Rabid

All of the elements that have truly made David Cronenberg a master of his own genre (body-fetish horror) are on display in this low-budget 1977 midnight movie about an epidemic of foaming-at-the-mouth zombie vampirism set off by experimental plastic surgery gone awry. The writer-director took a big chance by casting porn star Marilyn Chambers as his leading lady, and it pays off as she toys with her sexualized image in a quietly spine-chilling performance as a motorcycle-accident victim whose reconstructive operation with "neutralized" skin (a Cronenbergian precursor to stem-cell research) leads to an inexplicable, bloodthirsty proboscis growing out of her armpit. Her subsequent dead-eyed, instinctual feeding on human flesh leaves her prey fatally infected with a cannibalistic hunger that spreads rapidly and rabidly through Montreal. Gratuitous toplessness (you can take the girl out of the porn, but...) and a lack of cinematic technique ("these low-budget horror films were my film school really," Cronenberg admits in the new DVD commentary) are balanced out by a well-conceived (if farfetched) premise and a whole lotta skin-crawling creepiness. Making its second appearance on DVD, Rabid: Special Edition is a welcome step up from its predecessor (although it's transferred from an imperfect print) that--in addition to the passably interesting commentary--also features a 20-minute Cronenberg interview detailing the history of the project and how it fit into his career. Recommended. (R. Blackwelder)[Blu-ray Review—Nov. 29, 2016—Shout! Factory, 91 min., R, Blu-ray: $34.95—Making its Blu-ray debut, 1977's Rabid is presented with a great transfer and a DTS-HD mono soundtrack. Extras include audio commentaries (one by writer-director David Cronenberg, the other by author William Beard), an interview with costar Susan Roman (33 min.), a “From Stereo to Video” video essay by writer Caelum Vatnsdal (27 min.), and interviews with Cronenberg (21 min.), producer Don Carmody (16 min.), and executive producer Ivan Reitman (13 min.), as well as radio spots (2 min.), a photo gallery, TV spots, and trailers. Bottom line: an excellent Blu-ray edition of this early Cronenberg classic.]