On this day, 23 May 1985, Indipendenti Regionali released the Italian horror film Rats: Night of Terror!
I’ll admit, when I first heard of this film, I was skeptical. I like rats, and I don’t like to see them as antagonists in films. (They aren’t in Willard. There, they are just meting out justice.)
But at least the rats are presented as smart. And it has a very happy ending!
Rats was co-written and directed by exploitation master Bruno Mattei. He’s mostly known for never doing anything new. If a film was doing well at the box office, he’d make his own version.
Salon Kitty was a big deal in 1976. So in 1977, Mattei brought the world SS Girls. How do you not love that?!
Night of the Living Rats
Rats is more or less Night of the Living Dead — but with rats. Michael Weldon says it has more or less the same plot as Chosen Survivors, but I haven’t seen it so I can’t say for sure. And clearly, I’m sure it’s also ripping off Willard.
The basis of the movie is that there was a nuclear war in 2015. The survivors head underground and live there. After a hundred years, some of them decided to live above ground. Thus, humanity was divided into two groups. The film takes place 110 years after that in 2225.
The story centers on a biker gang (with a tank and a truck) living in a barren land, scavenging to survive. They are a stylish bunch with cool names like Chocolate, Lucifer, and Video!
All is going well after they come to an abandoned town. They find a bunch of food that has somehow survived for 210 years. But then they discover various dead bodies. And the rats start to attack. And then they start to die.
Rats Is a Good Time
Rats is filled with great practical effects. And it does a particularly great job of combining real rats with fake ones. Although the river of rats can be a bit much at times. Of course, one of the treats of this film is that it is always at least a little over the top.
What’s most remarkable here, however, is how compelling the story is. The characters are a lot more real than they have any right to be. That’s especially true of Chocolate (Geretta Geretta) and Video (Gianni Franco).
Everything about the film seems better than it should be. The sets are really good. The lighting is always interesting if sometimes a bit too dark. (This may be a video artifact; projected film always has much better contrast.) The camera work is lively without being excessive. And the editing pulls the story along mostly, although there are moments when it seems like there wasn’t transitional material.
I highly recommend seeing Rats: Night of Terror if you get the chance. It’s not great. And one of the female characters is too much like Barbra in the original Night of the Living Dead. But it’s quite an enjoyable hour and a half.
Other 23 May Anniversaries
Filmmakers:
- Kenneth Strickfaden (1896-1984): Electric effects expert known for Frankenstein.
- Scatman Crothers (1910-1986): Actor in The Shining and Twilight Zone: The Movie.
- Joan Collins (1933-): Actor known for Tales from the Crypt and Empire of the Ants.
- Felissa Rose (1969-): Actor known for many horror films like Sleepaway Camp and Silent Night, Zombie Night.
- DJ Cotrona (1980-): Star of From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series.
Films:
- Stanley (1972): Willard but with rattlesnakes.
- The Shining (1980): Kubrick does King.
- Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984): Sequel to Raiders is even more extreme.
- Poltergeist II: The Other Side (1986): The family moved, but… They’re back!
- The Era of Vampires (2002): A team takes on Chinese vampires.
- Vampire Noir (2007): A vampire hunter tries to save his friend.
Rats: Night of Terror DVD cover via Walmart under Fair Use.