The Pest (1997) on Netflix
Miami con artist Pestario Vargas owes $50,000 to the Scottish mob. German hunter Gustav Shank offers him the money to be hunted on his private island.
- Netflix3.2/5
- IMDb4.8/109,943 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes8%
Trailer
Plot summary
Pestario Vargas, called Pest, works scams in Miami and owes $50,000 to the Scottish mob, whose leader Angus wants the debt paid. At a festival, Pest and his friends Ninja and Chubby run a con, and Pest promises his girlfriend, Xantha Kent, a dinner with her parents. Gustav Shank, a German hunter who pursues warriors of different nationalities, intends to hunt an athlete. His servant brings him Pest by mistake, and Shank takes him on instead. Himmel, Shank's son, warns Pest off, but Pest accepts the offer, since surviving a day and a night on Shank's private island pays him $50,000. On the island Shank gives him a tiny gun, and Pest runs into the jungle.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about The Pest (1997)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Universal Studios passed on distributing the film theatrically because its $8 million budget fell below the roughly $10 million minimum the studio required for a theatrical release, according to star John Leguizamo.
- The film flopped commercially, earning only $3.6 million total against its $8 million budget after opening at number 12 with $1.8 million from 1,205 theaters.
- John Leguizamo co-wrote the script with David Bar Katz, and it was described as an “equal-opportunity-offender comedy” in which no race, creed or color would be left unmocked.
- John Leguizamo was nominated for Worst Actor for his performance in the film at the 1997 Stinkers Bad Movie Awards, but lost to Tom Arnold for McHale's Navy.
- The Pest, a 1997 American black comedy film, was inspired by The Most Dangerous Game, the classic 1924 short story written by Richard Connell.
