Despite being predictable throughout, Del Toro directs with some flair and deserves to have audiences with him at the end.

Mimic will have entomophobes in the audience yearning to bug out, and scare-seekers squirming in their seats.

One does not attend Mimic hoping for more than a few new twists on the durable old idea; such movies, like thrill rides at parks, work every single time if they have been well planned and constructed. But Mimic is superior to most of its cousins.

Guillermo del Toro's director's cut adds some interesting context that was missing from its original theatrical release. But "Mimic" remains but a solid mid-level, late-'90s creature feature.