Review – The Food of the Gods

I remember when I was 10 I begged and pleaded to be taken to this movie. Turns out my folks were far wiser than I when they refused. I have no trouble imagining the source novel by H.G. Wells actually making some good points about nature taking revenge on humanity. And the basic premise – animals grow to enormous size and turn carnivorous after eating a mysterious substance – might have been put to better use. But whatever chance this might have had to turn into a decent picture quickly smothers under the inept film-making “skills” of writer/producer/director Bert I. Gordon. Within the first 15 minutes we’re called upon to witness a fight between Marjoe Gortner and a giant rubber chicken head, and things go downhill from there. Actually, this might have eked out a point or so if not for one thing: when the humans start gunning down giant rats, the regular-sized rats on miniature sets are pretty obviously actually being shot (either that or Gordon’s using special effects well beyond his apparent budget and proclivities). Cute rat snuff movie equals sub-zero rating. Avoid at all costs