Night of the Lepus (1972) with My Daughter

 I'm guessing Shudder got Night of the Lepus (1972) on loan for April since it was Easter season, and the film had giant killer rabbits. I was looking at the "Leaving Soon" list, and my daughter was in the living room -- she watched Mortuary (1983) with me as well -- with her asking about watching Night of the Lepus. I didn't realize it until I went to my user comments on IMDb, but I had actually watched this back in 2008 (I'll include those user comments later) much to my surprise. I have to admit: I had a good time with this silly, silly movie. A large part of that is my daughter watching it with me. She was invested, and I just found that amusing. Killer rabbits is really difficult to pull off. Like Janet Leigh said later: how do you make rabbits menacing. The use of ketchup and sound effects, up close camera into rabbit faces, and miniature sets for the creatures to move across (and on, such as a bridge and little buildings), with stuntmen wearing furry costumes as they lunge on human victims. There is a MGM Channel currently "turned on" for about five days for DirecTV, and I told my daughter I bet this film pops up on it from time to time -- they have a cult late night for the weekend...I'm sure this is perfect for that sort of programming --on it. I want to say back when I watched it in 2008, Night of the Lepus was on Turner Classic Movies. But when I was a youth, this was certainly part of TBS programming (when it was a Ted Turner cable channel). I can remember it fondly, even as I recognize how hokey the film is. No matter how sincere Stuart Whitman is as a scientist looking to help an Arizona town tackle a bad rabbit breeding problem as they eat up all the crops leaving a farmer (Rory Calhoun; Motel Hell (1980)) desperate for a solution, not wanting to use poison. Janet Leigh, bless her heart, I read took the part as it was close to her home so she could remain close to her family. I commend Leigh for that, even as I see that she probably tried to forget this not long after starring in it. But the 70s produced a bunch of these killer animal flicks, many about nature gone amok or growing to a large size, rampaging through communities. And big name actors from the past take a part in them for the easy payday. Janet Leigh wasn't tasked with a part requiring serious acting chops. She is the supportive wife with the little blond daughter who wards off giant rabbits with a flare at her flat tire camper while surrounded until husband Whitman arrives by chopper to save them. DeForest Kelley as a family friend and Paul Fix as a sheriff, both television icons and veterans, showing up in this Z-movie is just great. I could just write this off as a giant steaming pile as I might have in my 20s, but I'd be lying if I said watching it with my daughter wasn't a hoot. I did enjoy it with her. Look, as a dad, I want her to look back and remember these times. Being autistic, she'll have that amazing memory to fall back when I'm gone. I didn't have a father, so I appreciate these moments in my life.

I do want to mention that the Arizona locations (there is a shot of Calhoun on his horse riding across the landscape from a distance shot that is incredible) sometimes left me awestruck. This was my favorite part of the film from an objective standpoint. Wild rabbits included on this is a bit weird...especially when they pounce on horses and cows. Oh, and how this one guy responds when a rabbit attacks him and Leigh shoots some rounds into the creature before it flees...he's in shock, literally shaking, and that response was the best acting in the film!