Rabid Dogs (Cani arrabbiati) (Kidnapped) ( A Man and a Boy) poster & wallpaper
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Riccardo Cucciolla, Lea Lander, Maurice Poli, George Eastman, Don Backy ... see more see more... , Erika Dario , Maria Fabbri , Luigi Antonio Guerra , Francesco Ferrini , Emilio Bonucci , Pino Manzari , Ettore Manni , Barbara Ehringer , Nina Gueltzow , Fabrizia Sacchi

An unreleased suspense thriller from Italy's master of horror and fantasy, Mario Bava, Rabid Dogs makes its belated debut in this special DVD release. When a bank robbery goes awry for a pair of viole... read more read more...nt criminals, they take an innocent woman hostage, who must fight for her survival. Shot mostly inside a speeding car, this tense and claustrophobic drama was filmed in 1974 (five years before Bava's death), but shortly before completion the death of one of the principal financiers threw the project into limbo. In 1998, the film's elements were rediscovered and editing was completed using Bava's notes as a guide; the result is a film that takes a decidedly modern detour from Bava's traditional Gothic subject matter and gives a much broader perspective on the range of his talents. A few years later, the film was reworked and retitled Kidnapped for a brief theatrical run in the U.S. That version of the film would later be released on DVD by Anchor Bay, with the original, Rabid Dogs cut included as supplimental material. Curiously enough, the version of Rabid Dogs featured on the Kidnapped disc still differs from the version of the film previously released by Lucertola. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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Unrated, 1 hr. 36 min.

Directed by: Mario Bava

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DVD Release Date: July 18, 2006

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Bisturi on the set of 'Cani Arrabbiati' 'Cani arrabbiati' 'Cani arrabbiati' rabid dogs Bisturi - Trentadue - Maria Don Backy as Bisturi Don Backy as Bisturi Bisturi - Maria - Trentadue Riccardo Cucciolla as Riccardo Maurice Poli as Dottore Don Backy as Bisturi Dottore - Trentadue - Bisturi Riccardo Cucciolla in 'Cani arrabbiati' George Eastman as Trentadue Maria and Bisturi George Eastman as Trentadue
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Flixster Reviews (106)

  • adammahler1
    December 28, 2009
    adammahler1
    Financial problems kept this film from being finished, but the rough cut as released in 1997 is a great B-movie with scrappy editing that compares to some work by Peckinpah and Siegel. There's not much beauty of movement like in Peckinpah. There a few panning shots of the car tha... read moret I think bore the eye and a few more long takes that are brilliant. Bava uses zoom work for soft dramatic punches, and dramatic close-ups, sometimes framing two characters. The movie is not in real time, as some critics have reported, but some sequences seem to be.

    The horror-show car ride means to but does not illustrates the depths of human degeneration as effectively as Deliverance or The Last House on the Left, in which the seasoned homicidal maniacs despoiled pure innocence so completely, they wanted to wash up afterward. The stand-in for innocence here is not a real character but a swaddled child that we glimpse occasionally, in cutaway close-ups that would fit in Griffith's melodramas. But the subtext here is not as much about human evil or human animalism as it is about capitalism, opportunity and communal authority.

