MovieChat Forums > Rat Fink (1965) Discussion > Unreal that there are no comments.....

Unreal that there are no comments.....


This is a hidden gem.

How it has no comments is baffling. However, I think a large part may be due to the horrible title and the way this flick may have been marketed, similar to the movie The Sadist.

Schuyler Hayden does an outstanding job and why his career didn't explode is a mystery. He was killed in a plane crash more than a decade after this movie and he only did one other movie before being killed.

His portrayal as sociopathic grifter seeking fame and fortune is downright disturbing if viewed in relative terms.

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Only 127 votes on IMDB. It's pretty obscure.

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The marketing of this film would be interesting to know. It sort of has a beatnik-hipster feel to it and I would imagine that was done to try and tap into a current theme of the day back then.

It would not surprise me if this film was also geared toward early shows at drive ins and that is too bad because this really is a hidden gem if viewed in relative terms of 1965.

There is one scene that I am surprised is not more well known and talked about that surely had to be pretty shocking to portray back in '65 and is along the same lines as when Richard Widmark pushed an elerly woman in a wheel chair down a set of stairs.

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I'll look for it!

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Here's the trailer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNZLd76UtMo

The term "rat fink" is beatnik. So the title is not bad.

I checked MC's competitor and there's no posting history there either, meaning there were no comments at all from IMDb. Odd.

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When I say the title is bad it is with the thought of it really doesn't paint a good picture of what the film is about and I think, just like the movie The Sadist, that it probably created an impression of this movie that didn't resonate with potential viewers.

For 1965, this is really a good picture with good acting and one that really has fallen under the radar and deserves more attention.

To me, a bad title to a movie is one that completely misses the concept of the film and portrays something else, and to me, "Rat Fink" is a bad title for this film and misrepresents its contents in a way that hurts the film.

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"Rat Fink" was probably a title they felt would resonate with teenage audiences. Though beat was pretty much over by that time and had been replaced by Mods and Beatlemania.

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Yes this 1 is way too obscure with only 127 votes, most people will not know where to watch this. But i just saw it, i liked it, especially the part about the wife of the record producer felt real and interesting.

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