The Brood

1979
X
1h 32m

IMDb RATING

6.8/10

36K

YOUR RATING

'The Brood' is a 1979 horror movie by David Cronenberg.

Play trailer2:37

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99+ Photos

Body Horror Horror Sci-Fi

A man tries to uncover an unconventional psychologist's therapy techniques on his institutionalized wife, amidst a series of brutal murders.A man tries to uncover an unconventional psychologist's therapy techniques on his institutionalized wife, amidst a series of brutal murders.A man tries to uncover an unconventional psychologist's therapy techniques on his institutionalized wife, amidst a series of brutal murders.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.8/10

36K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 1 win & 5 nominations total

Videos1

Trailer 2:37

Trailer

Photos129

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
David Cronenberg wrote the film following the tumultuous divorce and child-custody battle he waged against Margaret Hindson. Cronenberg also said that Samantha Eggar's character, Nola Carveth, possessed some of the characteristics of his ex-wife.

Goofs
Just after the first murder, the deformed/mutant child who committed it leaves very large, bloody handprints on the stair railing just near the dead body. These handprints are never mentioned again, in particular by the police, who insist later that they were "never looking for anything that small." It would have been impossible to miss these handprints at the crime scene, and such child-sized handprints would have certainly tipped off the police in a different direction upon discovery.

Quotes
Juliana Kelly: Thirty seconds after you're born you have a past and sixty seconds after that you begin to lie to yourself about it.

Crazy credits
Special thanks to Dr. Denton: Sleepware.

Alternate versions
The 2005 R2 UK DVD by Anchor Bay, features the 92min Unrated Cut (in addition to the 88min UK edited cut). This is the first time the Unrated Cut has been released in the UK on a home entertainment format, and includes an additional 28 seconds of footage from the ripping and licking of the foetus, the mallet murder of the old lady and shots of the dead schoolteacher's battered face.

Connections
Featured in Sneak Previews: The Promise, The Prisoner of Zenda, Saint Jack, Alien, Battlestar Galactica, The Brood, The Passage (1979)

User reviews193

Featured review

A great, under-appreciated horror classic!

One of Cronenberg's best films! It has some moments that will stick with you for a while. When the brood first appears and the beatings begin, I was not only disturbed by them, but the way that their faces look was burned onto my brain. I once read that Cronenberg calls this film his KRAMER VS. KRAMER. I think that's very interesting. He's taken the pain that he went through in his own life and manifested it in the physical form of these creatures. I find this kind of creativity to be associated only with some of the more visionary contemporary filmmakers. Cronenberg is that, there is no question. Performances by the late great Oliver Reed, Samantha Eggar and Art Hindle are perfect for the film. It is scary and disturbing and should be seen by all horror film fans. I find it to be a sadly neglected classic.