1
00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:07,000
Downloaded from
YTS.MX

2
00:00:08,000 --> 00:00:13,000
Official YIFY movies site:
YTS.MX

3
00:00:14,291 --> 00:00:16,833
from the short story by
ROALD DAHL

4
00:00:26,666 --> 00:00:30,916
[bell tolling in the distance]

5
00:00:39,250 --> 00:00:42,458
In the afternoon,
the rat man came to the petrol station.

6
00:00:42,541 --> 00:00:45,458
He sidled up the driveway
with a soft, stealthy gait.

7
00:00:45,541 --> 00:00:47,875
His feet made no noise at all
on the gravel.

8
00:00:47,958 --> 00:00:50,541
He had an army knapsack
slung over one shoulder.

9
00:00:50,625 --> 00:00:53,291
He wore an old-fashioned corduroy jacket
with large pockets.

10
00:00:53,375 --> 00:00:57,041
Corduroy trousers were tied around
the knees with lengths of white string.

11
00:00:57,125 --> 00:00:58,208
-Hello?
-Yes?

12
00:00:58,291 --> 00:00:59,166
Rodent operative.

13
00:00:59,250 --> 00:01:02,000
His small, dark eyes
moved swiftly over the premises.

14
00:01:02,083 --> 00:01:03,291
-The rat man?
-That's me.

15
00:01:03,375 --> 00:01:05,291
He was lean, leathery, a sharp face,

16
00:01:05,375 --> 00:01:06,875
two long, sulfur-yellow teeth

17
00:01:06,958 --> 00:01:09,375
protruding from the upper jaw
over the lower lip.

18
00:01:09,458 --> 00:01:12,416
His ears were round and thin,
set near the back of his head.

19
00:01:12,500 --> 00:01:13,875
The eyes were almost black,

20
00:01:13,958 --> 00:01:17,166
but when they looked at you,
there was a flash of yellow in them.

21
00:01:17,250 --> 00:01:19,958
-You've come quick.
-Special orders from the Health Office.

22
00:01:20,041 --> 00:01:22,041
And now
you're going to catch all the rats?

23
00:01:22,125 --> 00:01:23,041
-Yeah.
-How?

24
00:01:23,125 --> 00:01:23,958
Yes. How?

25
00:01:24,041 --> 00:01:27,250
Depends what rats, where they is.
Different methods for different rats.

26
00:01:27,333 --> 00:01:28,625
-Trap them, I suppose.
-What?

27
00:01:28,708 --> 00:01:29,625
-Trap 'em.
-Trap 'em?

28
00:01:29,708 --> 00:01:30,708
The rat man snorted.

29
00:01:30,791 --> 00:01:32,750
Won't catch 'em that way.
Rats ain't rabbits.

30
00:01:32,833 --> 00:01:34,083
He held his face up high,

31
00:01:34,166 --> 00:01:37,791
sniffing the air with a nose that
twitched perceptibly from side to side.

32
00:01:37,875 --> 00:01:41,250
Rats is clever. You wanna catch 'em,
you gotta know 'em.

33
00:01:41,333 --> 00:01:43,000
You gotta know rats on this job.

34
00:01:47,291 --> 00:01:49,625
You know what they do? They watch you.

35
00:01:49,708 --> 00:01:52,250
Whole time you're preparin'
how to exterminate 'em,

36
00:01:52,333 --> 00:01:53,416
they're watchin' you.

37
00:01:53,500 --> 00:01:55,291
This ain't a sewer job, is it?

38
00:01:55,375 --> 00:01:56,958
No, it's not a sewer job.

39
00:01:57,041 --> 00:01:59,500
-Tricky things, sewer jobs.
-I shouldn't think so.

40
00:01:59,583 --> 00:02:02,666
You shouldn't, should you?
I'd like to see you do a sewer job.

41
00:02:02,750 --> 00:02:05,416
Just exactly how'd you set about it,
I'd like to know.

42
00:02:05,500 --> 00:02:06,666
Poison them, I suppose.

43
00:02:06,750 --> 00:02:08,916
And where exactly
would you put the poison?

44
00:02:09,000 --> 00:02:09,833
Down the sewer?

