Rabid Dogs (1974)

Following a bungled robbery, three violent criminals take a young woman, a middle-aged man, and a child hostage and force them to drive them outside Rome to help them make a clean getaway.

Directors:

Mario Bava, Lamberto Bava (uncredited)

Writers:

Alessandro Parenzo (screenplay), Alessandro Parenzo (story)

Stars:

Lea Lander, George Eastman, Riccardo Cucciolla

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Riccardo Cucciolla	...	Riccardo
Don Backy	...	Bisturi (Blade) (as Aldo Caponi/Riccardo Rovatti)
Lea Lander	...	Maria
Maurice Poli	...	Dottore (as Renato Cecchetto)
George Eastman	...	Trentadue (Thirtytwo) (as Luigi Montefiori/Gabriele Duma)
Maria Fabbri	...	Maria Sbravati (as Marisa Fabbri)
Erika Dario	...	Marisa
Luigi Antonio Guerra	...	Employee (as Luigi Guerra)
Francesco Ferrini	...	Gas Station Attendant
Emilio Bonucci	...	Taxi Driver
Pino Manzari	...	Toll Collector
Ettore Manni	...	Bank President

Storyline

A gang of thieves hijack a man's car after botching their getaway from a robbery. They take a woman prisoner and command the man to drive them to safety. The man must try to cope with the bad situation he is in as well as trying to get help for a sick child that he is caring for.

---

Plot Keywords:

robbery | gang | sick child | hostage | criminal | 

---

Taglines:

Lock the doors, rollup the windows, and buckle up ... for the ride of your life!

---

Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

---

Certificate:

18

Details

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

25 February 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Kidnapped

Filming Locations:

Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

International Media Films, Spera Cinematografica

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Often mistakenly is considered an influence on Reservoir Dogs because of how the movie is based around the after effects of a heist. The film wasn't released till 5 years after Reservoir Dogs. Quentin Tarantino has said that Mario Bava's Black Sabbath influenced Pulp Fiction, however.

---

Connections

References Grand Hotel (1932)

---

Soundtracks

Hold on to Me
Sung by Simona Patitucci

User Reviews

A gritty, realistic masterpiece.

It is ironic that Mario Bava, master of Italian fantasy, should make a gritty, realistic thriller as his last film. Gone are the atmospheric lighting that made films as Lisa and the Devil and Kill, Baby, Kill! so unforgettable. The claustrophobic scenes in the getaway car are expertly handled. The increasing hysteria of the gangsters and the anxiety and despair of the kidnapped woman are, in true Italian fashion, slightly over the top. It works, though. Bava never loses his grip on the situation and one is kept on tenterhooks throughout. This, then, is classic 70's low budget filmmaking and it is a shame we had to wait for more than 20 years to finally see it. Rabid Dogs is up there with Edgar G. Ulmer's Detour and Ida Lupîno's The Hitch-Hiker as one of the best examples of this exciting subgenre.