tomgillespie2002 Although his best-known work lies within the horror and giallo genre (leading to the nickname 'maestro of the macabre'), one of Mario Bava's finest works, Rabid Dogs, rests firmly in the poliziotteschi, or Eurocrime, sub-genre. Shelved for decades after the death of the film's main investor, it resurfaced in 1998 and was eventually re- edited and re-scored by Bava's son Lamberto (director of the sub- standard Demons (1985) and Demons 2 (1986)), and re-titled as the vastly inferior version Kidnapped. Bava's original vision remains the best, and it's a shame he didn't get to dabble more in the genre before his retirement, as Rabid Dogs is a thrilling exercise in tension.Starting with a robbery of an armoured truck that leads to the fatal stabbing of one innocent, three criminals escape by car after one of their own is shot dead by police. They arrive at an underground car park, where they stab a woman to death and take her friend Maria (Lea Lander) as hostage. On foot, they hijack a car stopped at a red light driven by the middle-aged Riccardo (Riccardo Cucciolla), and urge him to get them out of the city as fast and possible. The problem is that the police have set up road blocks and have every available officer searching for the gang. Riccardo also has his ailing infant son with him and the gang caught him on his way to take the child to the hospital.Some of Bava's familiar touches are here, such as the black gloves and the stylistic flair, but Rabid Dogs has more in common with Sam Peckinpah's Straw Dogs (1971) that any of his own work. Throughout it's 90-plus minute running time, the film is relentlessly tense, exploding occasionally with acts of graphic violence and sexual threats. The most level-headed of the gang, Dottore (Maurice Poli), tries to keep his men in line, but Bisturi (Don Backy) and Thirty- Two (the enormous cult favourite George Eastman) have rape and violence on their mind, making Maria's life in the back seat a living hell. Backy and Eastman are both excellent in their roles. Although the climactic twist seems a little contrived, I didn't see it coming, and Rabid Dogs is certainly one of Bava's best, and most under-appreciated, works. Just don't see Kidnapped first.www.the-wrath-of-blog.blogspot.com

HumanoidOfFlesh Four criminals rob the weekend payroll of a pharmaceutical company.After one is killed by the police,the others ditch the getaway car.They steal another belonging to everyman Riccardo.They take him,his young sick baby and a woman off the street named Maria hostage and head for the open road."Rabid Dogs" is easily the darkest and most cynical film of a talented horror director Mario Bava.It concentrates on the character dynamics and the growing suspense on what will happen to unfortunate hostages.The violence and abuse is mean-spirited and the ugliness oozes from the screen.The scene,where two thugs force Maria to urinate is unforgettable in its grim nastiness.There are a lot of twists and turns in a surprisingly straightforward story.Overall,I'd highly recommend "Rabid Dogs" to fans of Mario Bava and exploitation movies.9 out of 10.

ElijahCSkuggs Story revolves around a rag group of robbers who are on the run from the policia. Instead of making a calculated plan to steal their loot they instead go for the guns blazing type of robbery. Yay for us! They do get the cash but they end up losing one of their own, the driver. With their plan unraveling they need a car and need it fast, and that's when they take a driver-by hostage and force him to drive them to their safe-house. All the while they have another hostage in the back who's easy on the eyes. And to make matters worse the car they took hostage also has a sick young child in it. Three violent robbers and three civilians in a tiny car while running from the cops makes one entertaining picture.The film premise is cool but to truly make this film work is the characters. And all do their job very well. Each character is memorable and have their own important parts to the film. The bad guys in Rabid Dogs were extra memorable as they played their parts in an over the top way, with wild eyes, maniacal laughing and mannerisms and just an energy that this film needed to keep the viewer enthralled.Rabid Dogs was a film I've been meaning to see for a while and I'm glad I finally did. I always got it confused with Straw Dogs, which I still need to see as well. But Rabid Dogs was a cool flick that instantly became one of my favorites in the crime/thriller genre.

retroslasher I love horror, so when i heard bava had a crime/thriller type flick, i HAD to check it out.. it easily turned into my favorite foreign film. i could not take my eyes of this movie! It had been on my 'to see' list for quite sometime, till one day when i was looking up horror trailers on youtube... i typed in rabid (david cronenberg flick) and i spotted Rabid Dogs a few clicks down.. i checked out the trailer and i was hooked.. the score is beyond great, it was stuck in my head for days! The setting is wonderful (hot summer Italian afternoon), the characters were very intriguing (the shot of 32 after they are speeding away from the police is breathtaking). Bava's great story and direction is flawless.. I much prefer 'rabid dogs' to 'kidnapped' though.. you be the judge! check out this near-perfect movie and you will see its influence over the media favorites of today.