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Ben (film)

January 01, 1970

Ben is a 1972 American horror film directed by Phil Karlson and starring Lee Montgomery, Joseph Campanella, and Arthur O'Connell. It is a sequel to the film Willard (1971).[2] The film follows a lonely boy named Danny Garrison who befriends Willard's former pet rat named Ben. Ben becomes the boy's best friend, protecting him from bullying and keeping his spirits up in the face of a heart condition. However, Ben forms an army of deadly rodents while the police attempt to control it.

Ben
Theatrical release poster
Directed byPhil Karlson
Written byGilbert Ralston
Based onCharacters created
by Stephen Gilbert
Produced byMort Briskin
StarringLee Montgomery
Joseph Campanella
Arthur O'Connell
CinematographyRussell Metty
Edited byHarry Gerstad
Music byWalter Scharf
Production
company
Distributed byCinerama Releasing Corporation
Release date
  • June 23, 1972 (1972-06-23)
Running time
94 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$2.3 million[1]

The film premiered on June 21, 1972 in California and was given a wide release on June 23.

Ben was released on June 23, 1972 by Cinerama Releasing Corporation. Much like its predecessor, it was met with mixed reviews.

American singer Michael Jackson performs the theme song of the film, also titled "Ben". The song is also included on his 1972 album of the same name.

Plot edit

The movie begins with a recap of the ending of the first film where Willard Stiles is killed by his rats after he tries to kill them and Ben. Police arrive at the scene and find Willard dead. Two police officers stay at the Stiles house where one of them is attacked and killed by the rats while the other finds his body. A police detective named Clift Kirtland orders to have an exterminator to kill the rats, but Ben hears this and tells the other rats. Together, Ben and the other rats go into the sewer.

A lonely boy named Danny Garrison, who has a severe heart condition, lives with his sister, Eve, and his mother, Beth. Danny finds and befriends Ben while playing with marionettes in his workshed, and Ben becomes the boy's best friend. Later that day, Ben and the other rats attack a food truck, causing the driver to crash and kill another driver.

The next day, Danny plays on the piano a song he has created for Ben. Later that night, Ben and the other rats invade a grocery store for food and destroy the entire store. Police officers and detectives are now trying to kill the rats with poison and traps in the neighborhood, but Danny tells Ben about the traps set up by the police. Just then, a bully comes to make fun of Danny, but Ben and the other rats attack the bully by biting him in the legs. The bully gets scared and runs away. Danny thanks Ben and the rats for helping him with the bully. The bully comes back with his mother and the police. The police tell Danny they want to see Ben, so Danny brings them to the workshed and throws at them a marionette he made that looks like Ben. The police, with the bully and the bully's mother, leave the workshed.

However, things gradually take a downhill turn as Ben's colony becomes violent in its search for food, resulting in several deaths. Eventually, the police go into the sewers and kill the rats with flamethrowers and shotguns after trapping them there, but Ben somehow survives the slaughter and makes his way back to Danny, wounded but alive. A tearful and overjoyed Danny tends to the injured Ben, determined not to lose his best friend.

Cast edit

Music edit

Theme song edit

The film's theme song "Ben" is performed by Lee Montgomery in the film and by Michael Jackson during the final scene and end credits (Recording date: November 1971. With the Funk Brothers). Michael Jackson's recording of the song became a number 1 pop hit single in 1972. Later included as the title track on Michael Jackson's second solo album, Ben,[3] it won a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song (it lost to "The Morning After" by Maureen McGovern from another 1972 film, The Poseidon Adventure).

The song is calm and mellow, which contrasts with the horror content of the film. A live recorded version was released on the album The Jacksons Live! (1981) and eventually appeared on Michael Jackson's album Number Ones (2003).[4]

Crispin Glover recorded a version of the song for the soundtrack of the 2003 remake of Willard. A music video for this version was produced, which also featured Glover.

