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Willard (2003 film)
Encyclopedia
Willard is a 2003 horror film loosely based on the novel Ratman's Notebooks
by Stephen Gilbert
and a remake
of the 1971 film of the same name
. It was not billed as a remake by the producers, but as a re-working of the themes from the original, with a stronger focus on suspense.
) is a social misfit taking care of his ill and fragile but verbally abusive mother Henrietta (Jackie Burroughs
) in a musty old mansion
that is also home to a colony of rat
s. Willard finds himself constantly humiliated in front of his co-workers by his cruel boss, Frank Martin (R. Lee Ermey
), a vicious man who assumed control of the company of Willard's father upon his death, and whose professional interest in Willard extends to a personal financial one. A co-worker, Cathryn (Laura Elena Harring), has sympathy for the quirky Willard. Cathryn becomes Willard's friend and love interest.
Willard quickly becomes obsessed with his friendship with a rat he names Socrates
. Willard then begins to train and befriend the other rats including an extra large one he calls Ben. Ben begins to assume a position of "leadership" among the other rats, while Socrates remains Willard's favorite. Willard's mother panics when she overhears the rats and later dies by falling down the stairs of the basement. Willard learns soon afterward that payments on the house have fallen far behind, and that the bank will likely foreclose upon the property. Willard then says that Socrates is all he has left.
Cathryn stops by and gives Willard a cat named Sculley, he sets the cat inside and leaves. The rats, led by Ben, attack and kill Sculley soon after it arrives.
When Willard arrives home he notices Ben watching him evilly; Willard begins to distrust Ben thereafter. Desperately lonely, Willard begins to bring Socrates to work with him. Willard finds a note at his desk declaring that he's being fired by Frank Martin from the company his father founded. While he's arguing with Martin, begging not to be fired, Socrates is discovered by a coworker in the supply room. She screams, and Martin bludgeons Socrates to death. Willard, his mental state already precarious, is devastated. Willard turns to Ben, who is more than willing to guide the army of basement rats to help Willard avenge himself upon his slave-driving boss. Willard and his basement rats confront Martin, and upon Willard's command they swarm Martin and tear him apart.
Willard, however, mistrusts Ben and attempts to dispose of him and the other rats. He succeeds in killing some, but Ben remains, and turns the remaining rat army against Willard. Willard barely escapes with his life, and kills Ben. But an epilogue reveals that he has retreated into a semi-catatonic state and been placed in a mental institution. There he finds a new white rat, which looks like Socrates and he believes is a rebirth of his one friend. In the end Willard beckons the rat over to him and says "It's not over yet, no! Our time is going to come."
, and a 64% from all reviewers at Rotten Tomatoes
,
Ratman's Notebooks
Ratman's Notebooks is a short novel published in 1969. It was written by Stephen Gilbert , who was born in 1912, in Newcastle, County Down, Northern Ireland. The short work features an unnamed misfit who relates better to rats than to humans. It was the basis for the films Willard, Ben, and the...
by Stephen Gilbert
Stephen Gilbert (novelist)
Stephen Gilbert was born at Newcastle, County Down . He worked for the Northern Whig until the mid-1930s when he joined the family firm of McCausland in Belfast. In 1939 he joined the Supplementary Reserve and served with the 3rd Ulster Searchlight Regiment in France...
and a remake
Remake
A remake is a piece of media based primarily on an earlier work of the same medium.-Film:The term "remake" is generally used in reference to a movie which uses an earlier movie as the main source material, rather than in reference to a second, later movie based on the same source...
of the 1971 film of the same name
Willard (1971 film)
Willard is a 1971 horror film starring Bruce Davison and Ernest Borgnine, directed by Daniel Mann. The movie is based on the novel Ratman's Notebooks by Stephen Gilbert, and was nominated for an Edgar Award for best picture...
. It was not billed as a remake by the producers, but as a re-working of the themes from the original, with a stronger focus on suspense.
Plot
Willard Stiles (Crispin GloverCrispin Glover
Crispin Hellion Glover is an American film actor, director and screenwriter, recording artist, publisher, and author. Glover is known for portraying eccentric people on screen such as George McFly in Back to the Future, Layne in River's Edge, unfriendly recluse Rubin Farr in Rubin and Ed, the...
