Dorathen Better Late Then Never

ActuallyGlimmer The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

Josephina Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

Kimball Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Michael_Elliott Ben (1972)* 1/2 (out of 4)As the tagline promised, "Where WILLARD ended... BEN begins." This sequel to the 1971 film takes place moments after the original film ended as the police arrive at the home of Willard and realize the damage done by the rats. Before long the rats, being led by Ben, befriend a young boy (Lee Montgomery) but at the same time they're terrorizing the city as the police try to figure out what to do.BEN is the perfect example of a film making money and a sequel being rushed into production to try and make some more money. Whereas WILLARD was a rather interesting character study, BEN falls into a rather cheap, money-maker that has very little story, although if you're a fan of rats then there are plenty of them here as well as a lot more attacks.For me personally, BEN was a major disappointment but I guess you had to go into the film somewhat expecting that. After all, WILLARD featured some great performances, an interesting story and it worked on most levels. Sadly what made that film work is pretty much missing here as we're given a rather generic story and it's one that you the viewer really can't connect with. I'm not even sure kids could connect with the young child here or any of his family members.Director Phil Karlson at least keeps the film moving at a good pace and for the most part the performances are good. There are several more rat attacks here and for the most part they are mildly entertaining but there's no question that the climax lacks any real suspense and it drags on for way too long. By the time the end credits start we finally get to hear Michael Jackson singing his love song.

atinder This movie start of showing the last few moment of Willard (1971), he see Willard been attacked by this Rats. Ben the leader of the Rats, who are seeing the Police and reports taking the body out of the house. A Crowd gathers outside to see what going on is , then movie, moves on to this Family, a little Boy called Danny, who as heart Condition. Soon becomes Friends with Ben, as that He only Friends, The most of the movie he keep him safe from police and everyone. This movie did have a lot more action in this movie, as Rats this terrorises most of the City. There a lot of attack in this movie, (As it was PG movie) The attack scenes were not gory or bloody but I found them decent enough for the time. I really liked the Warm Connections with Danny and Ben, It very nice, I was rooting for Ben for most of the movie (He A Legend ) One thing I didn't like about this movie, the Tunnle scene was bit too long, you could tell some of effect were a bit strange. When burning ghe Rats, as the fire goes some parts of Rats , Thankfully they showed rats on fire , looks fire is over the rats in way. (If that make sense) I liked the ending of the moving. I liked that Michael Jackson Ben song , Which Starts in the last scenes in the movie, to make it more moving, I was Sad/Happy scenes, it fits in perfectly.The acting for this movie was really good from whole Cast! And b Ben.8 out of 10,Great movie

ElectricWarlock The original Willard was a great film in itself, but this film is even better in my opinion. This is more than just your typical horror film about killer rats, it is a touching story about friendship. The main character of the film, a boy with heart problems named Danny (brilliantly portrayed by Lee Montgomery who is one of my favorite actors) befriends Ben, the leader of the group of killer rats from the first movie. The police try to have Ben and all the rest of the rats killed. The main reason this film resonated with me is because I can identify with Danny. I know what it's like to be lonely and feel like you have no one you can depend on. I also know what it's like to have an animal as a companion because most of the time I feel more comfortable around animals than I do around people. And as I mentioned before, Lee Montgomery is one of my favorite actors. So all of these factors combined made the character of Danny likable to me and easy to relate to. Many people who dislike the film complain that the rats are "supposed to be evil" and not friendly. I would disagree with that statement. Willard had the same type of companionship with the rats to start with. It was only when Willard turned on them and decided he wanted them dead that they wanted him dealt with. But Danny never stopped being loyal to the rats. They truly cared about one another so the rats had no reason to try to kill him. The ending of the movie brings a tear to my eye every time. You can see just how much Danny and Ben truly care about one another and how special their friendship really is. Michael Jackson's beautiful song makes the ending that much more effective.The acting in this film was truly remarkable. Lee Montgomery's performance was great. He used just the right amount of emotion and made his character likable. Besides his performance, Meredith Baxter, who played Eve, was also great. She was totally convincing as a protective sister. In fact, if you weren't aware the film was fictional, you could swear Danny and Eve really were brother and sister. Meredith Baxter played her role in such a way that it seemed as though she genuinely cared about her brother's well being. The story is unique and wonderfully written. However, it is quite different from it's predecessor. While Willard had a slight touch of dark humor, it was far more serious than this film for the most part. Although this film does have death scenes, it is a slightly more lighthearted than Willard so both adults and children can enjoy it.

femmesimonbelmont This is the story of a lonely boy and his rat. I cried like a baby at the end when the Micheal Jackson version of this song started playing. Part of that could be due to the weird resonance having a young M.J. singing the song lends to this film. He was also a greatly misunderstood soul. This really is an odd little story, Ben is not painted as evil, just needing to find a place for his humongous family. There are many humorous scenes in this, such as women in towels running out of a health spa from rats (why? the rats don't care that you're in a state of undress)! Seeing a young Meredith Baxter stumbling along and losing her glasses in a filthy sewer is fun too. There is much inadvertent hilarity to be gained from watching this too, such as six foot tall grown men apparently succumbing to maybe six rats climbing on them and dying for no apparent reason.Let's not forget the scene with the detective commenting on the whacked out truck driver "I've seen people like this before, up in (somewhere in the U.S. mid-west) after pulling dead bodies out of a mine". WTF! Not to mention a rat being able to both read and understand the word "pesticide" written on a cheery yellow box! There's also rats unscrewing air-vents and riding on toy trains!"Ben" has some serious pacing issues. The mini-recap at the beginning of Ben over-seeing Willard's death, was OK, but it's nearly a half hour into the film when Ben and Danny become friends, and the time in-between is interminably long. Danny and Ben seem to have been friends for about two days when the former writes "Ben's song". Quite rushed! Most of the middle is fairly good, even though things like the puppet show and Danny composing Ben's song drag a bit. Then at the end it just seems to go on forever. The last twenty minutes of this film, which felt like an eternity, is a horrible affair of flame throwers and the squeals of countless rats! The rats are so cute, especially Ben, that is is truly a gut-wrenching thing to watch.There are very nice portraits of relationships here, especially Danny and his family, and Danny and Ben, which made the characters seem real enough to get me emotionally invested. The story of their friendship is truly beautiful. In closing, this is not a go-to horror movie. It's not exactly a horror movie, though it mostly is in tone, and it's not exactly a drama either. This is a good movie for when you don't feel like you have a true friend in the world. Even Ben got a friend who loved him enough to risk his life, though he was a monster to everyone else.