Rating: 
Summary: compelling
Review: Another interesting early effort from David Cronenberg. With a lean and economical script, fine performances and a tension that the director slowly builds throughout, this film never loses its grip on the viewer. The ending is astounding.
This fine MGM disc is certainly the best looking version of the film I've ever seen. And as far as I can tell, it's completely uncut. A worthy addition to your Cronenberg collection.
Rating: 
Summary: Bashful's DVD Summary #034
Review: Best:1) It's extremely creepy, helped greatly by the heart-pounding musical score played at the right times.
2) When the murderous child demons start pouncing, it jolts you out of your socks. And the filmmaker's aren't afraid to show the little terrors for extended periods. Worst: 1) You might find the "bad kids" a bit funny since they resemble an army of Kennys from "South Park" (only with messed up faces).
2) There are no special features. Recommendation: This is a good one for Halloween. Just keep in mind that it's a 70's movie. If you can get it cheap, don't hesitate to pick it up.
Rating: 
Summary: Rage Made Manifest...
Review: David Cronenberg is one of the most under-rated horror directors of all time. This is one of his forgotten movies. People remember The Fly, Scanners, etc. But THE BROOD gets lost in the terror-shuffle. This is a scary movie! Written and directed by Cronenberg, THE BROOD is a tale of disturbing psychological forces unleashed. Dr. Raglan (Oliver Reed) is using his faddish "psychoplasmics" techniques to "help" a compound full of nuerotics. Among them is Nola (Samantha Eggar), the estranged wife of the skeptical Frank (Art Hindle). When their daughter Candice returns from a visit with mom, Frank finds her back covered in bruises, bite-marks,and scratches. Infuriated by this, he seeks to keep Candice away from Nola and Dr. Raglan. Meanwhile, Raglan's methods of role-playing are bearing strange fruit, as Nola releases her rage toward her mother and father who abused / neglected her as a child. Her rage is somehow made tangible in the form of a "brood" of murderous, mutant children! This results in the bludgeoning deaths of both her mom and pop. Frank and the police are baffled when one of the creatures is autopsied and found to be lacking a navel. The dread mounts when Candice is snatched from her school classroom, leaving her teacher dead on the floor. Where is Candice? What will Frank do to get her back? What is the dark secret of THE BROOD? Highly recommended...
Rating:
Summary: The Good Mother
Review: Director David Cronenberg is known for bieng a bit of a maverick behind the camera. His films run the spectrum of either being really good, like the remake of The Fly and Dead Ringers, to the really awful Naked Lunch. Fotrunately, 1979's The Brood, comes in at the upper end of my scale. Unlike most of Cronenberg's other horror flicks, this film has a bit more of an emotional subtext, to go along with its scares. The stress of a child custody battle between Nola (Samantha Eggar) and Frank Carveth, (Art Hindle) forces Nola to seek treatment from contoversial Dr. Hal Raglan (Oliver Reed). Thanks to regression therapy and other "treatments", his patient soon discovers that a hidden childhood trauma, forces all of her inner conflicts to take the form of a group of murderous child-humanoids. These children will do anything to protect their "Mother". The film boasts great prefomances by Reed, who's effective at making Raglan-not a typical villian-and Eggar, who really is convincing as Nola-a woman on the edge of insanity. A metaphor for family dynamics, The Brood, has enough psychological and real scares to keep you on edge the entire time. Composer Howard Shore's underscore puts the icing on the cake. The theatrcal trailer is the only extra on the DVD. Here's hoping that the powers that be release a special edition someday. As one of Cronenberg's best from early on in his career, it deserves it. For now--this version will have to do. Recommended
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining.
Review: Eggar gives birth to homicidal cloned midgets who go around butchering people...
Watchable movie by Horror Meister David Cronenberg but not for all tastes. Good acting save this flick from being a total flop.
Rating:
Summary: Cronenberg being Cronenberg
Review: Every once in awhile when I am feeling reflective I like to watch a David Cronenberg film. I have seen quite a few of them at this point, from some of his earliest stuff like "Shivers" to his seminal reworking of "The Fly" starring Jeff Goldblum and Geena Davis. One thing you will always get out of a Cronenberg film is a serious look at how technology and human beings interact. Like science fiction author J.G. Ballard, Cronenberg's films embrace a synthesis of man and machine that is exceedingly grim, usually served with a generous helping of gore. The overarching theme in his cinematic examinations seems to be that humans simply do not know enough about the technology they develop, or if they do, their arrogance in the ultimate abilities of mankind always leads them charging into experiments despite the risks. That we are just not far seeing enough to predict the outcome of using new drugs, messing around with human genetics, or plugging game units into our spinal cords may be a good message to take from a Cronenberg film. "The Brood" is an early (1979) effort from the Canadian director, an effort that is better than "Rabid" and "Shivers" yet still deals with themes his later films would revisit again and again.
