Rat Film

Rat Film, directed by Theo Anthony, is an extraordinary documentary blending history, ethnography, and science into a genre-defying exploration of the urban landscape of Baltimore, Maryland. The movie offers an unflinching gaze into the complex relationships between residents, city planners, sociologists, and the infamous population of rats thriving in the city. Rat Film strives to navigate the thin lines between the cohabitating species, prompting us to question humanity's influence on its environments and the interaction between the built environment and its inhabitants.

Rat Film stars Dan Deacon, whose pulsing electronic score defies musical conventions and accents the otherworldly atmosphere of the film. Deacon joins director Theo Anthony and Matt Fouse in this far from ordinary portrayal of Baltimore. Anthony, who also wrote the film, excels in his clever use of cryptic, poetic narration, delivered in a clipped, deadpan tone to accentuate the dystopian commentary.

Rat Film isn't strictly a study of rats but uses the omnipresent rodents as a lens through which to examine systemic boundaries and segregation that has been imposed throughout Baltimore's history. The film borrows from diverse cinematic styles, including animation and drone footage, to create a multilayered narrative that draws parallels between the city's attitudes towards the rodents and its socio-political history. It's a film about how environments shape behavior, both of vermin and of people.

The film includes archival footages and modern interviews. Rats become characters in their own right, whether they are being hunted by city exterminators, used in groundbreaking behavioral studies, or kept as pampered pets by Baltimore's residents. But the film also resonates as a metaphorical exploration of disparity in our society. In discussing the way in which urban climates are conducive to the propagation of rats, the film taps into broad themes of racial segregation, urban decay, and economic disparity.

The documentary presents rat colonies as a high-definition metaphor for economic and racial bias within the city's fabric, offering an anthropological study of the class struggles as old as the city itself. It includes various 'snapshots' of different city residents, each somehow pertaining to rats. Researchers studying rat behavior, city-employed rat exterminators, and those who raise rats as pets all share their unique perspectives.

One standout segment explores the pioneering work of Curt Richter, a researcher who used Baltimore's rat population for groundbreaking behavioral studies. This theme reveals itself to be as consequential as the film's literal rat narrative, highlighting the profound impact of systemic forces on individual lives and how scientific research can often mirror the societal norms of its time.

While Rat Film is a documentary, it is narrative-driven, almost following the style of speculative fiction in its deconstruction and analysis of urban lives. It replaces traditional storytelling conventions with a steady stream of facts, insights, and observations, giving audiences much to absorb as they follow the intricate pathways of the city and its rat "population."

The film's stylization captures Baltimore's atmosphere brilliantly, presenting an ethereal, fascinating side of the cityscape from unique aerial perspectives. This moody urban vista adds a visual charm to the movie while subtly reinforcing its harsh realities. It gives audiences a viewing experience that works on an aesthetic level and delivers a captivating exposé on the intertwined destinies of the city's human and rodent residents.

Rat Film is a potent and pungent blend of science, sociology, and city symphony. It's a richly layered documentary that tackles urban planning, systemic racism, and societal hierarchies, all wrapped up in a study of the city's rats. As such, Rat Film is just as much a social commentary as it is a historical or scientific one, making it a memorable trip into the hearts, basements, and burrows of Baltimore.