Primal Rage

So in a plot that almost immediately makes you think of 28 Days Later, a possibly mad scientist inadvertently creates a deadly rabies-like virus while experimenting on the brain of a baboon to try and reanimate dead brain cells or whatever, that gradually transforms its victims into mostly mindless bloodthirsty savages, and when a shaggy-haired young student journalist breaks into the lab looking for a scoop gets bitten by the maddened creature, a slaughter looms unless the infected can be stopped! This frankly wasn't that much of a movie, and I'd never ever heard of it, but I was entertained and engaged enough while watching it, I liked how everything was eighties to the max and everyone had the hair shaped like a helmet and was rocking the colourful and very tight sweatpants! It's probably one of the most eighties horror movies ever made, I found that side of it quite cute! I thought it had a really weird atmosphere, it looked very American, but it felt distinctly like an Italian horror movie, there are certain unmistakable similarities to Argento's Demons movies, like how the fully infected act and when the soundtrack would spontaneously turn into fast metal during the action scenes! Some of the acting was downright bizarre, the trio of crazy bro-bullies who were pretty shameless about their nasty intentions towards the opposite sex are so dumb and over the top they're like live-action cartoons until they get infected and actually become a little scary as they descend on the big Halloween hi-school party like three jacked-up murderous Sketetors! Patrick Lowe was about as wooden and boring as his more famous brother, and he didn't do too much of anything except flee from the savage infected and try to look as cute as possible as he popped up in his silly little red motorbike. The most effective actors in the movie for me were Sara Burton and Mitch Williams as they slowly lost their minds to the rage and struggle not to kill their friends, except for the ridiculous ape sounds that he made! Whether it was because of budget reasons or not, I thought it played it a little safe in terms of the horror, I mean only a handful of people get infected and are killed during the big Halloween bash which I thought was the best part of the movie because I loved the costumes and how some of the movie played into a few of the victims' deaths in a darkly comedic way, it still needed a lot more blood though, which is too bad because when there was gore it was quite brutal and effective! So for me Primal Rage the movie not the video game, is definitely not a good movie but it's a fun entertaining little romp that's very enjoyable in an unintentionally bad kind of way, not nearly amongst the horror greats of the 80s but I liked it for the idea, the goofy 80s fun factor, the infected raving savages are genuinely scary and it's a pretty fun watch. Worth seeing if you never have for a harmless bit of old school bloody horror fun! X.

Virtually a little unknown b-grade campus-based oddball shocker that's efficiently catered for, but doesn't break any ground with its unspectacular story structure (written by Umberto Lenzi) and systematic thrills, despite its unsparingly nasty tone (which goes overboard in the film's last 30 minutes at a Halloween party) and suitably icky if makeshift make-up FX and special effects (done by Carlo Rambaldi who did such films like; 'Planet of the Vampires (1965)', 'A Bay of Blood (1971)', 'King Kong (1976)', 'Possession (1981)' and 'E.T (1982)'). While two different films, the way the story flowed kind of had me thinking of the 1989 sequel 'Gnaw: Food of the Gods II', but this one wasn't that shonky and campy. Again there's a focus on a cringe-worthy 80s tune, which oddly makes it way in the opening credits (which will have you thinking what am I getting myself into?) and then during the Halloween costume party as the band is performing live. Oh good.

The story sees two college students Sam Nash and Frank Duffy working as journalists for the campus paper, where they suspect a professor there is doing inhumane animal experiments in the quest to restore dead brain cells. So Frank sneaks into the laboratory one night to take pictures, where he encounters a very aggressive baboon that in the process of breaking out bites him. Slowly he begins to feel the effects, he starts forming ugly looking sores and then uncontrollable bursts of raging violence takes over. Soon the virus begins to spread leaving a bloody trail and Sam along with his girlfriend try to put a stop to it.

After quite a slow-going set-up, it goes on to build up a head of steam with some grisly strokes with chaos erupting and a few moments of kinkiness from a couple of ridiculously twisted beef heads. Vittorio Rambaldi direction is efficiently surefooted for its minor budget, but the half-baked execution just lacks that punch where atmosphere isn't projected and the suspense doesn't eventuate too much than just unpleasantly rowdy jolts. Then at the end you get sudden jump scene that comes from nowhere, as like a second thought because they forgot about a character. Claudio Simonetti's wonky score is just like a ragingly spreading virus with primal instincts and Antonio Climati lenses with a professional curtness. The performances are modest with Patrick Lowe and Cheryl Arutt making likable heroines. Sarah Buxton also shines in her part. Bo Svenson presenting a fashionable ponytail makes light work as the devious professor.

Also there's a connection there with some of the cast and crew which saw them do the Italian cash-in of an American influenced slasher 'Nightmare Beach' in the same year.

Passably average, but it does have some twisted novelty moments within.

Primal Rage isn't anything special, some people would consider it really bad but it isn't all that bad. the acting isn't bad but the movie is a bit predictable, the story line is not very original but the movie is entertaining. If you see it in the video store and you can't really find anything else you want to watch Primal Rage is a good substatute. The last half and hour of the movie makes it all very worth while. I gave Primal Rage 7/10.

This low-budget flick was released the same year as Halloween IV, Child's Play, They Live and The Blob--so it's no wonder it flew under the radar of most horror fans at the time.

Cheesy doesn't even begin to describe the acting and writing in this one. You know the stickiness you feel under your shoes when you're in a movie theater in a bad part of town? Find a word for that and it'll probably describe it.

Still, there are some redeeming qualities--mostly the gore and the fact that it doesn't slow down and linger. There's always something going on, and the gore is actually decent for a flick that probably had a budget lower than the average ten-year-old's weekly allowance.

I'll probably never watch it again, but hey, I've seen worse!

In case you hadn't guessed by the cheesy title, 'Primal Rage' is B-movie horror flick that delivers a mix of camp, chaos, and commendable creativity. Despite its low-budget constraints, this film manages to carve out a niche for itself with reasonable gore effects and a plot that, in hindsight, feels like an early precursor to the zombie resurgence seen in 2001's "28 Days Later."

The story revolves around a rage-inducing virus that run rampant around a university and turns people into rabid, bloodthirsty maniacs. The narrative is straightforward but effective, following a group of students as they battle the escalating chaos caused by the outbreak. The film's practical effects deserve a nod; the gore, while not overly gratuitous, is enough to satisfy genre enthusiasts without descending into excessive brutality.

It may not have the dread and genuine scares of '28 Days Later,' it is a decent enough little B-movie if you're into your eighties horror films and chooses not to have 'traditional' zombies, in favour of Danny Boyle's 'infected.'

The acting is - at best - average (but you probably wouldn't be expecting Oscar-worthy performances with a film like this!). However, this adds to the movie's charm and you'll know it's from the eighties as soon as the opening theme starts playing.

It may not be the greatest zombie/infected offering, but it's a solid enough entry in the B-movie horror canon. It doesn't break new ground but delivers what it promises: a fun, gory romp that entertains without demanding too much from its audience.