Mjeteconer Just perfect...

Acensbart Excellent but underrated film

Humaira Grant It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

Jonah Abbott There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.

Robert J. Maxwell Peter Weller makes enough money at his snooty office job to buy a brownstone in New York City, refurbish it, and then furbish it, all on his own. It's beautiful. It's exactly the way he wanted it, except for one thing -- a rat the size of a Scottish wildcat that drives him crazy with its catabolic antics. The reason for its existence, or even the existence itself, is a puzzle that may be called Schroedinger's rat.The beastly thing begins by chewing through the electrical cables and ends up by making a meal of some urgent work Weller has prepared for his job. The maintenance man gives Weller the lowdown on rats. They're cannibals, they bring plague and other diseases, they attack people's genitals, and can chew through a steel I beam. Weller uses mouse traps but the rat outwits him. This rat, by the way, has the IQ of a human being but a psychopathic one.The entire movie is a story of mano a mano combat between Weller and rat. The monster rat can drop or jump to the attack at any time, from any place. Weller is obsessed by his battle with the animal. Its noises keep him awake at night. He loses sleep and dozes off or daydreams at work, endangering his job. (His sympathetic but pragmatic boss is Lawrence Dane, who delivers a fine performance of which the film is unworthy.) The story becomes almost tragic as Weller isolates himself from friends and colleagues who would like to help him. They do what they can even though Weller has never told them that he's having a problem with a mutant rat. He becomes Howard Hughes. He refuses to answer the door or the phone and when an empathic woman from the office shouts to him from the sidewalk, we hear only hear his voice calling down distantly from an upper story, "Leave me alone." Weller's increasing estrangement is the best part of the film because the rest of the story is so ill handled, never missing a cliché. Thus, we hear scuttling noises in the ceiling and the camera takes the rat's point of view as it rushes through pipes and shafts. The musical score is pedestrian. Several shocking scenes presented as real are revealed as Weller's daydreams. The scenes of man/rat combat aren't convincing because there were no CGI's yet, so all we see is Weller screaming and demolishing his house with a weird studded weapon fashioned around a baseball bat. The happy ending comes out of nowhere and leaves all sorts of plot threads dangling. Weller's acting is up to par. His character is credible. We can easily identify with him, except for those moments when he's shrieking and being attacked by a damned rodent.

Scott LeBrun "Of Unknown Origin" is an interesting item on the resume of the late director George P. Cosmatos. Better known for features such as "Rambo: First Blood Part II", "Cobra", and "Tombstone", he directs this man vs. nature thriller with a sure hand, creating some genuine suspense and some harrowing and disturbing moments. The animal action is first rate, and the shocks done with consummate skill (there's a wonderful jolt involving a toilet). The movie is pretty obvious about its themes - a man running the rat race at work must fight an actual monster rat at home, and must get in touch with his most primitive instincts - but that doesn't mean that they don't still work.The man in question is Wall Street yuppie Bart Hughes (Peter Weller, in his first lead role), who's temporarily left on his own after his wife Meg (scorching hot Shannon Tweed, in the role that officially "introduced" her) and son Peter (Leif Anderson) spend some time with Barts' in-laws. Bart has some important business to attend to at work, but he ends up distracted by the war he must wage with this infernal rodent that's threatening the peacefulness of his exquisitely refurbished brownstone. Just as there are co-workers (played by Kenneth Welsh and Maury Chaykin) who would like to see him take a fall, he's often undermined by the utter craftiness of this beast, who often proves to be a step ahead of him.The movie has a great look, with slick cinematography by Rene Verzier, and it also has an effective music score by Ken Wannberg. Weller is terrific in the lead, and is believable through the characters' whole arc. The exemplary supporting cast consists of such top notch Canadian character actors as Lawrence Dane, Welsh, Louis Del Grande (the guy whose head blew up REAL good in "Scanners"), Keith Knight, Chaykin, and Earl Pennington. Tweed supplies some delectable eye candy early on in a shower scene. Stephan Dupuis handles the makeup effects. The finale, when it comes down to a physical battle between human and rodent, is rousing stuff, with Weller carrying around one very MEAN looking custom made weapon.This is a good little story that does merit another look from dedicated genre fans.Eight out of 10.

Chase_Witherspoon This is what happens when a significantly larger than usual rat takes up residence in the crawlspaces of a Manhattan townhouse. The homeowner (Weller, pre "Robocop") is initially irritated by the incessant scratching and midnight snacking that is taking place while he prepares for an important presentation for his firm. With wife and daughter conveniently out of town, Weller is left to combat the unwelcome houseguest, which is becoming increasingly skillful at out maneuvering his reluctant host. Of course when the rat is finally revealed, it proves to be a larger problem that Weller had ever anticipated. War is soon declared, battle lines are drawn and Weller risks not only his high profile occupation, but indeed his life, protecting his castle and evicting the rogue rodent.Essentially a two character stage play depicting an escalating chess match between Weller and his unwanted pet, each seeking to outplay the other in strategy and tactical dominance. Equipped with human like intelligence and physically imposing attributes, the rat is resilient and self assured; as the late night sorties escalate, so does Weller's mental stability deteriorate to the extent that those around him begin to doubt his mental well-being. Could it be that there is no rat, and that he's overwhelmed by the 'rat race', confronting demons from within? It's interesting to watch the mutual respect evolve, as both antagonist and defender start to take one another more seriously. Initially Weller is content to lay a simple mouse trap, until he finds it twisted (almost disdainfully), his opponent goading him into more sophisticated entrapments.Welsh is a scene stealer as the dedicated pest controller with his work cut out for him, while the rest of the Canadian cast is virtually unknown (with the exception of Dane as Weller's less than sympathetic employer). Director Cosmatos displays a strong conceptual interpretation of the duopoly in the script, and Weller is charismatic enough to carry the majority of the film. The special effects are effective; the Labrador-sized rodent looks menacing but curiously, there's no explanation given for its proportions. Some light humour and realistic set design complete a compact but watchable little suspense-horror film.

Superunknovvn This is the story of a man (Bart Hughes played by Peter Weller) who becomes obsessed with a little rat problem he's having at his newly renovated house. Instead of focusing on Bart's growing insanity, the director unfortunately showcases the rat as a vicious and dangerous beast. Although there are some quite effective closeups of the rat-villain, we never really feel any threat emerging from this little creature. Bart's obsession seems all but unbelievable. It's implausible that he would not just move to a hotel or try (harder) to contact an exterminator. Also, the movie just doesn't seem to have any real purpose. After a quick showdown it just ends, leaving some plot lines (Bart's job, his relationship to his family) unresolved."Of Unknown Origin" is still a very watchable movie. The pacing is quick and Weller does a pretty decent job in this one man-show. Had director George P. Cosmatos added anything to make it more than a mere monster movie, "Of Unknown Origin" would no be the obscure left-over from the early 80's that it is.