45
00:02:09,916 --> 00:02:11,416
The rat man sparkled, triumphant.

46
00:02:11,500 --> 00:02:13,208
Yeah, I knew it. "Down the sewer."

47
00:02:13,291 --> 00:02:15,625
Know what'd happen?
Get washed away completely.

48
00:02:15,708 --> 00:02:17,625
All your poison. Sewer's like a river.

49
00:02:17,708 --> 00:02:20,875
All right. Well, what would you do,
Mr. Rat Man? On a sewer job?

50
00:02:20,958 --> 00:02:22,750
The rat man advanced a step closer.

51
00:02:22,833 --> 00:02:25,000
His voice became secretive
and confidential,

52
00:02:25,083 --> 00:02:27,750
the voice of a man
divulging professional secrets.

53
00:02:27,833 --> 00:02:30,916
You works on the understandin'
a rat is a gnawin' animal, see?

54
00:02:31,000 --> 00:02:33,458
Anythin' you give 'em, they gnaws on it.

55
00:02:33,541 --> 00:02:36,583
So you got a sewer job on your hands.
What d'you do?

56
00:02:36,666 --> 00:02:39,500
His voice had the soft,
throaty sound of a croaking frog,

57
00:02:39,583 --> 00:02:42,666
and he seemed to speak all his words
with a wet-lipped relish,

58
00:02:42,750 --> 00:02:44,708
as if they tasted good on the tongue.

59
00:02:44,791 --> 00:02:45,875
You go down the sewer

60
00:02:45,958 --> 00:02:48,416
and you take along
some ordinary brown paper bags

61
00:02:48,500 --> 00:02:51,166
filled with plaster of paris powder.
Nothin' else.

62
00:02:51,250 --> 00:02:53,583
Then you suspend 'em
from the roof of the sewer

63
00:02:53,666 --> 00:02:56,041
so they hangs down
not quite touchin' the water.

64
00:02:56,125 --> 00:02:58,125
Just high enough so a rat can reach 'em.

65
00:02:58,208 --> 00:02:59,625
Claud was listening, rapt.

66
00:02:59,708 --> 00:03:03,916
Old rat comes swimmin' along the sewer,
sees the bag. He stops.

67
00:03:04,000 --> 00:03:06,583
[sniffs] Takes a sniff at it.
It don't smell so bad.

68
00:03:06,666 --> 00:03:08,166
-What's he do?
-He gnaws it.

69
00:03:08,250 --> 00:03:11,208
That's it! He starts gnawin' at the bag,
and the bag breaks,

70
00:03:11,291 --> 00:03:14,708
and the old rat
gets a mouthful of powder for his pains.

71
00:03:14,791 --> 00:03:15,625
Well?

72
00:03:15,708 --> 00:03:17,000
Well, that does him.

73
00:03:17,708 --> 00:03:19,125
-That kills him?
-Stone dead.

74
00:03:19,208 --> 00:03:21,458
-Plaster of paris…
-It swells when you wet it.

75
00:03:21,541 --> 00:03:23,750
Gets into the rat's tubes
and swells right up

76
00:03:23,833 --> 00:03:26,375
and kills him
quicker than anythin' in the world.

77
00:03:26,458 --> 00:03:28,166
That's where you got to know rats.

78
00:03:28,250 --> 00:03:30,291
His face glowed with a shifty pride.

79
00:03:30,375 --> 00:03:34,291
He rubbed his stringy fingers together,
holding the hands up close to his face.

80
00:03:35,875 --> 00:03:38,250
Now, where's them rats?

81
00:03:38,333 --> 00:03:40,791
The word "rats" came out
with a rich, fruity sound

82
00:03:40,875 --> 00:03:43,000
as if he were gargling with melted butter.

83
00:03:43,083 --> 00:03:44,666
In the hayrick across the road.

84
00:03:44,750 --> 00:03:47,125
-Not inside?
-Only in the hayrick. Nowhere else.

85
00:03:47,208 --> 00:03:51,625
I'll wager they're inside too,
gettin' in your food, spreadin' disease.

86
00:03:51,708 --> 00:03:54,958
-Got any sickness here?
-He looked pointedly at me, then at Claud.

87
00:03:55,041 --> 00:03:56,541
-Everyone's well.
-Quite sure?

