Night of the Lepus(1972)
1972 · William F. Claxton · 88 min
Rancher Cole Hillman is fed up of rabbits plaguing his fields. Zoologist Roy Bennett conducts an experiment to curb their population, but it gives rise to giant rabbits that terrorise the town.
Horror · Science Fiction
4.4119 votes
TMDB score
1/5
Intensity
1/5
Gore
1/5
Stays with you
How Night of the Lepus scares
Night of the Lepus is a giant-monster movie where the monster happens to be oversized bunnies, and the mismatch between the cute animal and the supposed threat makes it play more silly than scary. The pace is slow and talky, built around small-town characters and a science-gone-wrong plot rather than any real tension. Any fear it generates is mild and fleeting, more amusing than unsettling, and there's barely any blood or violence shown. It's a good pick if you want to laugh with friends at a so-bad-it's-good creature feature, not if you actually want to be frightened.
On The Horror Database's 0–5 scare profile, Night of the Lepus rates psychological 1/5, visceral 2/5, gore 1/5, lingering effect 1/5, and overall intensity 1/5.
- Psychological: 1 of 5
- Visceral: 2 of 5
- Gore: 1 of 5
- Lingering: 1 of 5
- Intensity: 1 of 5
Slow burn vs Jump scares: 30 of 100 — leans Slow burn
Supernatural vs Real-world: 90 of 100 — leans Real-world
Fun-scary vs Disturbing: 5 of 100 — leans Fun-scary
Intensity over runtime
Shape only — no eventsReveal pacing shapeHide pacing shapeHidden by default — shows where the tension peaks and lets up.
A slow, goofy setup that gradually builds into more frequent, if still campy, attack scenes toward the end.
Intensity across the runtime, 0 to 100: 0, 0, 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 4, 3.
How scary is Night of the Lepus?
On The Horror Database's 0–5 intensity scale, Night of the Lepus rates 1/5 — gentle by horror standards, building its fear through slow-burn dread rather than shocks. It works on both fronts, unsettling the mind while going for the body. Expect it to be restrained with gore and fun-first. The dread fades once the credits roll.
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