Wow, is this a cheap Blaxploitation film. Now it is true that many films of the genre have low budgets, but this one is strictly grade-z. Unlike other Blaxploitation films, this has almost no incidental music, has really poor camera-work and looks like it was made with an 8mm camera and $59.99 to pay the cast and crew. Oddly, however, the doctor drives around in a classic Rolls! What an odd dichotomy!

Bernie Casey plays an incredibly stupid and listless doctor who is performing research on the side. My wife was laughing at how he didn't wear gloves and conducted his "experiments" like he had no idea what he was supposed to be doing. I thought it funny that the doc didn't seem to think it was a big deal when one rat he injected with a serum killed all the other rats! In fact, soon after this, he injected it in some poor lady--who became a crazed zombie and soon died. So naturally, he decides to try it on himself!! Wow, nobody is any dumber than Casey! And, after turning into a bad fighting machine that looks like he fell into a vat of flour while using the drug, he then insists on injecting others! Duh!

Well, unfortunately it never really gets any smarter or more interesting. The only actor who seemed like a professional and had some presence about him was Ji-Tu Cumbuka as Lt. Jackson. Even the usually talented Casey seems like he was totally uninterested in making this film.

Perhaps the film was meant to appeal to the audience's antipathy towards White folks, as the rat and Casey both turned white and became killing machines. But because the whole thing is so dull and listless, any attempt at social commentary is wasted--if it was even attempted in the first place.

By the way, this is an odd observation, but if you do watch the film, notice the color spectrum. All too often, the film (which is already washed out) looks really bleak--with lots of browns and whites but very few blues or greens. They really should have noticed this, but considering the film was made by rank amateurs, it's not surprising it looked so craptastic (or is the word 'craptacular'?).

Also, and I know this will sound cruel, but it was also amazing that there were so many unattractive women in the film that were naked. Couldn't they afford better?

No humor, no suspense, no nothing--this film is a dog from start to finish. This film is only for the most hard-core nut who has already seen all the other Blaxploitation monster films, such as ABBY (sort of like the Black EXORCIST), BLACKENSTEIN or the Blacula movies (and I am one of those nuts who has seen 'em all--so you won't have to).

By the way, the DVD extras have absolutely nothing to do with the film. Instead, it consists of some fan-created films involving superheros (the type usually shown at ComicCon or distributed on the internet). For fan films, they are amazing and look 1000x better than DR. BLACK, MR. HYDE.