88
00:03:56,625 --> 00:03:58,250
-Quite sure.
-You never know.

89
00:03:58,333 --> 00:04:01,083
He'd taken upon himself
the mantle of a public health officer,

90
00:04:01,166 --> 00:04:03,916
disappointed we were not suffering
from bubonic plague.

91
00:04:04,000 --> 00:04:07,500
Nevertheless, the rats are in the hayrick.
How will you remove them?

92
00:04:07,583 --> 00:04:09,833
The rat man grinned a crafty, toothy grin.

93
00:04:09,916 --> 00:04:12,333
He reached into his knapsack
and withdrew a large tin,

94
00:04:12,416 --> 00:04:14,833
weighing it up and down
in his hands as he spoke.

95
00:04:14,916 --> 00:04:17,291
Poison. Special poison. Deadly poison.

96
00:04:17,375 --> 00:04:21,041
They'd put you inside if they caught you
with even a spoonful of this.

97
00:04:21,125 --> 00:04:23,333
There's enough here to kill a million men.

98
00:04:23,416 --> 00:04:24,750
-Want to see?
-Yes, please.

99
00:04:24,833 --> 00:04:27,000
He took a penny and prized open the lid.

100
00:04:27,083 --> 00:04:27,916
There it is.

101
00:04:28,000 --> 00:04:31,583
He spoke almost lovingly of the stuff
and held it forward for Claud.

102
00:04:31,666 --> 00:04:33,208
[Claud] Corn or barley, is it?

103
00:04:33,291 --> 00:04:35,666
Oats. Oats soaked in deadly poison.

104
00:04:35,750 --> 00:04:39,416
You take just one grain in your mouth
and you're a goner in three minutes.

105
00:04:39,500 --> 00:04:41,541
Never out of me sight, this tin.

106
00:04:41,625 --> 00:04:43,958
[editor] He caressed the tin and shook it…

107
00:04:44,041 --> 00:04:47,083
-[rat man mimics rattle]
-…so the oat grains rustled softly inside.

108
00:04:47,166 --> 00:04:50,458
But your rats don't get this today.
They wouldn't have it, anyway.

109
00:04:50,541 --> 00:04:54,833
That's where you got to know rats.
Rats is suspicious. Terrible suspicious.

110
00:04:54,916 --> 00:04:57,458
So today they get
some nice, clean, tasty oats

111
00:04:57,541 --> 00:04:59,375
as will do 'em no harm in the world.

112
00:04:59,458 --> 00:05:02,208
Fatten 'em up, that's all.
And tomorrow, the same again.

113
00:05:02,291 --> 00:05:04,625
And the day after that,
and the day after that.

114
00:05:04,708 --> 00:05:07,375
And it'll taste so good,
all the rats in the district

115
00:05:07,458 --> 00:05:09,166
will be comin' along soon enough.

116
00:05:09,250 --> 00:05:10,083
Very clever.

117
00:05:10,166 --> 00:05:13,041
You got to be clever on this job,
cleverer than a rat.

118
00:05:13,125 --> 00:05:14,583
And that's saying something.

119
00:05:14,666 --> 00:05:16,791
"You've almost got to be a rat yourself."

120
00:05:16,875 --> 00:05:18,708
It slipped out before I could stop myself.

121
00:05:18,791 --> 00:05:21,416
I couldn't help it,
I was looking at him at the time.

122
00:05:21,500 --> 00:05:23,250
The effect it had on him was surprising.

123
00:05:23,333 --> 00:05:24,291
-That's it!
-…he cried.

124
00:05:24,375 --> 00:05:26,500
Now you got it, you really said somethin'.

125
00:05:26,583 --> 00:05:29,541
A good ratter's gotta be
more like a rat than anythin' else.

126
00:05:29,625 --> 00:05:31,166
Cleverer even than a rat,

127
00:05:31,250 --> 00:05:33,958
and that is not an easy thing to be,
let me tell you.

128
00:05:34,916 --> 00:05:36,291
Well, let's get on with it.

129
00:05:36,375 --> 00:05:39,583
Lady Leonora Benson's
asking for me urgent up at the manor.

130
00:05:39,666 --> 00:05:40,750
She's got rats too?