    If you pay attention to the small details of Backy, Poli and Cucciolla's performances, you learn a lot about becoming unconfident when crossing lines of conduct or seeing them crossed -- what it can do to anyone, from the career criminal to the middle-class working man. Standards of behavior, and social decency, are important ideas in this movie, but more important is whether an individual keeps himself together when he witnesses any of his standards bent to the breaking point.
  • 366weirdmovies
    April 20, 2008
    366weirdmovies
    Fleeing a bloody payroll heist, three criminals abduct two adults and an unconscious, possibly dying child. Basically a five character hostage drama set almost entirely inisde a cramped car, strong characterizations make this involving despite plot holes and a too-obvious twist ... read moreending. Beware the inferior re-edited, re-dubbed version entitled KIDNAPPED.
  • mjgildea
    June 7, 2007
    mjgildea
    Rabid Dogs (not Kidnapped) starts off as a movie that's trying to be rotten either for the sake of being rotten or because the worst it can get is an R-rating. The very well done escape sequence is really all that seems to carry Bava's signature. Rabid Dogs has none of the brilli... read moreant lighting that his previous work has and the majority of the story takes place in a station wagon. But it's upsetting, brutal and great. Not as good as Bava's earlier work but still worth checking out. (By the way, the ending on the Kidnapped version is a little more clear, but Mario Bava's version is definitely the one to go with...)
  • threefolddado
    March 22, 2008
    threefolddado
    Sweltering and disturbing. One of Bava's finest hours.
  • mpghoul1973
    August 31, 2011
    mpghoul1973
    The Last film Bava filmed solo, after he had help from his son Lamberto, is also a unfinished film that never got a release until sometime in the 90's. So the final cut of Rabid Dogs isnt really Bava's. Rabid Dogs is Bavas contribution the the crime genre that was going rabid, pu... read moren intended, in Italy at the time. Bava's contribution to the genre is also a fresh take on it. Rabid Dogs does not fall into the same trappings 90% of the other films have in common. It almost feels like the film takes place in real time and 95 percent of the film takes place in a very crowded car. A brilliant performance from Euro sleaze extraordinaire George Eastman as one of the ultra sleazy crooks. This film is brutal, nihilistic and mean! Although the ending can be seen comming from a mile away the last shot of the film is probably the films rudest bleakest moment. Bavas signature touch is everywere and this one stands proudly with some of his finest moments.
    Ignore Kidnapped, the original Cipriani score was replaced and the film has been trimmed to be more faster paced by Bavas son Lamberto. Which those familiar with Lamberto knows he lacks the genius of his father.
  • kingmob6
    April 10, 2011
    kingmob6
    A very sleazy and grimy crime caper film peppered with uneasy touches throughout, this isn't the average Bava film, but boy is it well worth a look.

    A group of thieves lose their getaway driver in an accident and take a woman hostage before carjacking a man trying to get his sic... read morek child to a doctor, leading to a tense chase across country with a battle of wills playing out inside the sweaty confines of the car.

    Very well worth a look, give this one a shot.
  • MonsterRally
    August 4, 2009
    MonsterRally
    Arnold Horseshack and Vinnie Barbarino turn to a like of crime in this botched heist turned family vacation road trip. While a bit slow in some spots and suspect to seventies editing lags (even though the film was completed in the late nineties due to the producer's bankruptcy), ... read morethis is still a riveting crime suspense/drama featuring some tense moments, a truly surprising ending, and what could possibly be the most tastefully done scene of forced female urination ever filmed in Italian cinema.
  • TurkishStain
    March 10, 2009
    TurkishStain
    One of the finest endings ever. Mario Bava is probably more famous for his horror flicks but this little mean-spirited crime film that no doubt inspired Tarantino is probably his best.
  • capkronos
    October 2, 2007
    capkronos
    Three criminals pull off a robbery, kill several people during a police shoot out in a parking garage and then take a female hostage. Wanting to ditch their car, they kidnap a second hostage, a surprisingly calm man with a young, sickly son, and force him to drive take them to sa... read morefety. This crime drama marked a change of pace (and a change of tone) for Mario Bava, best known for his super stylish gothic horror films, which concentrated as much on atmosphere, color composition and camera angles and they did on the story. This is a more stark, contemporary film that takes place in broad daylight and mostly within the cramped comfines of a car. The good news is that it's an excellent, sadistic thriller and loaded with suspense and tension. The performances are believable and the script pulls you in immediately, after which there's almost no let-up. Recommended.

View All Rabid Dogs (Cani arrabbiati) (Kidnapped) ( A Man and a Boy) Reviews

Critic Reviews

Fernando F. Croce
March 21, 2010
Fernando F. Croce, CinePassion

Dazzling Full Review

Jeffrey M. Anderson
May 3, 2007
Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid

Definitely one of Bava's more pessimistic films, but it shows just how far the master was capable of stretching into a more realistic, less expressionistic palate. Full Review

Ed Gonzalez
August 14, 2003
Ed Gonzalez, Slant Magazine

Quite cynically, Bava evokes a human society where no one is to be trusted. Full Review

Dennis Harvey
August 26, 2010
Dennis Harvey, Variety

Click to read the article Full Review

December 6, 2005
Film Threat

Click to read the article Full Review

Michael Szymanski
October 7, 2005
Michael Szymanski, International Press Academy

No review available.

Emanuel Levy
August 17, 2005
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com

No review available.

December 8, 2002
Film Threat

Click to read the article Full Review

Marjorie Baumgarten
March 10, 2003
Marjorie Baumgarten, Austin Chronicle

Click to read the article Full Review

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