Reception edit

Ben received mixed reviews from critics. It holds a rating of 60% on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 10 reviews.[5]

Among the more positive reviews was that of Variety, which wrote that the film has the "same type of suspenseful action" as the original, and that Lee Montgomery "plays his part to perfection".[6] Gene Siskel of the Chicago Tribune gave the film 31⁄2 stars out of 4, and stated, "Ben succeeds as a horror show because it contains the requisite number of rat attacks with the camera holding on victims covered with perhaps two dozen, clinging, scratching, and biting rodents. Omigod, he's covered with rats. Eeeech! But Ben goes beyond mere thrills into the realm of solid drama because of the superb performance of Lee Harcourt Montgomery as Danny Garrison who befriends Ben, the leader of the rat pack terrorizing the city".[7] Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times wrote that the film "is equally scary and diverting as Willard while being more serious and ambitious".[8]

However, Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film 11⁄2 stars out of 4, writing: "This isn't a thriller but a geek movie. In a thriller, we're supposed to be scared by some awesome menace to mankind—the Green Blob maybe, or Big Foot, or the Invincible Squid and his implacable enemy, red wine sauce. But in a geek movie, the whole idea is to be disgusted because the actors have rats all over them".[9] Vincent Canby of The New York Times said: "The way in which you will respond to Ben will depend on a number of variables, including how you feel about the possibility of Los Angeles shutting down, trick photography, dreadful acting by a dreadful cast, the decline and fall of Phil Karlson (The Phenix City Story) as a director and a screenplay that never has the courage to acknowledge its comic impulses".[10] Gary Arnold of The Washington Post thought that the film is "not much of an improvement on Willard" and has "no standout horror sequences".[11] Leonard Maltin's film guide also gave the film a negative review, awarding it 11⁄2 out of 4 stars, and panning the film's gory visuals.[12]

The film is recognized by the American Film Institute in the following list:

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ Donahue, Suzanne Mary (1987). American film distribution : the changing marketplace. UMI Research Press. p. 295. ISBN 978-0-8357-1776-2. Please note figures are for rentals in US and Canada
  2. ^ Canby, Vincent (June 24, 1972). "Ben (1972) Film: In 'Ben', a Boy Befriends a Rat". The New York Times. from the original on October 4, 2017. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
  3. ^ Ben allmusic Retrieved 19 March 2024
  4. ^ "Michael Jackson's latest CD sells better than expected - Nov. 27, 2003". Retrieved 20 March 2024.
  5. ^ "Ben". Rotten Tomatoes. from the original on 2019-04-10. Retrieved 2019-11-15.
  6. ^ "Film Reviews: Ben". Variety. June 14, 1973. 24.
  7. ^ Siskel, Gene (June 26, 1972). "'Ben...'" Chicago Tribune. Section 2, p. 13.
  8. ^ Thomas, Kevin (June 23, 1972). "An Army of Rats in L.A." Los Angeles Times. Part IV, p. 8.
  9. ^ Ebert, Roger (June 28, 1972). 'Ben'. 2020-05-28 at the Wayback Machine RogerEbert.com Retrieved May 7, 2019.
  10. ^ Canby, Vincent (June 24, 1972). "Film: In 'Ben', a Boy Befriends a Rat". 2019-05-07 at the Wayback Machine The New York Times. 19.
  11. ^ Arnold, Gary (June 27, 1972). "Eek! It's 'Ben'". The Washington Post. B9.
  12. ^ Maltin, Leonard (September 2012). Leonard Maltin's 2013 Movie Guide. New York, New York: Penguin Press. p. 170. ISBN 978-0-451-23774-3.
  13. ^ "AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs Nominees" (PDF). (PDF) from the original on 2016-01-02. Retrieved 2016-07-30.

External links edit

 
Wikiquote has quotations related to Ben (film).

