The Food of the Gods (1976)

A group of friends travel to a remote Canadian island to hunt, only to be attacked by giant killer animals which have populated the place.

Director:

Bert I. Gordon

Writers:

H.G. Wells (portion of novel), Bert I. Gordon (screenplay)

Stars:

Marjoe Gortner, Pamela Franklin, Ralph Meeker

1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Marjoe Gortner	...	Morgan
Pamela Franklin	...	Lorna
Ralph Meeker	...	Bensington
Jon Cypher	...	Brian
Ida Lupino	...	Mrs. Skinner
John McLiam	...	Mr. Skinner
Belinda Balaski	...	Rita
Tom Stovall	...	Thomas
Chuck Courtney	...	Davis
Reg Tunnicliffe	...	Ferry Attendant

Storyline

Morgan and his friends are on a hunting trip on a remote Canadian island when they are attacked by a swarm of giant wasps. Looking for help, Morgan stumbles across a barn inhabited by an enormous killer chicken. After doing some exploring, they discover the entire island is crawling with animals that have somehow grown to giant size. The most dangerous of all of these, however, are the rats, who are mobilizing to do battle with the human intruders.

---

Plot Keywords:

when animals attack | murder of a woman | woman with a gun | island | killer animal | 

---

Taglines:

One Taste Is All It Takes!

---

Genres:

Adventure | Horror | Sci-Fi

---

Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 June 1976 (USA)

Also Known As:

H.G. Wells' The Food of the Gods

Filming Locations:

Cowan's Point, Bowen Island, British Columbia, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

American International Pictures (AIP)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

British actress Pamela Franklin's last feature film, although she would continue to work in television on several guest starring roles.

---

Goofs

At one point at the Skinner home, Morgan and Brian put their rifles away in a wooden crate on the jeep, but when they get to where the rats are, they pull the rifles directly out of the vehicle.

---

Quotes

Lorna Scott: You don't care about anybody but yourself, do you?
Jack Bensington: Is that what you think of me?
Lorna Scott: I think you're the most selfish man I know.
Jack Bensington: So why do you work for me?
Lorna Scott: Because jobs for female bacteriologists are just not that easy to find, Jack.
Jack Bensington: So who told you to be one?
Lorna Scott: You're a bastard, did you know that?
Jack Bensington: Matter of fact, I do.
[laughs]

---

Crazy Credits

End credits play over a stilled image of a child sitting in a school class drinking milk, not knowing it has the growth substance.

---

Connections

Referenced in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Of Rats and Men (2014)

User Reviews

Rats of the Gods

A great title (borrowed from the greatest science-fiction writer of all time) and downhill from there, but this fun flic with a bad rep, for good reason in a couple of spots, taken in its entirety offers more entertainment value, pound for pound, than most of the other 'eco-terror' flics of the '70s; that's not saying much, but there were plenty of 'em: Bug(75); Night of the Lepus(72); Squirm(76); Kingdom of the Spiders(77); Prophecy(79); Empire of the Ants(77); Frogs(72); Day of the Animals(76); Ben(72); and even Phase IV(74), which was more intelligent but a bore. The only one on par with this is Piranha(78), whose director, Dante, moved to the A-list, and the original Willard(71), which had the added psycho angle. Beyond this, "Food.." contains a wicked depiction of American 'can do' gumption, embodied by Marjoe (an odd choice for leading man). He kills a rooster which was just minding its own business and defending its turf, and never apologizes to the owner (Ida Lupino). Later, he causes the deaths of his buddy (Cypher) and the obvious villain (Meeker-slumming,but the 'go to' guy those days for bad guy roles) by refusing to listen to their logical arguments for getting out of the mess they're in. No, it's his way only, 'cause he's the toughest around these here parts, and if a few people get eaten due to his manly choices, well, that's the American way. In a very strange way, it called to mind the relentless expansion & colonization represented by the American spirit; OK, that's a stretch, but, in another genre, his role would be played by someone like John Wayne, who needs to make the tough decisions. However, if you look more closely at Marjoe's character, he seems to have some crazy death wish. At one point, when they already know the island is infested with giant killers, he decides to go look around in his jeep, which offers no protection at all; his friend, echoing the thoughts of the audience, asks what the hell for? Marjoe doesn't really have an answer; he even says "I don't know." Wild. I first saw this as a teen when it came out, in a downtown theater in San Francisco and sure, most of the FX, especially the dam breaking and water pouring out, caused me to groan in another sort of horror, but seeing people getting eaten alive by giant rats was nothing to laugh off back then. This looked pretty grisly. I recently acquired a decent DVD version and the photography was quite good. Oh, and a bit of a twist ending, to boot! The much later sequel, having little to do with this picture, really was a waste of time.