Willard (1971)

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

Wow! What a bizarre film! Unfortunately the few funny moments there were were quite overshadowed by it's completely weird and random vibe throughout.

The acting is good, and the firecracker script has some excellent ideas.

The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

Working in a dead-end job, a young man living in an oppressive relationship with his mother and his boss who lord their power and authority over him until he finds the rats in his house can obey his commands and uses them to unleash his vengeance against them.This here wasn't all that bad of an effort. One of the few things it does right here is give this one a strong and enjoyable need for the work life to become the need for him to snap. The oppressive attitude and overt bullying tactics here really make for quite the troublesome situation to really make for a necessary time of it all, as there's plenty to work with here as to the berating and verbal abuse he gets hurled at him sets up that section of the film nicely. As well, the home-life where he's guilt-tripped into basically being her slave manages to feature plenty of those same tactics to get him into that same setup where both sections of his life give him some solid opportunities to embark upon his revenge. Those scenes are where this one really works, as the initial scenes of him unleashing the rats at the party or using them to go after the group that wronged him in the series of attacks on their house or the work office as these provide the film with some nice action. The two big swarming scenes score well, though, from the group coming upon and taking out the boss in the factory to the big chase through the house itself which has a frantic sense of chaos. These here give this one some likable qualities, although it does have plenty of flaws. The biggest issue with this one is the exceptionally bland setup here that doesn't make this in the slightest bit interesting. Since it's all about the idea of the humiliation and getting him up for later, this one doesn't have a lot of action to really get invested in which makes it feel like nothing is really happening. That this goes for the prototypical means of physical and verbal abuse in the form of parental guilt-trips, screaming at him for no reason or blowing events way out of proportion just to make a point in front of others. These aren't that interesting or exciting and it manages to really cause this one to stretch out it's running time unnecessarily. As well, this one also doesn't make any rational explanation as for why he goes for the rats as his friend since they show up one day and he makes the best of it. That doesn't give this any kind of reasoning as for why he would take them on so it just tends to feel silly that he takes on the creatures as his pets. The other big problem is the rushed nature of the finale which comes way too quickly and doesn't feel justified given the extended nature it should've had. These here really hold this one down.Rated PG: Violence, Language and violence-against-animals.

Willard was a good movie & Ernest Borgnine earned his pay. When they lose his character by rats. A stunt double didn't want to be covered with rats & Ernest Borgnine did the stunt work his character was written off. In "Convoy" as Sheriff Lyle Wallace aka Dirty Lyle one thing Dirty Lyle don't want is face a black girl named Denise Willard & her "Rat Pack" and this ghetto princess would be a "Dr. Ashida" to rats showed Dirty Lyle giant rats. Ernie Borgnine was a great performer as they say, "Old Movies Stars may die, but they never fade away!" Dirty Lyle, beware of the inner-city girl & her giant rats. And having my mind like "Dr. Ashida" from a Jonny Quest episode.

Didn't see a review with that title. Seemed like one was in order for this entertaining, original, exceptionally unique little flick. The script, acting, character development etc - all elements come together in delightful way. The Ernest Borgnine role, brilliantly conceived and executed (ahem). A great performance by Sondra Locke too, before she became more famous (Clint Eastwood movies, if I recall). Perfect casting, all around. Superb viewing, highly recommended for discriminating tastes in vintage exploitation cinema. No comparisons apply for this monumental, one-of-a-kind landmark movie. Ten stars in every department, a lot of bang for low-budget production buck.

Hard to say which is better--the original or the remake. Both films have their merits, although Crispin Glover may have brought more humor to the role of Willard than Bruce Davison. The look of the original actually belies the 1971 release date, looking more like it was made circa 1969, judging by the fashions/hairstyles. This is understandable, since it can sometimes take a few years for a film to be released after its completion. But the film itself? It really is hard to say which is better; the original or the remake. The original has the retro appeal, but the remake is much more visually interesting than the original. Best to watch both and then decide.