Food of the Gods II
Tags: tragedy, cult, entertaining, violence

Plot synopsis:
Dr. Neil Hamilton (Paul Coufos) receives a call from his mentor Dr. Kate Travis (Jackie Burroughs) about a young boy named Bobby, whose deficient growth has been treated with Travis' experimental serum. Bobby has swiftly and unexpectedly grown larger than a full-grown adult and become violent. To find an antidote, Neil takes a sample of the serum back to his lab at a university science complex. There, animal-rights activists led by Mark Hales (Réal Andrews) and Neil's girlfriend Alex Reed (Lisa Schrage) are protesting the work of Prof. Edmund Delhurst (Colin Fox), who claims to study cancer but in fact subjects animals to experimentation seeking a cure for baldness.
Neil and his assistant Joshua (Frank Pellegrino) inject the serum into some lab rats. That night, the activists (minus Alex) break into the complex to trash Delhurst's lab and accidentally release the now-giant rats, which kill Mark and escape into the campus' utility tunnels. Police Lieutenant Weizel (Michael Copeman) does not believe the surviving activists' statements despite Neil's corroboration about the serum, and Dean White (David B. Nichols) hires a pair of exterminators to handle what he believes are normal-sized rats.
The giant rats kill several people, including one of the exterminators and the surviving activists, Al and Angie, escape. But the giant rats apparently kill whoever tried to hunt the animals down themselves. Delhurst's assistant, a janitor named Zeke, is attacked. But, the surviving exterminator, despite taking several rat bites to his arms and face, appears and burns this rat. Later, a night watchman tries to escape some rats, though he is killed off screen. Alex discovers the body of a workman (a Mexican forced from his car and chased by rats) while two other men killed by the rats, whose bodies are still in the car, are discovered by the police. Although Lieutenant Weizel is convinced of the threat, Dean White remains skeptical and refuses to shut the campus down because of the upcoming grand opening of the university's new sports complex. When Joshua falls victim to the rats, Neil attacks the Dean and is fired.
Delhurst steals the serum sample and tests it, first on Neil's pet rat Louise, then on a sample of cancer cells. He accidentally contaminates himself wiĺth treated cells and dies within minutes as his entire body develops massive tumors. Neil returns to the lab to retrieve the antidote he has created, testing it by destroying Delhurst's transformed corpse. Meanwhile, the rats attack the swimming competition being held in the new sports complex, killing several people including Dean White.
Neil uses the enlarged but still-docile Louise, who is in heat, to lure the giant (male) rats into the university courtyard where Weizel and his men gun them all down. Neil phones Dr. Travis to inform her of the antidote, but it is too late; Bobby, now psychotic and larger than ever, kills Travis while she is on the phone and escapes.

Review: Once again my ability to be entertained finds it's happy place at the near lowest common denominator one can possibly find: A movie about growth hormone mutated rats chewing their way through the supporting cast of an unnamed Canadian university.
Packed with in jokes, sight-gags and made by people who were using their brains for more than shoulder ballast, I found this to be a rip-roaring entertainment heightened by the ingenious way that miniature sets, forced perspective shots and other gimmicks were used to create monster rats, an over-sized university professor, and a giant mutant kid who's escape at the conclusion of the film was the perfect open ending.
And I hope nobody ever makes a FOTG Pt3 to show what happens to him: some things are best left to the imagination.Anyone familiar with the abysmal 1976 film of more or less the same name can rest assured: Part 2 has absolutely nothing to do with the original FOTG, setting off on a totally independent storyline which produces more or less the same results -- giant rats eating people, a universally frightening concept -- though this film is correctly played for laughs where the original was a semi-serious ecological horror flick unable to overcome it's underlying stupidity.This one works because it embraced that stupidity & went with it.THE PLOT: An overachieving researcher develops a growth hormone formula, tests it on some tomatoes which are then eaten by a cage full of lab rats who get big and eat people.
End of story.Along the way, the film takes hilarious pot-shots at such deserving targets as animal rights activists, liberal university administrations, the police, Clint Eastwood, and synchronized swimming.
In fact the minute that the evil Dean character voiced concern that an effort to corral the mutant rats might interfere with the opening of a new pool complex I knew that the climax would be fun, though the bigger laugh came when he referred to "all the rich alumni with their checkbooks" who would be in attendance.
