“…I think the mayor should be taking this epidemic more seriously than he is.”
Wow, that really reminds me of someone. Haha.
Rabid is basically just a remake of David Cronenberg’s previous feature-length, Shivers, except the pandemic is stretched to scale in location and the sex-zombie apocalypse philosophy is substituted with “vampire” philosophy: fresh human blood replaces our necessary need for hunger. Therefore, you’re given the decision of whether or not you should give someone else the “disease” based on your own needs; unlike a zombie, you are conscious of what your actions reflect upon others. Yet, ego seems to nearly overrule us at every corner, resulting in global catastrophes. Woah! Wait a second? Kind of like our very own situation with COVID-19! Would you look at that?
It’s kind of a “well, no fucking s**t” movie in those regards, but CLEARLY others in the real world can’t really wrap their heads around its message… Either that or they understand it by indulging in it. And some, like Rose, just choose to be in the middle on it. Most of us do, actually.
Shivers did the aesthetics better though. Rabid definitely has better characters than Shivers howbeit. They’re one for one at the moment.
Alien (1979) did all the innuendos way gnarlier than both however. Now that’s a true winner!
Verdict: C+
“Rabid” is now available to stream on The Criterion Channel.
Burning the Celluloid 
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