131
00:05:40,833 --> 00:05:42,666
Everybody's got rats.

132
00:05:42,750 --> 00:05:45,041
The rat man ambled off down the driveway.

133
00:05:45,125 --> 00:05:47,958
The way he walked was so like a rat,
it made you wonder.

134
00:05:48,041 --> 00:05:51,625
That slow, almost delicate, ambling walk
with a lot of give at the knees

135
00:05:51,708 --> 00:05:54,625
and no sound at all
from his footsteps on the gravel.

136
00:05:54,708 --> 00:05:57,833
He hopped over the gate,
and walked quickly 'round the hayrick,

137
00:05:57,916 --> 00:06:00,416
scattering handfuls of oats
onto the ground.

138
00:06:00,500 --> 00:06:03,083
The next day he returned
and repeated the procedure.

139
00:06:03,166 --> 00:06:06,083
The day after that he came again,
and the day after that,

140
00:06:06,166 --> 00:06:09,500
and finally, on the fourth day,
he put down the poisoned oats.

141
00:06:09,583 --> 00:06:12,958
But he didn't scatter these.
Instead, he placed them in little piles

142
00:06:13,041 --> 00:06:14,875
at each corner of the hayrick.

143
00:06:17,375 --> 00:06:19,041
-You got a dog?
-[Claud] Yes.

144
00:06:19,125 --> 00:06:23,000
Well, if you want him to die a horrible,
twisting death, let him in that gate.

145
00:06:23,083 --> 00:06:25,166
The next day he came to collect the dead.

146
00:06:25,250 --> 00:06:27,958
Get me an old sack.
I'm gonna need one to put 'em in.

147
00:06:28,041 --> 00:06:31,541
He was puffed up and important now,
the black eyes gleaming with pride.

148
00:06:31,625 --> 00:06:34,875
He was about to display
the results of his catch to the audience.

149
00:06:34,958 --> 00:06:37,833
Claud fetched a sack
and we walked across the road.

150
00:06:37,916 --> 00:06:39,625
The rat man prowled around the hayrick,

151
00:06:39,708 --> 00:06:42,500
bending over to inspect
one of his piles of poison.

152
00:06:42,583 --> 00:06:44,458
-Something wrong here.
-…he muttered.

153
00:06:44,541 --> 00:06:46,000
His voice was soft and angry.

154
00:06:46,083 --> 00:06:49,500
He ambled over to another pile
and got down to examine it closely.

155
00:06:49,583 --> 00:06:52,041
-Something wrong here.
-[Claud] What's the matter?

156
00:06:52,125 --> 00:06:55,208
He didn't answer, but it was clear
the rats hadn't touched his bait.

157
00:06:55,291 --> 00:06:57,416
"These are very clever rats here," I said.

158
00:06:57,500 --> 00:06:58,666
The rat man was annoyed

159
00:06:58,750 --> 00:07:02,208
and showed it on his face and nose
and by the way the two yellow teeth

160
00:07:02,291 --> 00:07:04,208
were pressing into his lower lip.

161
00:07:04,291 --> 00:07:06,791
-Don't give me that crap.
-…he said, looking at me.

162
00:07:06,875 --> 00:07:09,708
Nothing's wrong with these rats,
somebody's feedin' 'em.

163
00:07:09,791 --> 00:07:12,541
They got somethin' juicy
to eat somewhere, plenty of it.

164
00:07:12,625 --> 00:07:16,708
No rats in the world will turn down oats
unless their bellies is full to burstin'.

165
00:07:16,791 --> 00:07:18,416
The rat man turned away, sullen.

166
00:07:18,500 --> 00:07:22,000
He knelt down again scooping up
the poisoned oats with a small shovel,

167
00:07:22,083 --> 00:07:24,250
tipping it carefully back into a tin.

168
00:07:24,333 --> 00:07:27,916
When he had finished, all three of us
walked back across the road.

169
00:07:29,125 --> 00:07:31,125
The rat man stood by the petrol-pump,

170
00:07:31,208 --> 00:07:32,916
a rather sorry, humble rat man now

171
00:07:33,000 --> 00:07:35,666
whose face was beginning
to take on a brooding aspect.