Like research work.Look, if you're going to be sitting down and watching a film about mutant rats on the rampage the last thing in the world you're really going to fret over are convincing performances, slick special effects and a coherent plot, so why not approach the material at an angle & have some fun?
On that level of consideration this film is a minor masterpiece, and anyone who finds it to be prurient or juvenile in nature is simply refusing to play along with the fun.Highly recommended as a "party movie", with plenty of laughs, some repulsive gore and even a few bared breasts here & there.But if you're looking for a serious film, well that's why they make DVDs of CITIZEN KANE, and you'd be advised to stick with that.
There are, in addition, some fine touches of melodrama (re: a man and his lab-rat and the mutual love/jealousy that ensues), a memorable performance by Jackie Burroughs ("Road to Avonlea"), and an even more memorable one by the kid who plays the "small boy who gets big and therefore foul-mouthed, mean and homicidal".To those with a penchant for the ridiculous:  only you can prevent GNAW!
Lots of human error adds up to one colossal mess in this follow-up (rather than true sequel) to the 1976 film adaptation of H.G. Wells' "The Food of the Gods".
A growth hormone, initially used on produce, is injected into one rat, and the effects spread to other rats, which all develop a taste for human flesh after they become giants.
The monstrous rodents then terrorize a college campus.Almost all of the human characters are stupid beyond belief, so ones' instincts will be to side with the rats and enjoy watching these people become rat chow.
Parsons is pretty absurd at times, adding to the comical feel.Among the highlights: a subplot about a giant kid (Sean Mitchell), a memorable nightmare sequence, and the riotous climax where the rats run amok during the grand opening of the colleges' brand spanking new sports complex, disrupting some synchronized swimming.Paul Coufos ("The Lost Empire", "Chopping Mall"), who somewhat resembles Jeff Fahey, makes the mistake of taking himself too seriously, while at least some of the others here know they're performing in utter schlock and deliver goofy performances (like that priceless janitor Zeke (David Koyle)).
While trying to find a way to reverse rapid hormonal growth, university professor Dr. Neil Hamilton (Paul Coufos) accidentally creates a pack of giant man-eating rodents that escape into the sewers under the campus, emerging to attack students and staff.As unbelievable as it might seem, someone (well, director Damian Lee, to be more precise) actually went and made a sequel to Bert I.
Gordon's cruddy '70s eco-horror Food of the Gods; almost as hard to believe is that FOTG2 proves far more enjoyable than the dismal original.
Lee is far from a great film-maker, as anyone who has seen Abraxas, Guardian of the Universe (1990) can testify, but he loads his film with enough demented lunacy—including some welcome OTT gore and a little female nudity—to ensure that it easily surpasses Gordon's film in terms of sheer entertainment value.Admittedly, it takes a while for Lee to get into the swing of things, but once he does, he lets loose with a series of wonderfully daft scenes: we get a cheesy science montage with a naff synth rock soundtrack; there's a ridiculous dream sequence in which hero Dr. Hamilton injects himself with an experimental hormone, and then grows while having sex with student Mary Anne (actress Kimberly Dickson kindly ticking the nudity box); a rat exterminator with a flamethrower does an impersonation of Clint Eastwood; a guy gets his ass mauled by a rat while taking a leak; the rodents chase a maintenance man on an electric cart through tunnels at high speed; an unscrupulous scientist is infected with dog cancer and melts; and in the magnificent finale, the rats attack a synchronised swimming contest before being massacred by machine gun.As if that wasn't enough for fans of B-movie silliness, there's also fun to be had from numerous cameos by the boom mic and a special FX guy, armed with a pair of syringes loaded with goop, who surreptitiously sneaks into shot during the melting scene..
Food of the Gods 2 followed 16 years after the original movie and is a lot more gory than Food of the Gods and less enjoyable but not total trash.An experiment on growth hormone goes wrong and this results in rats growing into giants and going on the rampage.
I laughed at the melting man sequence.Food of the Gods 2 is worth looking at, despite all that gore.Rating: 2 and a half stars out of 5..
I didnt see what there wasnt to like about it there is rats and countless deaths bad special effects but who cares.
The teacher asks her favorite student to do some more experiments to see if something can be created to reduce the size of the child who is not only still growing but his attitude is getting violent.Back on the college campus, PETA members are throwing a fit because the school is doing experiments on live animals.
