Rabid Grannies

Original title: Les mémés cannibales

1988
R
1h 29m

IMDb RATING

4.9/10

2.2K

YOUR RATING

Danielle Daven and Anne-Marie Fox in Rabid Grannies (1988)

Play trailer1:50

1 Video

37 Photos

Satire Comedy Horror

Two sweet little old ladies fall victim to an ancient curse that transforms them into bloodthirsty killers!Two sweet little old ladies fall victim to an ancient curse that transforms them into bloodthirsty killers!Two sweet little old ladies fall victim to an ancient curse that transforms them into bloodthirsty killers!

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

4.9/10

2.2K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 1 nomination

Trivia
The French-speaking cast struggled with the English dialogue, and some actors simply remembered their lines phonetically. The footage was then overdubbed by actual English speakers, who had to follow the odd speech rhythms of the actors.

Quotes
Elizabeth, the monster: Peek A Boo Father.
Father Percival: [Victoria scares Father Percival with her fingers] Aaaahhh.
Victoria, the monster: [Victoria hands over a machine gun to Father Percival] You know that we respect you Percival, yes. A man of God isn't just anyone. Elizabeth wants to torture you before we kill you, but i insisted that it be dearly painless because we like you very much Percival. Every time you smash a students fingers with a ruler, i say to my self... He's a vicious man, a bad priest. And we like bad priests, so pull the trigger. Why suffer, otherwise it's her way. And i promise you, your vocal cords will split. What do you think of that Percival.
Elizabeth, the monster: Don't listen to her. If you commit suicide, you know what's waiting for you. A priest who kills himself, hahahaha. You want to be damned, for just a few minutes of suffering you save your soul. No Percival, let me look after you. Be strong just once in your boring life, just once.
Victoria, the monster: But what she isn't telling you Percival, it's not her who's going to have her eyes pulled out. Or her knees broken, or her stomach eaten out. It's so hard for her, right sister. Think about Percival, i hope you see it all clearly. She's just waiting for you to play martyr, so she can make a human hamburger out of you. Don't let her do it, Percival. Kill yourself. After all, You never were a good priest.
Father Percival: NOOOOO...
Victoria, the monster: YEEEEESSSS
[Father Percival pulls the trigger and shoots himself]
Victoria, the monster: .
Victoria, the monster: I won, i won. Hahaha.

Alternate versions
The French-Canadian VHS release on the Videoville Showtime label was distributed under the French title 'Grand-mère mange les pissenlits par la racine' meaning 'Grannie is eating the dandelions by the roots', a different title than the one that was used in France which was of course 'Les mémés cannibales'.

Connections
Featured in Gorgon Video Magazine (1989)

Soundtracks
Happy Birthday
(uncredited)
Written by Mildred J. Hill and Patty S. Hill

User reviews43

Review

Featured review

8/10

They're not grannies, they're not rabid, and this isn't a Troma film.

Just because this film bears a typically Troma-like title, and features the Troma logo on the packaging, don't make the mistake of thinking it is a Troma productionbecause it isn't.

It is, in fact, a low-budget Belgian film that was simply picked up for distribution by the studio, and, as far as I am concerned, it is much more enjoyable than the majority of Lloyd Kaufman's own B-movie output.

In this delightfully silly and very gory romp, a group of greedy relatives gather together at the mansion of their two elderly aunts, in order to attend their birthday celebrations (and hopefully worm their way into their aunts' wills). However, when the old women open a surprise birthday present (sent by the black sheep of the familya practitioner of the black arts), they become possessed, transform into vicious, drooling, bloodthirsty monsters, and proceed to tear their party guests limb from limb.

If you're a fan of visceral OTT slapstick horrorparticularly Sam Raimi's Evil Dead trilogy (which this film is obviously heavily influenced by) or the early work of Peter Jackson (whose similarly daft Bad Taste came out the same year)then Rabid Grannies should be right up your alley. Director Emmanuel Kervyn spends the first thirty minutes introducing us to his raft of absurdly unlikeable characters (none of whom really deserve to survive 'til the end credits), and the next sixty dismembering them in as many inventive and silly ways as possible. It might not be Oscar winning material, but it's a whole heap of fun!

Considering the limited budget, the juicy effects on display are pretty damn good, and the film sure doesn't hold back with the nastiness: one man has his limbs hacked off, before being impaled (between the legs) on a pike; a fat guy gets stuck trying to escape, and has his ass eaten; and even a little girl gets reduced to spare parts by the demonic old dears!

7.5 out of 10, rounded up to 8 for IMDb.