172
00:07:35,750 --> 00:07:38,083
He had withdrawn into himself
over his failure,

173
00:07:38,166 --> 00:07:39,541
the eyes veiled and wicked,

174
00:07:39,625 --> 00:07:42,875
the little tongue darting out
to one side of the two yellow teeth.

175
00:07:42,958 --> 00:07:45,083
He looked up at me,
a surreptitious glance,

176
00:07:45,166 --> 00:07:46,125
then over at Claud.

177
00:07:46,208 --> 00:07:48,208
His nose-end twitched, sniffing the air.

178
00:07:48,291 --> 00:07:51,291
He raised himself up and down
on his toes, swaying gently,

179
00:07:51,375 --> 00:07:53,916
and in a soft voice,
soft and secretive, he said…

180
00:07:54,000 --> 00:07:55,333
You want to see something?

181
00:07:55,416 --> 00:07:57,708
He was trying to retrieve his reputation.

182
00:07:57,791 --> 00:07:59,875
-What?
-You want to see something amazing?

183
00:07:59,958 --> 00:08:03,000
He put his right hand
into the poacher's pocket of his jacket

184
00:08:03,083 --> 00:08:06,625
and brought out a large, live rat
clasped tight between his fingers.

185
00:08:06,708 --> 00:08:07,625
Good God!

186
00:08:07,708 --> 00:08:09,250
[chuckles] That's it. You see?

187
00:08:09,333 --> 00:08:12,000
He was crouching slightly
and craning his neck forward

188
00:08:12,083 --> 00:08:15,000
and leering at us and holding
this enormous brown rat,

189
00:08:15,083 --> 00:08:18,083
one finger and thumb making
a tight circle around its neck,

190
00:08:18,166 --> 00:08:20,500
clamping its head
so it couldn't turn and bite.

191
00:08:20,583 --> 00:08:22,416
Do you go around
with rats in your pockets?

192
00:08:22,500 --> 00:08:24,458
Always a rat or two about me somewhere.

193
00:08:24,541 --> 00:08:28,083
He put his free hand into the other pocket
and produced a small, white…

194
00:08:28,166 --> 00:08:30,708
-Is that a ferret?
-The rat man snickered, hissing.

195
00:08:30,791 --> 00:08:33,500
The ferret seemed to know him
and stayed still.

196
00:08:33,583 --> 00:08:35,875
Nothing will kill a rat
quicker than a ferret.

197
00:08:35,958 --> 00:08:38,208
He held the two animals
close in front of him

198
00:08:38,291 --> 00:08:41,541
so the ferret's nose
came within six inches of the rat's face.

199
00:08:41,625 --> 00:08:44,208
The pink beady eyes of the ferret
stared at the rat.

200
00:08:44,291 --> 00:08:47,000
The rat struggled,
trying to edge away from the killer.

201
00:08:47,083 --> 00:08:48,208
-Now.
-…he said.

202
00:08:48,291 --> 00:08:49,125
Watch.

203
00:08:51,125 --> 00:08:53,000
[editor] His khaki shirt
was open at the neck,

204
00:08:53,083 --> 00:08:55,500
and he lifted the rat
and slipped it down inside,

205
00:08:55,583 --> 00:08:56,708
next to his skin.

206
00:08:56,791 --> 00:08:59,708
His belt prevented the rat
from going lower than his waist.

207
00:08:59,791 --> 00:09:01,375
He slipped the ferret in next.

208
00:09:01,458 --> 00:09:04,333
Immediately, there was
a great commotion inside the shirt.

209
00:09:04,416 --> 00:09:08,000
It appeared the rat was running around
his body, chased by the ferret.

210
00:09:08,083 --> 00:09:11,833
Six or seven times they went around,
the small bulge chasing the larger one,

211
00:09:11,916 --> 00:09:15,000
gaining on it slightly each circuit,
drawing closer and closer

212
00:09:15,083 --> 00:09:17,708
until at last the two bulges
seemed to come together,

213
00:09:17,791 --> 00:09:20,500
and there was a scuffle
and a series of shrill shrieks.