"The Brood" explores the dangers of human emotions, in particular the emotion of rage. The movie opens with an extended scene involving Dr. Hal Raglan (Oliver Reed) conducting an intense psychotherapy session with a distraught young man. We learn that this patient harbors a burning dislike for his father, so Raglan role-plays the part of the young man's father in an effort to help dissipate the anger. It's a very 1970's sort of psychological treatment, as is the fact that an audience watches the lengthy session. Afterwards, we discover that Reed's character runs a private clinic called Somafree where he deals exclusively with patients incapacitated with rage. The young man seen in the opening sequence, although "performing" for an audience, is not Raglan's star patient. That honor falls to Nola Carveth (Samantha Eggar), a beautiful mother of one locked away in one of the clinic's spacious holding rooms. You see, Raglan notices that in some human beings rage manifests itself physically, not only in shouting and violence, but also with sores and other marks on the body. In the case of Carveth, something much more sinister and dangerous occurs when she gets angry. It's the sort of thing that could bring fame and riches to a doctor if controlled in the right way.
In the meantime, Nola's husband Frank (Art Hindle) and her daughter Candace (Cindy Hinds) must deal with all the problems having a relative in a mental asylum entails. Frank struggles with the fact that his wife physically abused their daughter, and his main concern now is keeping his daughter away from Nola and Somafree. He suspects, perhaps rightfully so, that his wife continues to hurt young Candy during trips to Raglan's place. Too, Frank is starting to distrust the good doctor's motivations for insisting that Nola continue to see the child. The situation deteriorates to the point that Frank decides to seek a divorce. But Raglan knows something that Frank Carveth will soon learn in spades, that Nola Carveth possesses a unique power only rarely before seen in a human being. While others externalize rage through body sores, Nola literally externalizes by giving birth to malevolent little creatures that go forth and kill her enemies. That's right folks: what we have here are little misshapen, fanged apparitions of rage rampaging through the countryside. Nola's manifestations obliterate Candy's grandparents before moving on to the little girl's teacher. Anyone responsible for angering Nola soon finds a toothy, grunting little monster hot on his or her trail. The conclusion to this bizarre plot is incredibly disturbing.
I kept wondering what Cronenberg was saying as I watched "The Brood." Or perhaps it wasn't so much a case of wondering what was going on as it was wondering how original it was. Rage can kill--sure, I'll buy that. Destructive emotions can cause physical changes in humans--I'll buy that, too. We all know you can suffer a variety of maladies from stress and anger. Cronenberg just takes the idea a step further by declaring that rage can be so powerful that the emotion could literally take the form of a physical being driven by the anger. I don't think carrying the idea one step further is original--isn't there a long history of this sort of thing in witchcraft, demonology, and similar things? Don't get me wrong; I liked the movie a lot. Changing the setting to a mental health clinic is a nice touch, and Eggar, Reed, and Hindle excel in their respective performances. Where else will you see Oliver Reed viciously mauled by dozens of malefic little rage children? Exactly. Moreover, the Canadian atmosphere--lots of trees, dark nights, and back roads--gives the movie a sort of remote, out of the way feel that I liked.
The picture transfer on the DVD looks good, but you don't get anything beyond a trailer in the extras department. I've seen several Cronenberg films, especially his older ones, released in this manner. Why? Here's a guy who has lots of fans hungering for information on his movies. Fortunately, Criterion recently released "Videodrome," and some of his newer films do boast commentaries and behind the scenes stuff, so perhaps his older films will find a better reissue in the future. I for one would sure like to hear what Cronenberg has to say about a film like "The Brood." Until that day arrives, you should still give this one a watch if you enjoy offbeat films.
Rating:
Summary: At last, a full length version!
Review: Finally, an uncut print of THE BROOD. Cronenberg's best film is presented here in a no frills release, however the version of the film is longer (and gorier) than the Japanese, Dutch, French and English DVD versions. It's the same print which was shown on FilmFour in the UK a few years back. The murders and the jaw dropping climax are longer than in any other DVD. Sadly, the print quality is not nearly as good as the beautiful presentation on the (cut) Dutch DVD. Nevertheless, if you want to see the film in it's uncut gory-glory, this is the version to buy!
Rating:
Summary: HATCHLINGS .......
Review: For some or other reason this one has a slight echo of "Don't Look Now" - it's the cosy little kid's winterwear that can be so disturbing, and those little slickers ...... Talk about Psycho-Therapy? Cronenberg goes well beyond all of this in this sad tale of child-abuse and the rather odd results that can manifest as time goes by. The gorgeous Samantha Eggar is the den mother - brooding in Dr. Oliver Reed's ultra-chick sanitarium with more than one odd little bat in the belfry. The mood is sombre, the tone is dark and for God's sake - always look under the bed before turning the lights out ...... Nasty little patterings afoot here . bound to stay with you for a long time! [ps. Kafka would love this landsacpe of the 'pitted' psyche].
Rating:
Summary: VERY CREATIVE!!!!
Review: Get in touch with your inner child with this rare treat of a flick. This is the stuff nightmares are made of! I LOVED THIS STORYLINE!!! One of the most creative horror movie plots EVER! MUST SEE! WISH IT WOULD COME OUT ON DVD!!!!
Own it anyway you can...it's a real treasure!
Rating:
Summary: Good horror film!
Review: Good, but not great horror film where a woman somehow gives birth to deranged children. The camera work is very good in this film, which makes it worth checking out, but it is not a classic by any means.
"Invasion of the Body Snatchers" (1978) which also stars Art Hindle is a better film.
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