Willard

Poor, socially awkward Willard. He doesn't fit into society very well and befriends a horde of rats that infest his backyard. So what does Willard the misfit do because he has no friends? He decides to breed a rat army to seek vengeance on the adults that have wronged him.

This is the plot of Shout Factory's new retro horror release "Willard," a film intentionally comic in tone, especially in the regard of its adult characters. A very successful horror film, "Willard" had become a lost classic over the years. Its sequel, "Ben," also is being released to coincide with the forgotten film.

Ben's the name of the leader of the rat army, one that becomes out of control after Willard constantly battles with his overbearing boss (Ernest Borgnine). In the film's most infamous sequence (a scene shown in the film's trailer), Willard commands his rat friends to attack Borgnine and he plunges to his bloody death. It's a gruesome scene and because this was the days before CGI, real rodents were used throughout "Willard."

A pre-Clint Eastwood movie starlet Sondra Locke plays Willard's co-worker and love interest.

The title character was played by Bruce Davison, a great actor who became a horror film icon and starred in a few of Stephen King's TV movies. He has his own featurette on Shout's Blu-ray titled "I Used to Hate Myself But Now I Like Myself a Lot," based on one of the most famous quotes in "Willard." His interview segment lasts about 15 minutes and he offers up memories of his human co-stars, as well as his rodent ones.

Also on hand are TV/radio spots and a still gallery. It's not an extensive special features section but fans of "Willard" should be happy with this release after years of it sitting around in obscurity.

"Willard"
Blu-ray
$29.99
www.shoutfactory.com