This is a film whose sequel is better known . BEN is remembered by people of a certain age after being broadcast one night and everyone discussing it in class . Rats were a mainstay of horror helped no doubt by the notorious British horror writer James Herbert whose novels were a massive favourite of British schoolboys in the 1980s . WILLARD is a film I had no knowledge and as far as I know had never been shown on British network television or if it had no one I knew had ever seen it and I only knew of its existence by looking up BEN on IMDb to find that fondly remembered film was a sequel to this one . I also managed to confuse the name Bruce Davison with Bruce Dern and had visions of a bitter and twisted misanthrope plotting cruel revenge against a world who has rejected him . This as it transpires in not how WILLARD pans out
There's a strange tone to this film . While up and coming film makers like George A Romero and Wes Craven were pushing the boat out as to what they could get away with WILLARD looks and feels exactly like a film that treats the Hats code as the word of God which was no longer in effect during its production . In fact much of it feels like it might be a romantic comedy or a Walt Disney film as a socially inept put upon young man trying to find some sort of target in life as destiny conspires against him
Davison occasionally over plays the eponymous title character , but you do feel genuine pity for him as he returns home from work on his 27th birthday and the guests of the party are all friends of his infirm mother . He has no social life and his life revolves around work where he is bullied by his heartless boss played expertly by Ernest Borgnine . As some people have picked up on - it's too obvious not to notice to be honest - WILLARD spends most of its running time as a character driven drama with an element of black comedy and even when it does throw its hand in and becomes an out and out horror revenge drama it's quite bloodless . Some people might think this a completely bland film for that very reason but it makes a nice change even in a film from 40 years ago where character is to the fore instead of gore
There's a strange tone to this film . While up and coming film makers like George A Romero and Wes Craven were pushing the boat out as to what they could get away with WILLARD looks and feels exactly like a film that treats the Hats code as the word of God which was no longer in effect during its production . In fact much of it feels like it might be a romantic comedy or a Walt Disney film as a socially inept put upon young man trying to find some sort of target in life as destiny conspires against him
Davison occasionally over plays the eponymous title character , but you do feel genuine pity for him as he returns home from work on his 27th birthday and the guests of the party are all friends of his infirm mother . He has no social life and his life revolves around work where he is bullied by his heartless boss played expertly by Ernest Borgnine . As some people have picked up on - it's too obvious not to notice to be honest - WILLARD spends most of its running time as a character driven drama with an element of black comedy and even when it does throw its hand in and becomes an out and out horror revenge drama it's quite bloodless . Some people might think this a completely bland film for that very reason but it makes a nice change even in a film from 40 years ago where character is to the fore instead of gore