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How sad is this?

Highly Overrated But Still Good

It's an amazing and heartbreaking story.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

This man against rat story can I think be viewed two ways: straight up, as a horror film that will be as scary as the viewer's particular fear of rats makes it; or allegorically, as a driven, ambitious man's battle to maintain control over his life and environment.At the risk of being accused of reading too much into the film, I prefer the second option, not only because it makes a more interesting film, but because I think the film provides a lot of evidence that it wants to be taken this way. Peter Weller is sensational as the New York yuppie with the flawless brownstone that he rehabbed by hand, who begins to feel threatened at work just around the time that an icky little visitor starts wreaking havoc at home. I tend to have a rather obsessive personality, and more than once have let something fairly mundane, like a household project, or a minor physical symptom that I convince myself is cancer, become something that occupies my every waking thought. I thought this film nicely captured that specific mental state, and I could relate to the scenes of Weller poring over books about rats, getting some kind of grim satisfaction out of fueling his obsession. Now it would be the Internet providing the material, but the effect would be the same.The film becomes increasingly surreal, and darkly comic, as the man/rat standoff escalates to the point where Weller goes after it clad in homemade armor with a medieval-looking spear. Weller's performance shouldn't be under-appreciated -- it would take a considerable amount of talent to put over a film like this, and he does it admirably.If you like lots of point of view shots of rats spying on people from their vantage point behind furniture, this movie's for you. And rats have never seemed more disgusting to me than after watching the ones in this film in all their slimy, greasy glory.Grade: A-

I saw this in the video store20+ yrs. ago. I like horror films overall. I liked the title, the blurb, and i like Peter Weller's acting. He is not over the top like Shatner or Walken. This movie has really good moments: the shadow on the wall, talking to the exterminator and trying to explain to his friends what is happening to him. I like it because it tries to use old school horror techniques: imply the horror instead of showing everything outright. I think if you allow your imagination to take over you will be really scared. To the point if you hear a sound you will do one of three things: hide under the covers, check the apt./house or call 911.

You know that one guy who'd do anything to get you fired, destroy your house, alienate you from your friends and family, chew through your surge protector? You know, the usual. Well, imagine if that guy was a poodle-sized sewer rat.I wondered going into this movie why Peter Weller would agree to star in what is essentially the rat-equivalent of Jaws: The Revenge. I got my answer about twenty seconds into the film, where it opens on a shot of Shannon Tweed, playing Weller's wife here, showering. Umm, okay.She leaves, along with Weller's extremely dimwitted kid to stay at a hotel (only to pop up later in the movie scantily-clad back in her hotel or in a dream sequence in order to meet some strange 80s boob quota I suppose).Weller is doing fine by himself, (staying behind to finish some work), until the dishwasher overflows, eventually upsetting a rat who decides to move into his apartment. Its hard to gauge just how big this thing is supposed to be until it decides to crawl up under the covers in Weller's bed later, apparently he's the size of a tomcat.Weller does his best to get rid of the rat, upgrading from normal rat traps to (what are basically) miniature bear traps. When the medieval rat traps don't work or come back gnawed on he decides to get a cat, which also comes back gnawed on (or replaced with a cheap stuffed animal that resembles his cat). When he decides to ignore the rat he chews on on his surge protector, fuse box, and therein cutting off the power.Weller runs around the house, bashing holes into walls in search of the rat, is plagued by nightmares of birthday parties where the giant rat jumps out of a sheet cake (?), and where his dimwitted kid ends up mixing in various rat poisons in with his cereal. The finale brought to mind Arachnophobia as it ended in a dank basement; the film ending maybe twelve seconds after the rat's been dispatched as Weller brushes himself off as if the last two hours hadn't just happened just in time to greet his wife and kid at the front door. I'm sure they won't notice the completely demolished apartment.

Bert Hughes is home alone in his Manhattan apartment,trying to work out a major change in his trust company when a noisy rat starts scratching around his periphery and he becomes obsessed with exterminating it.By the time Hughes is through,his whole apartment is nearly exterminated-and his friends are keeping their distance due to his rat-mania.Pretty suspenseful and effective rat invasion flick with terrific central performance of Peter Weller.Several memorable moments were the diner table discussion turned to rats and everyone felt uncomfortable;and the end battle with the rat.There are also some very effective jump scenes that were finding the cat on top of the refrigerator and the toilet scene.Overall,"Of Unknown Origin" is a fine animal attack film that deserves rediscovery.8 out of 10.