Abner has been a pest control home-service guy who got called in to control the rat infestation in the house of a married couple. Viola was obviously a battered wife with visible bruises on her face from Day 1. Dodi is a hot-headed PE teacher, always harried and stressed out. Abner eventually falls for the charming and friendly Viola, unmindful of her husband's violent streak. So in order to keep going back to her house, Abner releases new rats with every visit.
To stretch the thin story out to feature length, there were plenty of repetitive scenes. There were repeated scenes of Abner trying to get an old television to work with whatever junk as antenna. There were repeated scenes of Abner receiving a job order from his kindly boss (played by director Tikoy Aguiluz). There were also repeated scenes of ominous warnings by Abner's friends (like long-haired rocker played by Leon Miguel and the beer-bellied neighbor played by Jim Libiran) about hooking up with a married woman.
Ubiquitous character actor Mon Confiado got the eccentric, creepy loner vibe down pat for this role of Abner, but just enough charm to catch Viola's fancy. He certainly got the stomach to handle and throw around all those real live rats, something not all actors may be willing to do. His face and eyes here automatically conveyed something cooking inside, despite what may seem to be a calm outward demeanor. He can be campy, at the same time ominous.
I first noticed Alvin Anson as one of the bad guys on "Ang Probinsyano" on TV, and he had the same intense acting style here as Dodi. It was very unexpected to see stage actress and soprano Jean Judith Javier in the daring role of Viola, having seen her portray roles in plays like "Noli Me Tangere" (as Sisa) and "Manhid" (as Dilim). Anyhow, the sex scenes here were mostly loud moans and grunts only, and fully clothed.
The award-winning production design, by Batch 1 of director Richard V. Somes Production Design Workshop, was very much a character in this film as the actors. The rotting old rat-infested house of Dodi and Viola, with that bedroom where an unstable archaic ceiling fan precariously shaking and twisting overhead, gave the audience an uncomfortable sense of squeamishness, salaciousness and the sinister.
Press releases revealed that this film had finished shooting four years ago, but only found its proper time to premiere now. The title is not exactly correct Spanish grammar, since the noun "Peste" is feminine, and would require the article "La" not "El". This is yet another film that tackles domestic abuse and infidelity, but it takes a different route to tell the story. Writer-director Richard Somes employed elements of dark comedy, macabre horror, and steamy 90s-style sexual titillation to give this film its own particularly twisted signature. 5/10.
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