January 01, 1970
film, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, film, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, february, 2016,. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Ben film news newspapers books scholar JSTOR February 2016 Learn how and when to remove this message Ben is a 1972 American horror film directed by Phil Karlson and starring Lee Montgomery Joseph Campanella and Arthur O Connell It is a sequel to the film Willard 1971 2 The film follows a lonely boy named Danny Garrison who befriends Willard s former pet rat named Ben Ben becomes the boy s best friend protecting him from bullying and keeping his spirits up in the face of a heart condition However Ben forms an army of deadly rodents while the police attempt to control it BenTheatrical release posterDirected byPhil KarlsonWritten byGilbert RalstonBased onCharacters createdby Stephen GilbertProduced byMort BriskinStarringLee MontgomeryJoseph CampanellaArthur O ConnellCinematographyRussell MettyEdited byHarry GerstadMusic byWalter ScharfProductioncompanyBing Crosby ProductionsDistributed byCinerama Releasing CorporationRelease dateJune 23 1972 1972 06 23 Running time94 minutesCountryUnited StatesLanguageEnglishBox office 2 3 million 1 The film premiered on June 21 1972 in California and was given a wide release on June 23 Ben was released on June 23 1972 by Cinerama Releasing Corporation Much like its predecessor it was met with mixed reviews American singer Michael Jackson performs the theme song of the film also titled Ben The song is also included on his 1972 album of the same name Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Music 3 1 Theme song 4 Reception 5 See also 6 References 7 External linksPlot editThe movie begins with a recap of the ending of the first film where Willard Stiles is killed by his rats after he tries to kill them and Ben Police arrive at the scene and find Willard dead Two police officers stay at the Stiles house where one of them is attacked and killed by the rats while the other finds his body A police detective named Clift Kirtland orders to have an exterminator to kill the rats but Ben hears this and tells the other rats Together Ben and the other rats go into the sewer A lonely boy named Danny Garrison who has a severe heart condition lives with his sister Eve and his mother Beth Danny finds and befriends Ben while playing with marionettes in his workshed and Ben becomes the boy s best friend Later that day Ben and the other rats attack a food truck causing the driver to crash and kill another driver The next day Danny plays on the piano a song he has created for Ben Later that night Ben and the other rats invade a grocery store for food and destroy the entire store Police officers and detectives are now trying to kill the rats with poison and traps in the neighborhood but Danny tells Ben about the traps set up by the police Just then a bully comes to make fun of Danny but Ben and the other rats attack the bully by biting him in the legs The bully gets scared and runs away Danny thanks Ben and the rats for helping him with the bully The bully comes back with his mother and the police The police tell Danny they want to see Ben so Danny brings them to the workshed and throws at them a marionette he made that looks like Ben The police with the bully and the bully s mother leave the workshed However things gradually take a downhill turn as Ben s colony becomes violent in its search for food resulting in several deaths Eventually the police go into the sewers and kill the rats with flamethrowers and shotguns after trapping them there but Ben somehow survives the slaughter and makes his way back to Danny wounded but alive A tearful and overjoyed Danny tends to the injured Ben determined not to lose his best friend Cast editLee Harcourt Montgomery as Danny Garrison Joseph Campanella as Cliff Kirtland Arthur O Connell as Billy Hatfield Rosemary Murphy as Beth Garrison Meredith Baxter as Eve Garrison Kaz Garas as Joe Greer Paul Carr as Kelly Richard van Vleet as Reade Kenneth Tobey as engineer James Luisi as Ed Lee Paul as Carey Norman Alden as policeman Scott Garrett as Henry Gray Arlen Stuart as Mrs Gray Ric Drasin as George Bruce Davison as Willard Stiles archive footage Music editTheme song edit This section does not cite any sources Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed February 2016 Learn how and when to remove this message The film s theme song Ben is performed by Lee Montgomery in the film and by Michael Jackson during the final scene and end credits Recording