214
00:09:20,583 --> 00:09:23,750
Throughout this performance,
the rat man stood absolutely still,

215
00:09:23,833 --> 00:09:26,041
legs apart, arms hanging loosely,

216
00:09:26,125 --> 00:09:29,166
dark eyes resting calmly
on Claud's frozen face.

217
00:09:30,041 --> 00:09:33,750
Finally, he took his hand
and reached down into his shirt

218
00:09:33,833 --> 00:09:35,500
and pulled out the ferret.

219
00:09:35,583 --> 00:09:37,958
With the other, he took out the dead rat.

220
00:09:38,041 --> 00:09:41,250
There were traces of blood
around the white muzzle of the ferret.

221
00:09:42,500 --> 00:09:44,791
"Not sure I liked that very much," I said.

222
00:09:44,875 --> 00:09:47,791
You never seen nothin' like it before,
I'll bet you that.

223
00:09:47,875 --> 00:09:49,166
Can't say I have.

224
00:09:49,250 --> 00:09:51,916
You'll get a nasty nip
in the guts one of these days.

225
00:09:52,000 --> 00:09:55,833
…Claud told him, but was intrigued,
and the rat man was becoming cocky again.

226
00:09:55,916 --> 00:09:58,041
You want to see something
far more amazing?

227
00:09:58,125 --> 00:10:01,208
Something you'd never believe unless
you're seeing it with your own eyes?

228
00:10:01,291 --> 00:10:03,833
I glanced at Claud
more than slightly apprehensive.

229
00:10:05,875 --> 00:10:06,708
Yes.

230
00:10:07,458 --> 00:10:09,583
The rat man slipped
the dead rat into one pocket

231
00:10:09,666 --> 00:10:10,916
and the ferret into the other.

232
00:10:11,000 --> 00:10:15,000
Then he reached into his knapsack
and produced a second live rat.

233
00:10:15,083 --> 00:10:15,916
Holy Christ!

234
00:10:16,000 --> 00:10:18,291
Always got one or two rats
about me somewhere.

235
00:10:18,375 --> 00:10:20,041
You got to know rats on this job,

236
00:10:20,125 --> 00:10:22,708
and if you wanna know 'em
you gotta have 'em around.

237
00:10:22,791 --> 00:10:26,375
This is a sewer rat, this one.
An old sewer rat, clever as buggery.

238
00:10:26,458 --> 00:10:30,000
See him watchin' me all the time,
wonderin' what I'm gonna do next?

239
00:10:30,083 --> 00:10:31,416
-See him?
-Most unpleasant.

240
00:10:31,500 --> 00:10:32,750
"What will you do?"

241
00:10:32,833 --> 00:10:36,166
I had a feeling I'd like
this demonstration less than the last one.

242
00:10:36,250 --> 00:10:39,333
-Fetch me a piece of string.
-Claud fetched a piece of string.

243
00:10:39,416 --> 00:10:41,791
The rat man
looped it around the rat's hind leg.

244
00:10:41,875 --> 00:10:44,666
The rat struggled,
but the rat man held it tight.

245
00:10:44,750 --> 00:10:46,291
Now, you got a table inside?

246
00:10:46,375 --> 00:10:48,333
"We don't want the rat inside," I said.

247
00:10:48,416 --> 00:10:50,791
Well, I need a table.
Or somethin' flat, anyway.

248
00:10:50,875 --> 00:10:54,125
We walked over to the petrol-pump
and he put the sewer rat on top.

249
00:10:54,208 --> 00:10:57,708
He attached the string to a post
so the rat was now tethered.

250
00:10:57,791 --> 00:11:00,250
At first, it crouched,
unmoving and suspicious,

251
00:11:00,333 --> 00:11:02,583
a big-bodied gray rat
with bright black eyes

252
00:11:02,666 --> 00:11:06,166
and a scaly tail that lay in a long curl
on the metal surface.

253
00:11:06,250 --> 00:11:08,750
It was looking away,
but watching him sideways

254
00:11:08,833 --> 00:11:10,416
to see what he was going to do.

255
00:11:10,500 --> 00:11:14,166
The rat man stepped back a few paces,
and immediately the rat relaxed.

256
00:11:14,250 --> 00:11:15,625
It sat up on its haunches

257
00:11:15,708 --> 00:11:17,958
and began to lick
the gray fur on its chest.

