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Ben

Play trailer Poster for Ben PG Released Jun 23, 1972 1h 33m Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
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60% Tomatometer 10 Reviews 37% Popcornmeter 500+ Ratings
A boy, Danny, befriends a rat named Ben and forms an army of his rodent friends in the city drains. Under Ben's orders, the killer rats sweep through the city. The victims are numerous, the stores are devastated and the population is terrorized.
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Ben

Critics Reviews

View All (10) Critics Reviews
Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times Ben also talks in his new movie. It's hard to understand what he says, however, because all he does is squeak in various octaves. Rated: 1.5/4 Oct 23, 2004 Full Review Matt Brunson Film Frenzy A terrible follow-up with an insufferable protagonist. Rated: 1.5/4 Dec 28, 2021 Full Review John Higgins Starburst Ben is more successful [than predecessor Willard], due to sticking to a Them-style monster narrative and actually having some rather atmospheric moments of tension, thus being more effective as a horror movie. Rated: 6/10 Oct 18, 2017 Full Review Mike McGranaghan Aisle Seat Ben is to Willard what Aliens is to Alien. Rated: 3/4 May 15, 2017 Full Review Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Rated: 3/5 Jul 18, 2005 Full Review Philip Martin Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Rated: 2/5 May 6, 2005 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Marshall D The movie has a horrible protagonist and is very unrealistic. Waste of time to watch this. This is a horror movie to laugh at. Rated 1 out of 5 stars 10/23/24 Full Review Tim M Adopting its predecessor's worst qualities, Ben falls into the rattrap of favoring hokey character development over genuine thrills. Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 07/19/24 Full Review Wolfgang G Ben ist ein 1971 entstandener Horrorfilm von Phil Karlson… Ben ist die Fortsetzung des Films Willard… Ein einsamer Junge freundet sich mit Ben an, dem Anführer einer gewalttätigen Horde Killerratten… Eine "seltsame" Geschichte aus einer Kombination von Kreaturen Film und Kinderfilm die wild und willkürlich hin und her pendeln…Der damals zehnjährige Hauptdarsteller Lee Harcourt Montgomery spielt mit seiner Rolle alle an die Wand, ja er spielt bis zur Perfektion auf… Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 09/08/23 Full Review Nina E This is one of the few times that I can say the sequel is better than the first one. I went into it thinking I wasn't going to like it mostly because I didn't know who any of the actors were in the sequel. The first one had Ernest Borgnine and Sondra Locke, and Ben has, um, the mom from Family Ties. But. it actually turned out to be awesome. A lot of action, more so than the slower paced Willard. The kid is a genius, sadly he's terminally ill but we're led to believe that he may get better now that he has found strength in his new rat friend. Anyways, the acting was good and made the movie convincing. The action and pyrotechnics also awesome. Like I said, the kid is talented, he's a puppeteer a musician an inventor a poet and he talks to rats! Also, I think the kid handled himself quite well with the bully. I don't think he is socially inept like Willard, the kid is just smothered by his mom. The kid can take care of himself and can hold his own in a battle of wits with his very much older sister (played by the mom from Family Ties). 🤗 Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 08/07/23 Full Review Audience Member Taking place after the events of the 1971 Willard film starring Bruce Davison Ben is the rat who lead the army of mammals to kill all of Willard's enemies Here we follow a lonely boy named Danny Garrison who befriends Willard's former pet Ben becomes the boy's best friend, protecting him from bullying and keeping his spirits up in the face of a heart condition However, Ben forms an army of deadly rodents while the police attempt to control it This rat scare has the whole town on edge as these critters make their way from place to place Danny only has his mother and sister but Ben might be the solution to cure his loneliness It's a challenge though as the authorities want Danny to cooperate in exterminating them but this little boy doesn't want to sell them out The film is less of a horror movie and more of a buddy-animal flick Not so much terror-fueled but watching this kid make his way in a world he might not have much time in The beginning is very slow yet the film for its brief running time shows a more innocent side than its predecessor The ending is where things start to become more dyer This one sticks more to a Them-style monster narrative but having a small child befriend the so-called monster Not supreme horror but a worthy follow-up to a superior film and fares better than the 2003 remake Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 06/29/23 Full Review Patrick S Laughably bad movie. It's also profoundly weird. Rated 1 out of 5 stars 04/26/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Ben

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Cast & Crew

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Movie Info

Synopsis A boy, Danny, befriends a rat named Ben and forms an army of his rodent friends in the city drains. Under Ben's orders, the killer rats sweep through the city. The victims are numerous, the stores are devastated and the population is terrorized.
Director
Phil Karlson
Producer
Mort Briskin
Screenwriter
Gilbert Ralston
Distributor
Cinerama Releasing Corporation [us]
Production Co
Bing Crosby Productions
Rating
PG
Genre
Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jun 23, 1972, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
May 16, 2017
Runtime
1h 33m
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