Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Do not watch this garbage. It has no redeeming features. Not a single one. Bad acting, crap dialogue, rubbish dubbing, no atmosphere, terrible music, dire 'special' effects, painful story, dreadful direction etc. Even being drunk wouldn't save this one. Even brain trauma wouldn't save this. Ugh.

This film has some great elements such as some awesome 80's synth music, ridiculous over the top 80's outfits and character names (Lucifer, Taurus, Video). It does also contain some cringeworthy elements such as animal abuse which is common in foreign movies from as recent as the 90's. One moment you have characters talking about the indecency of humanity, and saying how rats don't deserve the punishment they get, and the next has the actors kicking live rats like footballs and beaming them with beer mugs. The acting, lines, and delivery bridges well into the absurdly bad, with one "joke" sticking out to me in particular. The character Lucifer is stuck in his sleeping bag and having trouble with the zipper, Taurus unzips it, and makes a comment about calmness being the virtue of a leader... then suddenly everyone is bursting out laughing like its the funniest thing they ever heard. Even Taurus who delivered the line is doing full belly wide mouth open head back laughter. Maybe you have to be in a rat filled apocalypse to understand the joke...

In a post-apocalyptic setting, a gang of nomads enter an abandoned building only to discover it inhabited by rodents with an insatiable appetite for human flesh. What starts out looking like another tired 'new gladiators' instalment soon emerges as a claustrophobic ten little Indian tale where the characters must battle both one another and the omnipresence of vengeful rats on the warpath. The fearless leader Kurt combats challenges from within, as the incessantly irritable Duke persistently tries to undermine his control over the group, all the while Kurt and his fellow actors are pelted with rats by off camera stage crew.Curiously reminiscent of a stage production, the characters will often gather together in shot and deliver their lines in succession before a distant noise startles them into collective panic. The dialogue is stilted but suits the wooden acting, a weakness that can't be attributed to the dubbing. Full frontal nudity earns the film its R rating, briefly assuming the mantle until the infamous sleeping bag scene (ouch). Amid the dissent and panic, one of the characters (earlier defined as the cerebral thinker and oracle of all knowledge) delivers an epitaph that could apply equally to both the deceased characters he laments, and the film itself when he utters the immortal line "they had such a terrible finish". At least it's finished for them; the audience will have to endure.Make-up effects are confronting at times, though they do often fall short of realism, opting instead for shock value as witnessed by the asinine decapitation scene which resembles an accident in a mannequin factory. And as usual, the poor old rats (no doubt selected for their rare thespian talents), end up being kicked, gassed, barbecued, shot and one even knocked out by a beer tankard. At least they have the last laugh.

The other Bruno Mattei film that I have seen is "Night of the Zombies" aka "Hell of the Living Dead" aka "Virus" and another couple of names. When I saw that film first it was under the title "Night of the Zombies", though in that film most of the zombie action took place in broad daylight. Here the title fits as nearly the entire film occurs at night, at least most of the rat action. This film is also a better quality movie than "Hell of the Living Dead", however, you will notice I gave that one a four and this one a three. Let me explain. One, I like zombie movies better and while that one is certainly a zombie flick this is a killer critter movie. Two, that one was a bit more fun to watch for me. While this one looked better on film and did not have any horrid stock footage, this one just did not grab me like that movie. Though both movies have a bit in common in that both of them end rather good. In "Hell of the Living Dead" you see a really good zombie attack in a park or something at the end which was better than most of the film. This one too ends quite well albeit a bit annoyingly as it sets up questions that will never get answered. Loved how that thing looked at the end as it looked rather creepy especially the eyes. On to the plot, it is 225 AB. What is AB you ask, well it means after the bomb. Yes, it is a post apocalyptic film about survivors roaming the surface looking for food and such. And what a group it is! The gals all look like they came straight from an MTV music video of that era and the guys are a mixed crowd though a couple of em have beards. This group is on the look out for food and in the rest of the film while they try to survive the night of rats one will wonder how the heck have these morons survived up until now? Seriously, they find food in this strange well made up little town like place. Buildings all around, but hey there is sugar and flour and lots and lots of rats. Well, you know the drill and from the title of this film it is fair to say I am not spoiling anything when I say the rats soon go after the humans to consume their flesh! Would have been better with more gore, perhaps a bit more nudity and more rats! I know, there are quite a few, but one never really gets the impression that these people are truly being overwhelmed. There are also one to many scenes of what looks like stuffed rats being dropped on the heads of our actors. The infighting was completely unnecessary and seemed to come out of nowhere and then there is the girl who gets bitten and hangs around only to die in rather retarded fashion. Also, what was with the girl in the cape? In the post apocalyptic future girls will either have big hair or wear a phantom of the opera cape apparently. So while it was still bad, it was rather entertaining to watch, just not quite as entertaining as "Hell of the Living Dead" another of Mattei's masterpieces.