Night of the Lepus
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| Night of the Lepus | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical poster for Night of the Lepus |
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| Directed by | William F. Claxton |
| Produced by | A.C. Lyles |
| Written by | Russell Braddon (novel "The Year of the Angry Rabbit") Don Holliday and Gene R. Kearney (screenplay) |
| Starring | Stuart Whitman Janet Leigh Rory Calhoun DeForest Kelley Paul Fix Melanie Fullerton |
| Music by | Jimmie Haskell |
| Cinematography | Ted Voightlander |
| Editing by | John McSweeney Jr. |
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
| Release date(s) | October 4, 1972 (USA) |
| Running time | 88 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | Unknown |
| Gross revenue | Unknown |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Night of the Lepus is a 1972 B-movie horror film in which giant mutant rabbits terrorize the Southwestern United States. The film was directed by William F. Claxton, written by Don Holliday and Gene R. Kearney, and starred Stuart Whitman as the main character, as well as Janet Leigh, Rory Calhoun, and DeForest Kelly, best known for his performance as Dr. Leonard McCoy on Star Trek. It was adapted from the novel The Year of the Angry Rabbit written by Russell Braddon.
The film is relatively obscure, but maintains a small but devout cult following, and has even been referenced in some more mainstream, popular films. For instance, footage appears briefly in the science fiction film The Matrix, and throughout the drama film Natural Born Killers.
[edit] Plot
Rancher Cole Hillman is having problems with the rabbit population on his ranch, who are destroying his crops. College president Elgin Clark, as a favor to benefactor Cole, calls in zoologists Roy and Gerry Bennett, who create an (untested) serum for disrupting the breeding cycle of rabbits. However, their daughter Amanda has become attached to the uninjected rabbit that has become the serum's test subject, and switches it with an already-injected bunny. The injected rabbit gets away and breeds. The serum doesn't disrupt their breeding cycle, but does something worse: it causes the rabbits to become gigantic meat-eaters. When several people are slaughtered by the carnivirous carrot-munchers, Roy and Gerry attempt to find a solution before the whole of the American Southwest is overrun by giant rabbits.
[edit] Trivia
Actors Paul Fix and DeForest Kelley had previously played (respectively) Dr. Mark Piper, the second Chief Medical Officer of the Starship Enterprise, and his replacement, Dr. Leonard McCoy on Star Trek. Star Trek fans are treated to the interesting sight of the two actors interacting and sharing several scenes together.
[edit] External links
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