The original was a flat out bomb because the director took the material way too serious but thankfully Lee doesn't do that and instead delivers a rather comical horror spoof that takes shots at everything from Gordon to PETA to even Jaws.
This certainly isn't a good movie either but if you've got nothing better to do and it's three in the morning then you should find yourself laughing.Since the story isn't important that means there must be something worth watching and that's the animal attacks that are downright hilarious.
All of the attacks are rather violent in a comic book way and the director certainly had enough in the budget to throw around the red stuff, which is what horror fans want.Outside the gore the next important thing is the humor that is scattered throughout the film.
I'll let you use your imagination on this one.Food of the Gods 2 is in no way shape or form a "classic" film but it isn't trying to be.
However, if you appreciate films like The Cyclops and Attack of the 50 Foot Woman then you should get the comic nature of this movie..
It's like "Demons", but with giant wet rats in a swimming pool instead of a movie theater.
Gordon's (Mr B.I.G) original 1976 film of H.G Wells 'The Food of the Gods' (which I haven't seen) sees a growth hormone accidentally transform a horde of rats into giant man-eating rodents that feed there way through a college campus.
Still it's filled with stupidity and we end up with an abrupt open-ending (I'm sure a sequel was in mind) of a sub-plot (involving a young boy being injected with the growth hormone and College Professor Neil Hamilton being asked to help find a cure to stop the uncontrollable growth by use of experiments) that starts of proceedings, and is the main reason for the rat mayhem to occur and when it centres back on this angle, it glazes over it despite probably being more interesting than the rat chaos.
Food of the Gods II tells the legacy of a group of giant, man-eating rats who infest a college campus.
Biologist Neil Hamilton succeeds in synthesizing a growth hormone and uses it to create giant tomatoes.Unfortunately the tomatoes are eaten by caged rats which then grow until they become the size of dogs.When animal rights activists break into the lab,they accidentally succeed in freeing the rats which escape down into the tunnels beneath the campus and start preying on people."Food of the Gods II" is one hell of a bad movie.The acting is lousy,the characters are painfully stupid and there is plenty of gore with ripped-out throats and severed limbs to boot.The film has its share of riotously unintentionally funny sequences too.In spite of its New York setting this amusing crap was actually made in Canada.So grab some beer,invite a couple of friends and laugh how stunningly bad "Food of the Gods II" is!.
The climactic set piece involves giant rats terrorizing a synchronized swimming display commemorating the grand opening of the college swimming pool (that was a mouthful!).
Boring, predictable, by-the-numbers horror outing at least has pretty good special effects and plenty of (mindless) mayhem and gore to satisfy (mindless) genre fans.
If you're still having any thoughts of wasting your time on this snore fest I'll summarize the plot so you can see how horrible it is.So Dr. Hamilton brings the growth hormone back to his cheap lab at a community college to find a cure.Dr. Hamilton also just happens to be giving extra credit lessons to one of his students who's joined an animal rights group protesting the community college's animal experiments on...
I had no idea there was a save the lap rats movement.PETR People For the Ethical Treatment of Rats breaks into Dr. Hamilton's lab and frees his lab rats whom predictably get into the super growth hormone.Giant killer rats on the loose at a community college.
They're hard to miss.Of course they're would be other easy ways to kill giant rats like...
This one is about this growing boy and a scientist that is trying to help him so he accidentally creates giant killer rats...you know how it is.
The concept appeared in H.G. Wells' "Food of the Gods" story, but it was, by far, the weakest part of the book, so it shouldn't have been touched upon for this movie.I won't spoil the ending (should you even care to watch the movie in the first place), but I will mention rats intermingling with college kids packed in to see a swimming meet (!), as well as a scene in a subway that might have been meant for another sequel.
An experimental growth hormone causes lab rats to grow to giant size.
Numerous touches and moments of inspired (and often unintentionally hilarious) absurdity abound throughout: A foulmouthed and ill-tempered titanic brat, insipid scientist hero Neil Hamilton (a hopelessly cardboard performance by Paul Coufos) dreaming that he starts to grow to gigantic size while in the middle of making love to enticing coed Mary Anne (foxy brunette Kimberly Dickson), a macho cigar-chomping Clint Eastwood clone rat exterminator, a rat attacking a dude who's urinating behind a bush (we're even treated to gut-busting shots of this guy's bare butt as he runs away screaming!), the ultimate agonizingly nasty fate of Hamilton's unscrupulous jerk rival Edmond Delhurst (ripely overplayed to the obnoxious hilt by Colin Fox), and, best of all, the vicious vermin making a bloody hash out of a pool full of synchronized swimmers (!) during the delightfully berserk climax.