258
00:11:18,041 --> 00:11:20,583
Then it scratched its muzzle
with both front paws.

259
00:11:20,666 --> 00:11:23,875
It seemed quite unconcerned
about the other men standing nearby.

260
00:11:23,958 --> 00:11:26,333
-How about a little bet?
-[editor] …the rat man said.

261
00:11:26,416 --> 00:11:27,875
"No, thank you." I said.

262
00:11:27,958 --> 00:11:31,375
-[rat man] It's more fun if you bet.
-[Claud] What do you want to bet on?

263
00:11:31,458 --> 00:11:34,250
[rat man] I can kill that rat
without using my hands.

264
00:11:34,333 --> 00:11:36,458
I'll put 'em in my pockets
and not use 'em.

265
00:11:36,541 --> 00:11:39,250
[editor] It was apparent the rat man
was out to earn some money.

266
00:11:39,333 --> 00:11:42,625
I looked at the rat that was to be killed
and began to feel sick,

267
00:11:42,708 --> 00:11:44,625
not because it was going to be killed,

268
00:11:44,708 --> 00:11:47,166
but because it was to be killed
in a special way,

269
00:11:47,250 --> 00:11:49,333
with a considerable degree of enthusiasm.

270
00:11:51,750 --> 00:11:54,000
-No arms?
-No arms, no legs, no hands neither.

271
00:11:54,083 --> 00:11:55,708
-You'll sit on it.
-No squashing.

272
00:11:55,791 --> 00:11:57,583
-Let's see it.
-Bet me a quid first.

273
00:11:57,666 --> 00:11:59,500
Don't be bloody daft. Why should we?

274
00:11:59,583 --> 00:12:01,208
-What'll you bet?
-Zero. Nothing.

275
00:12:01,291 --> 00:12:03,166
All right. Then it's a no-go.

276
00:12:03,250 --> 00:12:05,625
-He made as if to untie the string.
-I'll bet a shilling.

277
00:12:05,708 --> 00:12:07,666
The sick sensation in my stomach
was increasing.

278
00:12:07,750 --> 00:12:10,375
But there was an awful magnetism
about this business.

279
00:12:10,458 --> 00:12:12,875
I found myself
unable to walk away or even move.

280
00:12:12,958 --> 00:12:13,916
-You too?
-No.

281
00:12:14,000 --> 00:12:15,708
Want me to do this for a shilling?

282
00:12:15,791 --> 00:12:17,750
-I don't want you to do it.
-Where's the money?

283
00:12:17,833 --> 00:12:19,625
Claud put a shilling on the petrol-pump.

284
00:12:19,708 --> 00:12:22,500
The rat man laid two sixpences
beside Claud's money.

285
00:12:22,583 --> 00:12:23,416
Bet's on.

286
00:12:23,500 --> 00:12:24,750
Claud and I stepped back.

287
00:12:24,833 --> 00:12:27,458
The rat man stepped forward,
put his hands in his pockets

288
00:12:27,541 --> 00:12:29,916
and inclined his body
from the waist toward the rat.

289
00:12:30,000 --> 00:12:31,583
The rat was crouching, alarmed.

290
00:12:31,666 --> 00:12:34,250
It seemed it was preparing
to spring at the rat man,

291
00:12:34,333 --> 00:12:36,041
but then it began to reverse away,

292
00:12:36,125 --> 00:12:38,500
dragging its body backwards
with crouching steps

293
00:12:38,583 --> 00:12:40,708
until the string tautened on its hind leg.

294
00:12:40,791 --> 00:12:42,916
The rat man
leaned further towards the rat,

295
00:12:43,000 --> 00:12:45,583
following it back and forth
with his eyes. Suddenly…

296
00:12:45,666 --> 00:12:48,291
-It panicked.
-…it panicked and leapt into the air.

297
00:12:51,166 --> 00:12:54,875
The string pulled it up with a jerk
that must've nearly dislocated its leg.

298
00:12:54,958 --> 00:12:56,458
It crouched again at the edge,

299
00:12:56,541 --> 00:12:59,416
as far away as the string would allow,
whiskers quivering,

300
00:12:59,500 --> 00:13:01,291
the long gray body rigid with fear.