) is a social misfit taking care of his ill and fragile but verbally abusive mother Henrietta (Jackie Burroughs
Jackie Burroughs
Jacqueline "Jackie" Burroughs was an English-born Canadian actress.-Life and career:Born in Lancashire, England, Burroughs acted in live theatre at Ontario's Stratford Festival...
) in a musty old mansion
Mansion
A mansion is a very large dwelling house. U.S. real estate brokers define a mansion as a dwelling of over . A traditional European mansion was defined as a house which contained a ballroom and tens of bedrooms...
that is also home to a colony of rat
Rat
Rats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents of the superfamily Muroidea. "True rats" are members of the genus Rattus, the most important of which to humans are the black rat, Rattus rattus, and the brown rat, Rattus norvegicus...
s. Willard finds himself constantly humiliated in front of his co-workers by his cruel boss, Frank Martin (R. Lee Ermey
R. Lee Ermey
Ronald Lee Ermey is a retired United States Marine Corps drill instructor and actor.Ermey has often played the roles of authority figures, such as his breakout performance as Gunnery Sergeant Hartman in Full Metal Jacket, Mayor Tilman in the Alan Parker film Mississippi Burning, Bill Bowerman in...
), a vicious man who assumed control of the company of Willard's father upon his death, and whose professional interest in Willard extends to a personal financial one. A co-worker, Cathryn (Laura Elena Harring), has sympathy for the quirky Willard. Cathryn becomes Willard's friend and love interest.
Willard quickly becomes obsessed with his friendship with a rat he names Socrates
Socrates
Socrates was a classical Greek Athenian philosopher. Credited as one of the founders of Western philosophy, he is an enigmatic figure known chiefly through the accounts of later classical writers, especially the writings of his students Plato and Xenophon, and the plays of his contemporary ...
. Willard then begins to train and befriend the other rats including an extra large one he calls Ben. Ben begins to assume a position of "leadership" among the other rats, while Socrates remains Willard's favorite. Willard's mother panics when she overhears the rats and later dies by falling down the stairs of the basement. Willard learns soon afterward that payments on the house have fallen far behind, and that the bank will likely foreclose upon the property. Willard then says that Socrates is all he has left.
Cathryn stops by and gives Willard a cat named Sculley, he sets the cat inside and leaves. The rats, led by Ben, attack and kill Sculley soon after it arrives.
When Willard arrives home he notices Ben watching him evilly; Willard begins to distrust Ben thereafter. Desperately lonely, Willard begins to bring Socrates to work with him. Willard finds a note at his desk declaring that he's being fired by Frank Martin from the company his father founded. While he's arguing with Martin, begging not to be fired, Socrates is discovered by a coworker in the supply room. She screams, and Martin bludgeons Socrates to death. Willard, his mental state already precarious, is devastated. Willard turns to Ben, who is more than willing to guide the army of basement rats to help Willard avenge himself upon his slave-driving boss. Willard and his basement rats confront Martin, and upon Willard's command they swarm Martin and tear him apart.
Willard, however, mistrusts Ben and attempts to dispose of him and the other rats. He succeeds in killing some, but Ben remains, and turns the remaining rat army against Willard. Willard barely escapes with his life, and kills Ben. But an epilogue reveals that he has retreated into a semi-catatonic state and been placed in a mental institution. There he finds a new white rat, which looks like Socrates and he believes is a rebirth of his one friend. In the end Willard beckons the rat over to him and says "It's not over yet, no! Our time is going to come."