Nobody, of course, but director Damien Lee thought it was a good idea, anyway, and he put together a belated sequel that stands as one of the most redundant movies in horror history.
"Gnaw" is a sequel in name only, as the setting moved to a typical late 80's location (a university campus) and also the cheap & cheesy gore effects perfectly illustrates the 80's.
Due to some incredibly stupid animal rights activists, the huge and ravenous rats escape and devour pretty much everyone on campus.
"Gnaw: Food of the Gods 2" is terribly bad and therefore a lot of fun to watch!
The characters do and say unimaginably stupid stuff (like descending into the sewers unarmed while they KNOW it's infested with rats), the acting is atrocious and there's a genuinely bizarre sequence involving the hero having sex under the influence of growth-serum!
In case you just can't get enough of this junk, there are quite a lot of creature-features revolving on mutated rats, like the Italian schlock film "Rats: Night of Terror", the modest 70's cult film "Willard" and its lame sequel "Ben", the 2003 "Willard" remake starring Crispin Glover and the surprisingly good recent rat-movies by once-famous directors Tibor Ticaks ("Rats") and John Lafia ("The Rats").
Sure, the movie is cheesy as hell (come on, those giant rats!) but it will surely entertain you.The poorly done f/x and make-up add a sense of B-movie but I'm sure that the producers tried to make a serious Horror...
This is an extremely cheesy Horror movie with lots of gore, and rat violence.
Also, when the rats attack in the pool (a cool scene) you can say that in order to create the effect of a giant rat, the director focused on the rat's head with a zoom.
A pretty good horror film, I kind of liked it..
Later that night animal rights activists Mark, Al and Angie break into Hamilton's lab and in an accident all the infected rats escape.
Directed by Damien Lee I liked this, even though the way it's filmed is very flat, the production design and photography screams made for T.V. It certainly kept me entertained me for an hour and twenty odd minutes.
The stand-out scene perhaps is the rats attacking a swimming pool full of synchronized swimmers.
By far the best scene in the movie is the swimming pool massacre.
The rats looked more real than ever and the acting and special effects were great.
WARNING: THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS!!!This giant-rat movie would be worthless, except for FOUR wonderful redeeming features/moments/scenes.1.
And the special-effects are cheesy and funny--they're filming ordinary rats in a miniature swimming pool, and also obviously superimposing the rats' images on the images of the fleeing people.
A funny line: a professor warns the president of the university that the campus may be infested with giant rats, and advises him to cancel the synchro-swim event.
It's cheap, it's got way too many perverted and LSD-looking sex scenes that just make you want to say "what the hell?" and it doesn't follow the original film at all.
~Spoiler~When I found out that there was a sequel made to The Food of the Gods some 13 years later, I thought it was one of those cases where someone had made a movie about giant rats and coincidentally owned the rights to use the title.
The scientists trying to find a cure for the child accidentally use lab rats which grow out of control and start feeding on students and faculty around a privately owned college campus.
It's probably the best movie about giant rats who terrorize a synchronized swimming event only to be brutally gunned down by the police in a scene that rivals the sheer intensity of the finale to Sam Peckinpah's The Wild Bunch.
Yep, it's the kiss of death when you either name your movie Gnaw, or at least begin with it.Solet me get this straight: there was such a high demand, that after 13 years they absolutely needed to make a sequel to The Food of the Gods?
Heck, it's barely a sequel in name only; the only similarities from part one and Gnaw: Food of the Gods Part 2 is that they have a growth hormone (this time produced, and not "found from the 'Gods'") and rats appear in both movies.
And they even toned down the size of the rats this time, à la Jaws's shark from parts 2 through 4.I don't want to waste too much time, but I saw this as a kid and I'm always, regrettably, drawn to When Animals Attack movies.
Strangely, this sounds like 28 Days Later that won't be released for more than a decade later.At any rate, he's trying to find a cure, warn everyone, help Bobby, a boy that's grown both in size and temper and find time for love with his "dreamy" big hands and bigwell, let's say his mate can now give birth without any pain.Oh, and throw in the Jaws, Piranha and every other rip-off big "Grand Opening" finale that will make or break the place of concern.