JoeKarlosi In 1971, WILLARD had been a surprise box office hit about a twisted young man and his morbid obsession with harboring an army of rats to do his bidding. So along comes this lukewarm sequel that fails on just about every count.Starting out promisingly right from the final scene of the first film, a cop and news reporters investigate the grim attic of Willard Stiles, where his dead body lies. Through the finding of Willard's personal diary (a nice plot touch) they discover how he trained a squadron of rats (headed by king rodent "Ben") to kill for him.From there it's all downhill as we switch over to Danny (Lee Montgomery), a sweet lonely child with a heart condition. He's due for another operation that may even kill him. He lives with his mother and an older sister, Eve (a young Meredith Baxter, pre-FAMILY TIES). A chance encounter with Ben the Rat brings Danny his only true friend, and he entertains his squealing furry buddy with sing-alongs, puppet shows, and toy train rides. Danny even composes a song of tribute to Ben, his friend to the end. At the same time, Ben's nose-twitching comrades are festering around the city, scaring people and trashing whole supermarkets as they scavenge for food. Danny is able to actually converse back and forth with Ben and understand squeak-talk, so he tries to impress upon him that he and his rodent friends can't just do whatever they want, because people don't like that. The police are positively baffled as to how to locate and destroy the rats.Playing more like a wholesome Walt Disney family flick (in fact, lead child actor Lee Montgomery DID previously star in Disney's THE MILLION DOLLAR DUCK), this is a dull and saccharine affair with every other cardboard adult character being more uninteresting than the next. The best thing going for this is the likably pleasant hit song featured at the end, and recorded by Michael Jackson - it even won a Golden Globe and was nominated as "Best Original Song" at the Academy Awards! The movie, however, earns a Turkey.*1/2 out of ****

AaronCapenBanner Phil Karlson directed this immediate sequel to "Willard" that picks up where that film ended, with the police at Willard's house, and Ben the rat leading his army of rats through the city, raiding supermarkets and causing general havoc, eventually finding refuge in the city sewers. In the meantime, a sickly and lonely boy named Danny(played by Lee Montgomery) befriends Ben, and they become loyal friends, even though the rat army are being mercilessly pursued by authorities, and his family does not understand, forcing a showdown in the sewers, with flamethrowers, as many more people are killed... Faithful sequel even has a logical(for this premise) plot and a most touching performance by Montgomery, and famous title song by Michael Jackson. Though slightly marred by too many scenes of rat attacks and violence, (mostly due to a lack of directorial imagination) this is still an effective, memorable sequel that makes a watchable double feature with the first. Sadly, there was no part III...

BaronBl00d After all the much anticipated ballyhoo to track down this rather difficult film to find - I was glad I saw it...for now just the one time if you please. Willard, its predecessor, was one creepy, deliciously black film with a unique story and some performances. You know...from actors. Bruce Davison was really quite good in that lead. Then there was Elsa Lanchester and, of course, Ernest Borgnine hamming it up as the mean Mr. Martin. What do we get in Ben? Acting is not its strong suit for sure. The film begins with Willard's demise. Immediately after the police and all the neighbors gawk at - what? There is a dead guy in the attic...anyway...of those neighbors standing outside is a family of three...a mother, a daughter, and a son. They become important once poison becomes the prescribed means to rid the town of the rats. The rats head for the sewers but Ben(not the Ben from Willard that was mean and nasty - but a kinder Ben - yes, he still has people stripped of their flesh by his rat army - but this go round he befriends a small boy with a bad heart who owns and makes his own marionettes, races around a room playing a harmonica, crawls through the sewers with only a slight cough afterward, and, in my favorite scene demonstrating his ridiculousness, composes an Oscar-nominated song in the matter of two minutes or so. Now, in his scenes with the small boy we get "Gentle Ben." Okay, so I am being a bit sarcastic and this film deserves it for it really is not all that good. Lee Harcourt Montgomery plays the annoying youth in a most sickening fashion yet, by the film's end, I was a bit touched by the final scene between a boy and his rat. Back to the film. The rest of the actors of note are Joseph Campanella as a police detective having really little to do. Even less to do is Arthur O'Connell in a role as the city's apparent only newspaperman. He is incredibly wasted though has the film's best lines laced sporadically around either the "rat action" or Danny's interplay with his puppets or rat. The scenes where the rats either kill, attack, or destroy are pretty funny. Nothing was chilling at all. How about the rats at the fitness center? What a hoot! What about the rats in the supermarket? Or when they "attack" sewer workers? Let's be honest - this film does have heart. It really does not have much else going for it EXCEPT that aforementioned Oscar-nominated song...sung by Michael Jackson and coming in the film with possibly less then five minutes. Before that it is word-sung by Danny, quickly tooted out on a harmonica, and given bits here and there in the film's score. Meredith Baxter of Family Ties fame plays Danny's sister and has a somewhat meaty role.

Chase_Witherspoon Michael Jackson's title theme is a moving ode and that it applies to a deadly pet rat makes for an odd, if memorable association in this sequel to the hugely successful "Willard" the year before. Youth Lee H.Montgomery is the new "Willard", essentially imprisoned in his parent's home by a rare medical condition, finding a quirky friendship in a stray rat (Ben) who is capable of marshaling the local rat population into war against mankind.Joseph Campanella is the no-nonsense police detective, while Meredith Baxter (pre David Birney) plays Lee's older sister. There are a number of familiar faces in the supporting cast (e.g. Paul Carr, Kaz Garas, Ken Tobey etc) and the film's rousing conclusion in the city's sewers with the main antagonist cornered, is a tense climax.The hyperbole written about this film relegating it to turkey status is unwarranted; while not as textured as its predecessor, it's much like the AIP genre films of the early-to-mid seventies in atmosphere and personnel and should entertain accordingly.