Picking up where his taboo-busting Shivers left off, Rabid is the next-level iteration of David Cronenberg’s obsession with sexual body horror as a late-nite creature feature.

Former adult film star Marilyn Chambers plays a woman who, after a motorcycle accident, wakes up in a hospital with new skin and a new appetite. As the city of Montréal transforms into an incubator for gunk-spewing vampires, the ghostly Chambers finds herself at war with her body and the world.

Rabid is young Cronenberg firing on all cylinders. Featuring a focused and intense performance from Chambers, clever statements on vanity / greed and a grotesque li’l beastie that looks like a penis with teeth, Rabid is a high-water mark in lysergic horror. This includes the show-stopping scene involving a machine gun and Santa Claus!

Description courtesy of AGFA.

“this is Cronenberg’s sleaziest, funniest film, jammed with juicy gore, infectious shocks and a splendidly unnecessary Santa massacre.” – Empire

“None of the other recent apocalypse movies has shown so much political or cinematic sophistication.” – TimeOut