films American psychological horror films Crime horror films The Asylum films 2000s English-language films American films about revenge Films based on British novels Films directed by Stuart Gordon Films set in Los Angeles 2000s American films