Friday 2 August 2019

Rats: Night Of Terror (1984)

Although starting off feeling like a hundred other Italian post-apocalyptic movies, Rats: Night Of Terror quickly settles in to being the enjoyably daffy creature feature you should be expecting after the first few scenes. It delivers the rats, both real and obviously fake, and it delivers some fun gore gags.

Set in a year after the big bomb has gone off, things start with a group of 11 roving survivors discovering an abandoned area that they think could make a good base. There seems to be some food, some decent resources, and maybe even some decent drinking water. There are also a lot of rats. And the rats don't want these interlopers around, unless they can be turned into rather snacks. So the battle begins.

From director Bruno Mattei, this is a film that may not please animal lovers (because you know a number of rats were very likely harmed during the making of this), but will certainly please those who love entertaining schlock. The screenplay, by Claudio Fragasso and HervĂ© Piccini, actually does a decent job, in terms of setting up the various characters and planting the seeds of ideas that all come to fruition in the second half. It's not so decent when it comes to conversation and arguments, making the middle section a bit of a slog at times, but I have suffered through numerous Italian shockers from this time that had much weaker screenplays leading to much less satisfying payoffs.

And then there's that final scene, which is as demented as it is quite brilliant. A classic moment that, once seen, will never be forgotten. Part of me wants to just detail it here, and part of me wants everyone to watch the movie as soon as possible, if only to enjoy that one moment.

Geretta Geretta stars as Chocolate, one of the female gang members, and you also get main roles for Gianni Franco, Ottaviano Dell'acqua, Massimo Vanni, and more (often listed under different names, depending on which print you see). Nobody is a true great, although I have a soft spot for Geretta (thanks to her most memorable turn as Rosemary in Demons), but they all react with suitable - maybe even too much - panic as the rats become more and more dangerous to them.

If you're in the right mood for this, and I think you know what mood that is, then Rats: Night Of Terror is a very entertaining bit of hokum. If you don't think you'll ever be in the right mood for it then, well, look on in bewilderment as other genre fans discover, and enjoy, it.

6/10

You may be able to order the movie here.




No comments:

Post a Comment