The Rat Savior (AKA Izbavitelj) (1976) Movie Review, Film Still and Poster

Yugoslavia 1976
Director: Krsto Papic
Cast: Ivica Vidovic, Mirjana Majurec, Relja Basic, Fabijan Sovagovic, Ilija Ivezic, Branko Spoljar
Rating: M/16
Language: Croatian
Release Date: 26 October 1976
Running Time: 1 hour 20 minutes

The Movie Review

The Rat Savior film still 1


The RAT SAVIOR (Izbavitelj)
Storyline:
Cast:
Ending:
Overall:

I can't believe I forgot to review this awesome obscure horror film from Croatia (formerly Yugoslavia) :-) About a month ago I uploaded many movie reviews concerning invasion, specifically every movie that is related to a classic motion picture from the 50s titled Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956). So fans of that movie should know by now what The Rat Savior is all about. I try to be careful not to spoil anything because the less you know about the storyline, the better. But of course, at least you should know whether The Rat Savior is your cup of coffee or not. One thing for sure, The Rat Savior is not about charming rat like Ratatouille (2007), not Heartbreaking like Ben (1972) and not awful like Rodentz (2001), but this rare Yugoslavian motion picture is simply stunning!

However, I still give you the storyline below, in case some of you are still curious. So inevitably minor spoilers are present, you can skip these two paragraphs if you plan to indulge in surprise.

Sonja and Ivan

Set in Yugoslavia in the depressing era of World War, we follow the life (the miserable life) of a failed writer named Ivan Gajski (Ivica Vidovic). Ivan has failed not because of lack of talent but simply because in this era, people tend to care more about primal needs like food and clothing instead of buying books. Unable to provide money for the house rent, Ivan is eventually forced to live on the street and eating from the mercy of a store owner Mr. Rupcic (Branko Spoljar). While on the street selling the only books he has, Ivan meets a nice young woman who seems very intelligent and friendly, Sonja Boskovic (Mirjana Majurec).

Fate apparently destines them to spend more time together after Ivan witnesses something very strange, odd and disturbing in an abandoned building while seeking a place to sleep there. Ivan overhears that the brilliant Professor Martin Boskovic (Fabijan Sovagovic) --who is no other than Sonja's own father-- is going to be assassinated for knowing more about an underground rat people society led by The Rat Savior (Relja Basic). This secret society plans on taking control of the world by killing a person, stealing his/her identity and replacing their existence with a rat which will be transformed to look like that said killed person. Will Ivan stop them? But what would a poor unemployed man to do against a legion of fake people?

The Depressed People

Spellbinding, engrossing, brisk, dense, shocking and memorable, The Rat Savior surely is something that every horror or science fiction film fan must see! Released in 1976, the movie eventually honored by receiving an award as Best Film in 1982 International Fantasy Film Award. The Rat Savior AKA Izbavitelj is based on a novel titled "Pacolovac" written by Russian novelist, Alexander Grin/Aleksandra Grina and the screenplay was written by Ivo Bresan, Zoran Tadic and the director himself Krsto Papic. From the get go, The Rat Savior is already chilling. Honestly, the opening music score is one of the scariest, most disturbing music I've ever heard in a movie... And the experience doubled by presenting us with surrealistic artworks involving scary portrayal of rats, horses, eyes which just... hmmm.... disturbing.

One of Disturbing Surrealistic Artworks

And then the movie starts, and with a running length of considerably short, there is no single wasted scene in this Croatian movie. I was so absorbed by the storytelling that I wasn't aware that its premise was actually already very familiar to me, and I was thinking what would the movie do to regular moviegoers who hasn't even watched any Hollywood remakes of Invasion of the Body Snatchers...? There is nothing flamboyant or exaggerated in The Rat Savior, everything feels more realistic, raw and scary. I mean the rat people really do imbue something unsettling when seeing them.

Croatian Actress Mirjana Majurec

There are nudity, including sex scene and nudity by its leading actress Mirjana Majurec (who was the real wife of actor Ivica Vidovic) but the nudity serves only to tickles our emotion and then there is also a bit of bloody moments but it serves a good purpose to shock. I strongly disagree if Izbavitelj ia labeled as B-movie. The storyline is smart, the editing is neat, the acting is great, the twist is shocking, the dialogue is realistic and by skipping any explanation regarding the origin of rat people and/or allegory of rat people to corruptors/evil ones, those are just making the horror in this movie feels more real.

> Another "creative" version of Body Snatchers: Invasion of the Bee Girls (1973).

The remakes of the original Invasion of the Body Snatchers: Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978), Body Snatchers (1993), The Invasion (2007) and the mockbuster version Invasion of the Pod People (2007).

© iwan pranowo of Movielogy.com
Twitter: @movielogy
posted: Monday, 5 December 2011 02:02 am