Quartile rating: 6.5/10 · 1 rating
Desperate for companionship, the repressed Willard befriends a group of rats that inhabit his late father's deteriorating mansion. In these furry creatures, Willard finds temporary refuge from daily abuse at the hands of his bedridden mother and his father's old partner, Frank. Soon it becomes clear that the brood of rodents is ready and willing to exact a vicious, deadly revenge on anyone who dares to bully their sensitive new master.
Willard (2003) is carried heavily by Crispin Glover's genuinely eccentric and committed performance as the titular misfit — it's a career-defining turn that elevates the material considerably. The plot faithfully remakes the 1971 original with a gothic, oppressive atmosphere but doesn't stray far enough from its source to feel truly fresh, keeping Novelty low. Cinematography leans into the mansion's decay effectively but stays within conventional horror-drama visual grammar. The ending delivers a grim, fitting conclusion consistent with the film's bleak tone without being particularly surprising. Overall a cult oddity that lives and dies on Glover's shoulders.