Cabinet of Curiosities Episode 2 Review “Graveyard Rats”: Entertains With An Old-Fashioned Horror Story | Guillermo del Toro’s
Episode Title: Graveyard Rats
Stars: Ish Morris, David Hewlett, Kevin Keppy
Director: Vincenzo Natali
Streaming Platform: Netflix
Filmyhype.com Ratings: 3.5/5 (three and a half stars) [yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]
With the inspired direction of Vincenzo Natali, director of Cube – The cube and Splice, we are instead witnessing a more focused and functional story, which we will talk about in the review of the second episode of Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities, entitled Graveyard Rats, a gothic story full of horror as if it had come out of a hidden corner of Edgar Allan Poe’s drawer.
Second story for the first day of the release of Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities. The second story is thematically linked (and only for this reason) to the previous one, creating a diptych entitled Sweepers. Similar premises in the subject, but the setting, the protagonist and – obviously – the unfolding of the story are different. Which creates a positive note not only for the series but also for the viewer himself. As we had told in our review of the first episode Lot 36, the Cabinet of Curiosities had not started in an explosive way, stuck in an unoriginal formula even if with a certain charm.
Cabinet of Curiosities Episode 2 Review “Graveyard Rats”: The Story
Masson (a David Hewlett from one man show) is an easy-talking man, at first sight cunning and shrewd, but also unfortunate. He is overwhelmed by debts and, to repay them, is forced to raid the Salem cemetery, opening the graves and hoping to find gold teeth, in the mouths of the corpses, to be able to resell. Business, however, has not been going as planned for some time: a colony of rats is devouring the bodies inside the tombs, leaving only the poor, but bad Masson to remain. The propitious opportunity is not long in coming: a member of an aristocratic family is buried with objects of great value and Masson will do everything to take possession of them.
Even at the cost of slipping into the lair of his hated cemetery rats. Thieves and monsters. The plot of Graveyard Rats brings to the screen a horror on several levels: the human one, represented by Masson, and the monstrous one, represented by the rats. Roles ready to exchange to give life to a path of the sinking of the protagonist, rat among rats, ready to crawl and abandon more and more what binds him to the earth’s surface. A descent into hell that will change him forever.
Cabinet of Curiosities Episode 2 Review “Graveyard Rats” and Analysis
Graveyard Rats, unlike the previous episode, manage to give more than a few moments of tension, with a linear and simple story, but which gives a lot of satisfaction (including some surprises that will complicate Masson’s life even more). Thanks also to the short duration (less than 40 minutes) there is the feeling of an episode that does not waste time and goes straight to the point, well aware of knowing how to scare the spectator “in the old way”. Putting aside jumpscare and all the ingredients we are used to in contemporary horror, Graveyard Rats prefers to build a continuous tension, immediately enhancing the atmosphere in which the protagonist is immersed.
Precisely the setting that recalls the dirt and darkness of Victorian London, with its rain-soaked streets, soft lights and mouldy walls, contributes in the best way to make us believe what we are witnessing (such a story, set in the present, would never have worked), creating an almost literary dimension, like a dusty story of fear. Added to this is a careful photograph, which with the skilful use of colours, gives the episode a successful look. The amalgamation of practical and digital effects also works properly, managing to never interrupt the suspension of disbelief on the part of the viewer. Nothing looks out of place.
The horror genre, we know, is a genre that would leave the filmmaker’s carte blanche. The directing style is therefore essential for the success of the tension, fear and the unexpected that must be told. Vincenzo Natali, in these 38 minutes, has a lot of fun, finding solutions that can only properly entertain both the most casual spectator and the enthusiast of the genre. With close-up, distorted close-ups, or a simple play of shadows (following the mythological rule that horror is scarier when it is only hinted at), Natali gives rhythm and personality to an episode that, especially if seen in continuity with the previous one, it doesn’t particularly shine in the finish. More than the arrival, however, the journey is important. And that of Masson is an adventure that involves and manages to drag the viewer with him, down the mysterious depths of the cemetery. So much so that it reminds us that it is not important what is said, but how it is done.
The second “mini film” of this disturbing anthological series, Graveyard Rats, also belongs to the first tranche of episodes. This time the story is based on the homonymous story by one of the authors who have been most influential in the horror, science fiction and fantasy landscape, namely Henry Kuttner. The screenplay and direction have been entrusted to Vincenzo Natali, who often directs TV series or horror films, such as Hannibal, The Strain or Nella Alta.
Although the scenario of this episode changes, the substance remains somewhat that: those who want nothing too tight. We are always in the allegorical territory where horror becomes a tale of human defects, of loopholes to be able to circumvent the obstacle, of hypocrisy and indifference. Above all, in Graveyard Rats we rely on the concept that we are more unfortunate than others, always on any occasion and, therefore, even in carrying out a wrong action, we deserve support, understanding, and even divine help. It always depends on “who” is asked for this help, however.
Our Old Masson (David Hewlett) thinks he is the smartest of all, the smartest. Pretending we look at the cemetery, he tries to keep himself out of trouble by paying his loan sharks him with the merchandise he manages to obtain by looting the graves of the poor who have fallen ill under his clutches. Masson has “only” one big problem: rats. The rats have become a real plague for Salem and his body doesn’t have time to be buried and the damn rodents are quicker than anyone to party him. But Masson, now exhausted, decides to go beyond any terror of him, just to show those beings who he is that he commands.
A bit similar to what an ancient dreadful penny might be, an old horror story, certainly the atmosphere of the Natali film is the one that most remembers this time of year. Distressing at the right point with that creepy atmosphere that you like and with that slightly vintage taste for creatures. No shortage of small moments that are more splattering or really claustrophobic and even someone more ironic or breathless. One immediately becomes passionate about the buffoon protagonist, driven more by the curiosity of where he might go than by real affection. Nothing to tear your hair about, but overall, a story made and accomplished, convincing for atmosphere, setting, acting and also with a satisfying ending.
Cabinet of Curiosities Episode 2 Review “Graveyard Rats”: The Last Words
The second episode of Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities, entitled Graveyard Rats, entertains and entertains with an old-fashioned horror story, where the protagonist played by David Hewlett works properly, holding the whole story on himself. The plot does not tell anything particularly original, but the direction and style of Vincenzo Natali can create the right atmosphere, bringing home the result. A midnight story that works and gives more than a few thrills of pleasure.