301
00:13:01,375 --> 00:13:04,750
At this point, the rat man again
began to move his face very slowly,

302
00:13:04,833 --> 00:13:05,958
closer and closer.

303
00:13:06,041 --> 00:13:09,166
I wanted to cry out for him to stop,
but I couldn't speak.

304
00:13:09,250 --> 00:13:12,750
Something extremely unpleasant
was about to happen, I was sure of that.

305
00:13:12,833 --> 00:13:16,291
Something sinister and cruel,
but I had to see it now.

306
00:13:16,375 --> 00:13:19,666
Not more than the length of a man's hand
was separating the two.

307
00:13:19,750 --> 00:13:22,458
The rat pressed its body flat,
tense and terrified.

308
00:13:22,541 --> 00:13:23,916
The rat man was also tense,

309
00:13:24,000 --> 00:13:27,500
but with a dangerous active tensity
that was like a tight-wound spring.

310
00:13:27,583 --> 00:13:30,125
The shadow of a smile
flickered around the skin of his mouth.

311
00:13:30,208 --> 00:13:32,041
Then, suddenly, he struck,

312
00:13:32,125 --> 00:13:33,166
as a snake strikes,

313
00:13:33,250 --> 00:13:36,000
darting his head forward
with a swift knife-like stroke…

314
00:13:36,083 --> 00:13:38,125
…that originated in the muscles
of the lower body…

315
00:13:38,208 --> 00:13:40,750
[editor] …and I had a glimpse
of the mouth opening wide…

316
00:13:40,833 --> 00:13:41,875
…two yellow teeth…

317
00:13:41,958 --> 00:13:45,208
[both] …the whole face contorted
by the effort of mouth-opening.

318
00:13:45,958 --> 00:13:47,875
More than that, I did not care to see.

319
00:13:47,958 --> 00:13:50,291
I closed my eyes,
and when I opened them again,

320
00:13:50,375 --> 00:13:51,416
the rat was dead,

321
00:13:51,500 --> 00:13:54,041
the rat man
was slipping the money into his pocket

322
00:13:54,125 --> 00:13:55,750
and spitting to clear his mouth.

323
00:13:57,750 --> 00:13:59,875
And that's what
they makes licorice out of.

324
00:13:59,958 --> 00:14:03,875
Rat's blood's what the big factories
and chocolate-makers use to make licorice.

325
00:14:03,958 --> 00:14:06,083
Nothin' wrong with a drop of rat's blood.

326
00:14:08,791 --> 00:14:10,541
You are absolutely disgusting.

327
00:14:10,625 --> 00:14:13,083
But that's it, you see.
You eaten it many a time.

328
00:14:13,166 --> 00:14:16,250
Penny sticks and licorice bootlaces
all made from rat's blood.

329
00:14:16,333 --> 00:14:18,458
We don't want to hear
another word, thanks.

330
00:14:18,541 --> 00:14:21,291
Boiled up in great cauldrons,
bubblin' and steamin'

331
00:14:21,375 --> 00:14:23,416
and men stirrin' it with long poles.

332
00:14:23,500 --> 00:14:25,958
One of the big secrets
of the chocolate factories,

333
00:14:26,041 --> 00:14:29,875
and no one knows about it,
except the ratters supplyin' the stuff.

334
00:14:29,958 --> 00:14:32,875
Suddenly he noticed his audience
was no longer with him.

335
00:14:32,958 --> 00:14:36,083
Our faces were hostile
and sick-looking and crimson with anger.

336
00:14:36,666 --> 00:14:39,458
He stopped and turned away
without another word.

337
00:14:39,541 --> 00:14:44,125
We watched as he sloped onto the road
with a slow, delicate, ambling walk.

338
00:14:44,208 --> 00:14:47,083
His footsteps didn't make a sound,
not even on the gravel.

339
00:14:55,958 --> 00:14:57,708
[bell tolling in the distance]

340
00:15:00,375 --> 00:15:01,208
Strange.

341
00:15:02,083 --> 00:15:04,041
The rats never ate the poisoned oats.

342
00:15:05,375 --> 00:15:09,291
There must be
something nutritious in the hayrick.

343
00:15:14,541 --> 00:15:16,625
[wind blowing]