date November 1971 With the Funk Brothers Michael Jackson s recording of the song became a number 1 pop hit single in 1972 Later included as the title track on Michael Jackson s second solo album Ben 3 it won a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song it lost to The Morning After by Maureen McGovern from another 1972 film The Poseidon Adventure The song is calm and mellow which contrasts with the horror content of the film A live recorded version was released on the album The Jacksons Live 1981 and eventually appeared on Michael Jackson s album Number Ones 2003 4 Crispin Glover recorded a version of the song for the soundtrack of the 2003 remake of Willard A music video for this version was produced which also featured Glover Reception editBen received mixed reviews from critics It holds a rating of 60 on Rotten Tomatoes based on 10 reviews 5 Among the more positive reviews was that of Variety which wrote that the film has the same type of suspenseful action as the original and that Lee Montgomery plays his part to perfection 6 Gene Siskel of the Chicago Tribune gave the film 31 2 stars out of 4 and stated Ben succeeds as a horror show because it contains the requisite number of rat attacks with the camera holding on victims covered with perhaps two dozen clinging scratching and biting rodents Omigod he s covered with rats Eeeech But Ben goes beyond mere thrills into the realm of solid drama because of the superb performance of Lee Harcourt Montgomery as Danny Garrison who befriends Ben the leader of the rat pack terrorizing the city 7 Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times wrote that the film is equally scary and diverting as Willard while being more serious and ambitious 8 However Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun Times gave the film 11 2 stars out of 4 writing This isn t a thriller but a geek movie In a thriller we re supposed to be scared by some awesome menace to mankind the Green Blob maybe or Big Foot or the Invincible Squid and his implacable enemy red wine sauce But in a geek movie the whole idea is to be disgusted because the actors have rats all over them 9 Vincent Canby of The New York Times said The way in which you will respond to Ben will depend on a number of variables including how you feel about the possibility of Los Angeles shutting down trick photography dreadful acting by a dreadful cast the decline and fall of Phil Karlson The Phenix City Story as a director and a screenplay that never has the courage to acknowledge its comic impulses 10 Gary Arnold of The Washington Post thought that the film is not much of an improvement on Willard and has no standout horror sequences 11 Leonard Maltin s film guide also gave the film a negative review awarding it 11 2 out of 4 stars and panning the film s gory visuals 12 The film is recognized by the American Film Institute in the following list 2004 AFI s 100 Years 100 Songs Ben Nominated 13 See also editList of American films of 1972References edit Donahue Suzanne Mary 1987 American film distribution the changing marketplace UMI Research Press p 295 ISBN 978 0 8357 1776 2 Please note figures are for rentals in US and Canada Canby Vincent June 24 1972 Ben 1972 Film In Ben a Boy Befriends a Rat The New York Times Archived from the original on October 4 2017 Retrieved March 1 2017 Ben allmusic Retrieved 19 March 2024 Michael Jackson s latest CD sells better than expected Nov 27 2003 Retrieved 20 March 2024 Ben Rotten Tomatoes Archived from the original on 2019 04 10 Retrieved 2019 11 15 Film Reviews Ben Variety June 14 1973 24 Siskel Gene June 26 1972 Ben Chicago Tribune Section 2 p 13 Thomas Kevin June 23 1972 An Army of Rats in L A Los Angeles Times Part IV p 8 Ebert Roger June 28 1972 Ben Archived 2020 05 28 at the Wayback Machine RogerEbert com Retrieved May 7 2019 Canby Vincent June 24 1972 Film In Ben a Boy Befriends a Rat Archived 2019 05 07 at the Wayback Machine The New York Times 19 Arnold Gary June 27 1972 Eek It s Ben The Washington Post B9 Maltin Leonard September 2012 Leonard Maltin s 2013 Movie Guide New York New York Penguin Press p 170 ISBN 978 0 451 23774 3 AFI s 100 Years 100 Songs Nominees PDF Archived PDF from the original on 2016 01 02 Retrieved 2016 07 30 External links edit nbsp Wikiquote has quotations related to Ben film Ben at IMDb nbsp Ben at AllMovie Ben at the TCM Movie Database Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Ben film amp oldid 1215463768, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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