''Rabid'' is a 2019 Canadian body horror film directed and co-written by

Jen and Sylvia Soska Jen Soska and Sylvia Soska (born April 29, 1983), also known as The Soska Sisters or The Twisted Twins, are Canadian twin sisters who collaborate as film directors, producers and screenwriters. They are known for directing often violent and vis ...

and starring

Laura Vandervoort Laura Dianne Vandervoort (born September 22, 1984) is a Canadian actress. She is best known for her roles as Sadie Harrison in the CTV teen drama series '' Instant Star'', Arla "The Bolt-Gun Killer" Cogan in the Syfy supernatural drama series ' ...

, Ben Hollingsworth, and Phil Brooks. It is a remake of the 1977 film of the same name directed by

David Cronenberg David Paul Cronenberg (born March 15, 1943) is a Canadian film director, screenwriter, and actor. He is one of the principal originators of what is commonly known as the body horror genre, with his films exploring visceral bodily transformatio ...

. ''Rabid'' premiered at the

London FrightFest Film Festival FrightFest, also known as Arrow Video FrightFest is an annual film festival held in London and Glasgow. The festival holds three major events each year: a festival running five days over the UK late August Bank Holiday weekend, a Halloween event ...

on August 26, 2019.

Plot

After a young woman, Rose, suffers a disfiguring accident, she undergoes an experimental stem-cell treatment that leads to unintended consequences. She starts to have

hallucinations A hallucination is a perception in the absence of an external stimulus that has the qualities of a real perception. Hallucinations are vivid, substantial, and are perceived to be located in external objective space. Hallucination is a combinati ...

and imagines killing people.

Cast

as Rose Miller * Ben Hollingsworth as Brad, a fashion photographer *

Ted Atherton Ted Atherton is a Canadian actor. He is best known as Myles Leland III in the TV series '' Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye''. Early life He moved with his family to Scarborough, Ontario when he was 13. He went to the University of Toronto and obtained a ba ...

as Dr. William Burroughs * Hanneke Talbot as Chelsea, Rose's best friend *

Mackenzie Gray Alexander Mackenzie Gray (born 22 November 1957) is a Canadian film, television, and stage actor. He is a dual citizen of the United Kingdom and Canada. He divides his time between Toronto and Vancouver. Life and career Gray was born in Toron ...

as Gunter, a fashion designer *

Stephen McHattie Stephen McHattie Smith (born February 3, 1946)Other sources cite 1945, 1947, and 1948. is a Canadian actor. Since beginning his professional career in 1970, he has amassed over 200 film and television credits. He won the Genie Award for Best Sup ...

as Dr. Michael Keloid * Phil Brooks as Billy *

AJ Mendez April Jeanette Mendez (born March 19, 1987) is an American author and retired professional wrestler. She is best known for her time in WWE under the ring name AJ Lee. She is currently an executive producer and color commentator for WOW – Wom ...

as Kira * Kevin Hanchard as Dr. Riley *

Greg Bryk Gregory Michael Bryk (born 19 August 1972) is a Canadian film and television actor. He has appeared in numerous films and television series and is best known for his reoccurring roles in ''ReGenesis'' (2004–2008), '' XIII: The Series'' (20 ...

as the Director * Stephen Huszar as Dominic

Production

In February 2016,

were hired to direct a remake of

's 1977 horror film ''

Rabid Rabies is a viral disease that causes encephalitis in humans and other mammals. Early symptoms can include fever and tingling at the site of exposure. These symptoms are followed by one or more of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, vio ...

'', with producers Michael Walker, Paul LaLonde and John Vidette. The film had entered pre-production by February 2018, during which time the Soskas described the project as a continuation of the "thoughts and conversation" from the original and "modernized through a female perspective". In May 2018,

was cast as the film's protagonist, Rose.

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as a ...

began in July 2018 in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...

. The film was produced by Back 40 Pictures in conjunction with

Telefilm Canada Telefilm Canada is a Crown corporation reporting to Canada's federal government through the Minister of Canadian Heritage. Headquartered in Montreal, Telefilm provides services to the Canadian audiovisual industry with four regional offices in V ...

and Ontario Media Development Corporation, and was financed by The Royal Bank of Canada, Media Finance Capital. Distribution rights were acquired by A71 Entertainment in Canada, Shout! Studios in the United States, 101 Films in the United Kingdom, and

Madman Entertainment Madman Entertainment Pty. Ltd., also known as Madman Films, is an Australian distribution and rights management company headquartered in East Melbourne, Victoria, specialising in feature films, documentaries and television series across theatr ...

in Australia and New Zealand.

Release

''Rabid'' premiered at the

on August 26, 2019. ''Rabid'' held its US premiere on October 15, 2019, at Screamfest Horror Film Festival in Los Angeles. The film was released theatrically, digitally, and on

video on demand Video on demand (VOD) is a media distribution system that allows users to access videos without a traditional video playback device and the constraints of a typical static broadcasting schedule. In the 20th century, broadcasting in the form of ...

on December 13, 2019, by Shout! Studios. Release on DVD and Blu-Ray was on February 4, 2020.

Reception

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...

, the film has an approval rating of , based on reviews from critics.

References

External links

* {{Authority control 2019 films 2019 horror films Remakes of Canadian films Canadian body horror films Canadian science fiction horror films Canadian independent films Canadian vampire films Canadian zombie films English-language Canadian films Films shot in Toronto Horror film remakes Works about plastic surgery 2010s English-language films 2010s Canadian films