Cast
- Crispin GloverCrispin GloverCrispin Hellion Glover is an American film actor, director and screenwriter, recording artist, publisher, and author. Glover is known for portraying eccentric people on screen such as George McFly in Back to the Future, Layne in River's Edge, unfriendly recluse Rubin Farr in Rubin and Ed, the...
as Willard Stiles: An antisocial worker for Martin-Stiles Manufacturing. A business originally started by his father but was "stolen" by Frank Martin. Willard is constantly tormented by his boss and his beloved mother. He befriends a colony of rats, especially a white rat named Socrates and a big rat named Ben. When his torment finally makes Willard vengeful, he uses his rats to get revenge, transforming into a sociopath. - R. Lee ErmeyR. Lee ErmeyRonald Lee Ermey is a retired United States Marine Corps drill instructor and actor.Ermey has often played the roles of authority figures, such as his breakout performance as Gunnery Sergeant Hartman in Full Metal Jacket, Mayor Tilman in the Alan Parker film Mississippi Burning, Bill Bowerman in...
as Frank Martin: A cruel and uncaring CEO of Martin-Stiles Manufacturing. He constantly humiliates Willard for his late arrivals at work and even kills his pet rat Socrates. He is eventually eaten alive by Willard's rats. - Laura Elena HarringLaura HarringLaura Harring is a Mexican-American actress and former Miss USA . She is known for her role as Rita in Mulholland Drive.-Early life:...
as Cathryn: A co-worker and love interest of Willard who sympathizes with him, even going so far as to angrily quit her job when she learns of Willard's firing, until she realizes his involvement in Martin's murder. - Jackie BurroughsJackie BurroughsJacqueline "Jackie" Burroughs was an English-born Canadian actress.-Life and career:Born in Lancashire, England, Burroughs acted in live theatre at Ontario's Stratford Festival...
as Henrietta Stiles: Willard's ill yet verbally abusive mother who even calls him "Clark" since she hates his real name. - Kimberly Patton as Ms. Leach: A cynical secretary for Frank Martin.
- William S. TaylorWilliam S. TaylorWilliam Sylvester Taylor was the 33rd Governor of Kentucky. He was initially declared the winner of the disputed gubernatorial election of 1899, but the Kentucky General Assembly reversed the election results, giving the victory to his opponent, William Goebel...
as Mr. Garter: A trustee of the Stiles estate who informs Willard of dire financial straits after Willard's mother dies. - Ty OlssonTy OlssonTyler "Ty" Olsson is a Canadian actor. He's best known for being the voice of the dragon Ord on Dragon Tales and for portraying real life 9/11 victim Mark Bingham in the A&E television movie Flight 93.-Life and career:...
as Officer Salmon: A policeman who discovers Willard is "nuts."
Box office
The film opened at #8 at the U.S. Box office and grossed $4,010,593 USD in its first opening weekend, falling to #13 the following week. It grossed $6,886,089 in domestic box office and $1,660,577 in foreign box office.Reception
The film received favorable reviews. The movie has a score of 61 out of 100 by MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, and a 64% from all reviewers at Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
,
Awards
- Crispin GloverCrispin GloverCrispin Hellion Glover is an American film actor, director and screenwriter, recording artist, publisher, and author. Glover is known for portraying eccentric people on screen such as George McFly in Back to the Future, Layne in River's Edge, unfriendly recluse Rubin Farr in Rubin and Ed, the...
was nominated for Best Actor at the 2004 Saturn Awards for Willard. - Robert McLachlan won the CSC award at the Canadian Society of Cinematographers Awards for Best Cinematography in a Theatrical Feature for Willard.
- The DVD release of Willard was nominated for a Golden Satellite award in Best DVD Extras at the 2004 Satellite AwardsSatellite AwardsThe Satellite Awards are an annual award given by the International Press Academy. The awards were originally known as the Golden Satellite Awards.- Film :*Best Actor – Drama*Best Actor – Musical or Comedy*Best Actress – Drama...
.
See also
- WillardWillard (1971 film)Willard is a 1971 horror film starring Bruce Davison and Ernest Borgnine, directed by Daniel Mann. The movie is based on the novel Ratman's Notebooks by Stephen Gilbert, and was nominated for an Edgar Award for best picture...
(1971) - BenBen (1972 film)Ben is a 1972 film about a young boy named Danny and his pet rat, Ben. This film is a sequel to the 1971 film Willard. The movie is known for its sentimental theme song performed by Michael Jackson.-Plot:...
(1972) - List of fictional mice and rats