5.5 | / 10 |
Users | 4.5 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Arizona rancher Cole Hillman, dealing with massive rabbit overpopulation on his land, calls on a local college president, Elgin Clark, to help him. In order to humanely resolve the matter, Elgin brings in researchers Roy and Gerry Bennett, who inject the rabbits with chemicals. However, they fail to anticipate the consequences of their actions.
Starring: Stuart Whitman, Janet Leigh, Rory Calhoun (I), DeForest Kelley, Paul FixHorror | 100% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Sci-Fi | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
1972’s “Night of the Lepus” is best described as the “Killer Rabbit Movie,” and that’s pretty much the viewing experience director William F. Claxton provides. While based on a novel by Russell Braddon, the picture generally goes its own way with an animal attack premise, playing into ecological fears and cinematic history by pitting runaway rabbits against a small town of understandably panicked people. “Night of the Lepus” isn’t refined entertainment, and once it sets up the central crisis, drama fades away, with Claxton clearing the way for lengthy rampage sequences that utilize crude special effects and bizarre creative choices, watching the production work to make rabbits the most fearsome villains of the film year.
The AVC encoded image (1.85:1 aspect ratio) presentation for "Night of the Lepus" is sourced from a "New 2K scan from the interpositive," and the results are very impressive for a nearly forgotten B-movie (which, bizarrely, skipped a VHS release). Detail is the big draw here, with clarity reaching as far as the original cinematography permits, delivering an open look at the rabbit rampage, which involves various miniature sets and slo-mo tricks to bring to life. Artifice is easy to spot, but that's part of the fun, while location distances are dimensional and facial particulars are defined. Colors are vibrant, embracing period fashion that emphasizes blues and oranges, greenery is bright, delivering a full sense of Arizona desert and farm life. Skintones are natural. Delineation is secure, keeping the frame communicative. Grain is fine and filmic. Source is in good shape, with no significant elements of damage.
The 2.0 DTS-HD MA mix secures most of what "Night of the Lepus" has to offer sonically, with dialogue exchanges a defined mix of ADR work and rough sound work. Hiss carries throughout the listening event, but performances aren't threatened, emerging with all the proper emphasis and panic necessary to enjoy the film. Scoring needs are met, with strange rabbit noises offering deeper rumble, blended with more traditional instrumentation. Sound effects are acceptable, highlighting rabbit screeches and property destruction.
"Night of the Lepus" has a fair amount of death and child endangerment to keep it edgy, also focusing on rabbit travel time, which sends the movie into loops of animal action shots to help pad the run time and create the illusion of an unholy takeover. Again, it's all so goofy, but Claxton doesn't give up before the film is over, straining to make something exciting and possibly terrifying along the way, especially for anyone who has some type of rabbit phobia. "Night of the Lepus" is amusing with its hustle and attempts to pull off complicated special effects with low-budget tools, but there's charm in its failures and minor delight in its ambition. There's a reason it's one of the few monster rabbit features, showing immense genre bravery as it tries to make cuddly-wuddly animals into a pure horror show.
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