Night of the Lepus(1972) PG
| Director: | william f. claxton | Runtime: 1hrs 28min ( 88min) |
|---|---|---|
| roy bennett | ..... | stuart whitman |
| gerry bennett | ..... | janet leigh |
| cole hillman | ..... | rory calhoun |
| elgin clark | ..... | deForest kelly |
| sheriff cody | ..... | paul fix |
| amanda bennett | ..... | melanie fullerton |
| jackie hillman | ..... | chris morrell |
| jud | ..... | chuck hayward |
| frank | ..... | henry wills |
| mildred | ..... | francesca jarvis |
| dr. leopold | ..... | william elliot |
| professor dirkson | ..... | robert hardy |
| deputy jason | ..... | richard jacome |
| housekeeper | ..... | inez perez |
| walker | ..... | g. leroy gainter |
| major white | ..... | evans thornton |
| dispatcher | ..... | i. stanford jolley |
| leslie | ..... | robert gooden |
| truck driver | ..... | walter kelley |
| doctor | ..... | frank kennedy |
| cutler | ..... | don starr |
| arlen | ..... | peter o' crotty |
| officer lopez | ..... | phillip avenetti |
| priest | ..... | russell morrell |
| wife in car | ..... | donna gelgur |
| husband in car | ..... | stephen deFrance |
| child #1 in car | ..... | sherry hummer |
| child #2 in car | ..... | rick hummer |
| television newscaster | ..... | jerry dunphy |
We start with news broadcast from real-life legendary news reporter Jerry Dunphy. This report is not terrifying, but it is warning that there has been an explosion in population among rabbits. News footage includes black-and-white archive film from Australia of rabbits storming and stampeding the land. Then, color footage is shown of Arizona land owners trying to battle a similar problem. The newscaster goes on to explain that this introduction of rabbits, known scientifically as Lepus,
(and also making for a better movie title than Night of the Rabbits) was initially meant to supplement the food supply in Australia, but has gotten out of hand. It is now threatening nature's balance. Attempts to control this influx, however, have been called barbarous.
The movie focuses on a particular instance in the U.S. where a scientific, and significantly more humane method is being tried to control this invasion.
One rabbit escapes the control group, and for no apparent reason, becomes enormous and, naturally, evil. As rabbits do, this one, if able to speak, would never utter procreation
and procrastination
in the same sentence.
For the remainder of the movie, the rabbits terrorize the little (in human population...not land size) Arizona town, churning out mutilated bodies now, until a solution is hopefully found to rid the invasive mutants. The only question is, Will the humans find a solution before the rabbits kill the entire human race?!
⋘SPOILER ALERT!⋙ Yeah. they will…
Right from the first scene (after the pseudo-news report) this film lost 5 meows from this animal lover...watch to see why.
For some unknown reason, when things get bigger than normal, they become evil. Ironically, when other things become smaller, they too become evil (e.g. cell phones, televisions, intimate parts of the human anatomy…). Anyway, this apparently has been a common belief throughout movie history. From King Kong (1933), Godzilla (1954), and Mothra (1961), to Eight Legged Freaks (2002) and Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus (2009), the bigger they are, the meaner they get. And, according to this film, inherent cuteness doesn't discriminate. Lizards and insects are one thing, but cute little bunnies?…Never…except when you attach an ominous-sounding Latin classification such as Lepus
.
Despite well-known personalities such as Stuart Whitman (Murder, Inc.), Janet Leigh (Psycho), and Bones…I mean Dr. McCoy…I mean DeForest Kelly (Star Trek), this movie was in no way a launching pad for great talent. Probably more like a source of ridicule for The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.
In all fairness, I don't think this movie is much worse than any of the other movies of this genre, but it's really no better, either. There is the expected, and apparently mandated, special effects such as extreme close-ups and miniature props to give the illusion of hugeness, and slow-motion footage. As is common knowledge, when things grow bigger, they, and everything around them, moves through space at a slower rate…including the breeze, which also blows dirt and leaves slower.
If you are a big fan of these types of movies (you know what I'm talkin' 'bout, Willis…and you know who you are), then knock yourself out and buy the DVD (chances are you already have it on VHS). Otherwise, you can thank me for watching it for you so you don't have to.
I will say, to this movie's credit(?), I have seen truly worse movies (e.g. Troll 2…see post for March 26, 2012 below), but that doesn't legitimatize using up time watching this one. You've got to admit, though, they are rather fun.
If you are looking for a bad
movie to which I have actually given more than two meows, check out Rubber (Saturday, March 24, 2012 below).
Finally, a short list of quotes I think are worth repeating. There are only two this time, but this movie was not exactly brimming with witty or even intelligent dialogue:
- Gerry :
We were trying to make Jack a little more like Jill, and Jill a little more like Jack…
- Amanda :
A real gold mine?
Jackie :Well, he hasn't found much yet…but he says he's going to…Come on!
2 /10 
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