Of Unknown Origin (1983)

A man who recently completed rebuilding a townhouse becomes obsessed with a rat infestation until it becomes an interspecies duel.

Director:

George P. Cosmatos

Writers:

Chauncey G. Parker III (novel), Brian Taggert (screenplay)

Stars:

Peter Weller, Jennifer Dale, Lawrence Dane

2 wins.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Peter Weller	...	Bart Hughes
Jennifer Dale	...	Lorrie Wells
Lawrence Dane	...	Eliot Riverton
Kenneth Welsh	...	James Hall
Louis Del Grande	...	Clete
Shannon Tweed	...	Meg Hughes
Keith Knight	...	Hardware Salesman
Maury Chaykin	...	Dan Errol
Leif Anderson	...	Peter Hughes
Jimmy Tapp	...	Meg's Father
Gayle Garfinkle	...	Janis Wycoff
Earl Pennington	...	Mr. Thompson
Jacklin Webb	...	Newspaper Vendor
Bronwen Mantel	...	Florence Riverton
Monik Nantel	...	Secretary

Storyline

Bart Hughes has a pretty good life, a beautiful wife, a young son, a good job with promotion prospects, and a renovated brownstone in New York. When wife and kid leave for a vacation, Bart stays behind to work on a project that will earn him that promotion, unaware that a certain inhabitant of his basement has other plans for his time. Bart goes a bit bonkers trying to kill this rat, destroying most of his house in the process. Certain allegorical elements tie the household conflict to the "rat race" in his office, but the main event is certainly the night-and-day contest of wills between man and rodent.

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Plot Keywords:

rat | house | new york | animal attack | mouse trap | 

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Taglines:

If it can't scare them to death, it will find another way.

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Genres:

Horror

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

Canada USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 November 1983 (USA)

Also Known As:

Origem Desconhecida

Filming Locations:

Montréal, Québec, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$4,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros, Canadian Film Development Corporation (CFDC), Famous Players Limited

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Bart Hughes: You never said anything about rubber gloves, you boneheaded fart.

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Connections

Features The Old Man and the Sea (1958)

User Reviews

One of my all time favorites!

Of Unknown Origin is an overlooked gem of a little movie. Not really a horror film, except that something does indeed go bump in the night, and often too. No, this is more of a psychological drama and Peter Weller bangs one out of the park with his performance as the yuppie forced to go to war with a rat. The movie gets down right primitive and to the point, and it's all Peter Weller and some excellent rat photography. I watch this movie about once a year and it's one of my all time favorites. The film isn't dated and the dvd transfer is good so check it out if you're looking for something a little different, something of quality, and not your normal run of the mill mindless horror flick.