Rat horror novels seem to stand a good chance to be made into movies. And why not? Everyone is freaked out by rats. They are vicious, nasty, disease-ridden vermin.
The granddaddy rat novel is Stephen Gilbert's excellent Ratman's Notebooks. This gruesome 1968 book was made into the iconic movie, Willard. It was remade in a quasi-Tim Burton style in 2003.
James Herbert's first novel was the very successful The Rats. It's a grisly story of oversized marauding rats. The Rats was adapted into a poor film called Deadly Eyes. Deadly Eyes is famous, or perhaps infamous, for using dressed-up dachshunds as the oversized rodents. It's worth a laugh if you are in that kind of mood.
Then there is a gem of a movie made in 1983 called Of Unknown Origin. It isn't as well known as it should be. Anyone I ever spoke to who has seen Of Unknown Origin is enthusiastic about it.
Of Unknown Origin features Peter Weller as an urbane, civilized man whose New York brownstone is infiltrated by a very large, very smart, and very vengeful rat. It's a gripping and terrifying motion picture, and Weller is fantastic as a guy whose refined veneer breaks down as he resorts to violent savagery in order to combat the rat.
Of Unknown Origin was based on a book by Chauncey G. Parker III. A lofty name for the author of a nasty story. The Visitor has been out of print for years, and copies go for substantial amounts of money. I have always been interested, but not that interested.
Now, at long last, Encyclopocalypse Publications has released The Visitor on Kindle, Audible, and trade paperback. Encyclopocalypse is a cool company doing audio and print editions of lost novelizations and classic horror books.
I ordered The Visitor and wasted little time in getting to it. The verdict?
Well, it was obvious from page one that Chauncey Parker isn't exactly an eloquent writer. The prose is awkward and often clumsy. There are odd choices of comma placements. He combines words in odd ways, too. I wanted to scream out loud that VICE PRESIDENT is two words, not one!
Yet I clung to the book. It's gnawed its way into my brain and dragged me to the finish line. Of Unknown Origin is pretty faithful to The Visitor. Some of the dialogue is directly quoted from the book. The film has a happier ending, and more closure for the poor protagonist.
Still, this is one of those rare instances where I think the movie is a richer and more satisfying experience than the source novel. The Visitor is like one of those low rent "paperbacks from hell" people like so much nowadays. Long on sensational plot elements, and short on quality writing. I don't regret reading it, but I can't quite recommend the book to anyone other than folks who love the movie and just have to read it.
Of Unknown Origin gets very high marks as a smart and ferociously effective urban horror nightmare film. The Visitor is another dispensable piece of modern pulp.
Written by Mark Sieber
The granddaddy rat novel is Stephen Gilbert's excellent Ratman's Notebooks. This gruesome 1968 book was made into the iconic movie, Willard. It was remade in a quasi-Tim Burton style in 2003.
James Herbert's first novel was the very successful The Rats. It's a grisly story of oversized marauding rats. The Rats was adapted into a poor film called Deadly Eyes. Deadly Eyes is famous, or perhaps infamous, for using dressed-up dachshunds as the oversized rodents. It's worth a laugh if you are in that kind of mood.Then there is a gem of a movie made in 1983 called Of Unknown Origin. It isn't as well known as it should be. Anyone I ever spoke to who has seen Of Unknown Origin is enthusiastic about it.
Of Unknown Origin features Peter Weller as an urbane, civilized man whose New York brownstone is infiltrated by a very large, very smart, and very vengeful rat. It's a gripping and terrifying motion picture, and Weller is fantastic as a guy whose refined veneer breaks down as he resorts to violent savagery in order to combat the rat.
Of Unknown Origin was based on a book by Chauncey G. Parker III. A lofty name for the author of a nasty story. The Visitor has been out of print for years, and copies go for substantial amounts of money. I have always been interested, but not that interested.
Now, at long last, Encyclopocalypse Publications has released The Visitor on Kindle, Audible, and trade paperback. Encyclopocalypse is a cool company doing audio and print editions of lost novelizations and classic horror books.
I ordered The Visitor and wasted little time in getting to it. The verdict?
Well, it was obvious from page one that Chauncey Parker isn't exactly an eloquent writer. The prose is awkward and often clumsy. There are odd choices of comma placements. He combines words in odd ways, too. I wanted to scream out loud that VICE PRESIDENT is two words, not one!
Yet I clung to the book. It's gnawed its way into my brain and dragged me to the finish line. Of Unknown Origin is pretty faithful to The Visitor. Some of the dialogue is directly quoted from the book. The film has a happier ending, and more closure for the poor protagonist.
Still, this is one of those rare instances where I think the movie is a richer and more satisfying experience than the source novel. The Visitor is like one of those low rent "paperbacks from hell" people like so much nowadays. Long on sensational plot elements, and short on quality writing. I don't regret reading it, but I can't quite recommend the book to anyone other than folks who love the movie and just have to read it.
Of Unknown Origin gets very high marks as a smart and ferociously effective urban horror nightmare film. The Visitor is another dispensable piece of modern pulp.
Written by Mark Sieber
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