The Brood Blu-Ray Review

Rating: 18
BD Release date: 8th July 2013 (UK)
Director: David Cronenberg
Cast: Olivier Reed,Samantha Eggar, Art Hindle
Buy The Brood: [Blu-ray] David Cronenberg’s cult classic The Brood is perhaps one of the most innovative and surprising films to deal with the dangers of psychological therapy. Starring Oliver Reed as the mysterious therapist, Dr Raglan, Art Hindle as Frank Carveth, and Samantha Eggar as Nola Carveth, The Brood explores the possibilities for body horror in medical science without following tired routes: a man desperately clinging to what is left of his family after his ex-wife becomes increasingly more involved with mysterious treatments at a cultish psychological institute, seeks to save his family and solve a recent spate of murders that coincide with his wife’s psychotic turns.

Considering the plot for the film, it would be easy in other hands for The Brood to misfire in a big way, but in careful hands, with a good sense of humour, Cronenberg executes this passion project with nothing short of full genius. One of the things you’ll notice after a first viewing is how brave the film seems once you’ve gotten over the initial shock. The sites of violence and the manner in which those brutal scenes are depicted is riveting and sharp, in particular a class room assault is one of the most controversial yet open-eyed choices in the film.

At points The Brood can stray into laughable territory, spending too much time with hyper-characterized figures and relying a little too much on the apparent terror attached to lonesome children. Cronenberg does, however, carefully balance the humour of his film with visceral imagery and merciless moments of grotesque violence. Yes, the mutant children have perhaps approached their sell-by date and in their bright winter coats appear a wee bit garish but when taken as part of the whole they are still rendered as utterly feral and devious.

The Brood’s cult reputation comes mostly from its classic finale which offers one of the most startling images in horror, and one of the most engaging feminist/horror dialogues committed to film. It is in this shocking final scene that Samantha Eggar unleashes the full fury of her wonderfully damaged psychotic mother-figure and flaunts an unsettling talent for barmy behaviour.

Sharp and well executed, with stand-out performances from Hindle, Reed, and Eggar, and one of cinemas greatest villians and finales, Cronenberg’s The Brood is a sadly often ignored story of relationship breakdown meets horror of the psyche, highly recommended viewing for any classic horror fan.

★★★★☆

Scott Clark

Who Needs Hulk Hogan When You Have MONSTER BRAWL! Coming To UK This August

Witness the ultimate “smackdown” event of all time as eight of the world’s most feared and famous monsters enter the ring to go head-to-head in a grotesque and hilarious fight to the death (or, in several cases, the “un-death”). Who needs Hulk Hogan when you'll have MONSTER'S BRAWL this August!

Celebrity Wrestlemania doesn’t get any scarier – or funnier – than the Monster Brawl, in which four contestants from the Creature Conference and four from the Undead Conference battle it out in the ring to take the title of the most powerful monster of all time. Representing the CC are Massachusetts’ nefarious necromancer Witch Bitch, Louisana’s slimy bog dweller Swamp Gut, Tennessee’s very own Werewolf and, adding some continental glamour to the group, the mythical Cyclops from the Ionian Islands of Greece. The UC’s creepily cosmopolitan line-up consists of Transylvania’s Lady Vampire, Ingolstadt’s Frankenstein, Egypt’s Mummy and, from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the one and only Zombie Man!

The rule book is ripped up, no holds are barred, everything goes and heads definitely roll in this gory and horrifically hilarious satire of those ever-popular Pay-Per-View wrestling extravaganzas we all know and love so well.

The winner of the Audience Awards at both the Fantasia and Toronto After Dark Film Festivals, this is a dream come true for anybody who has ever watched a horror film and then discussed with their friends who would win in a face-off between their two favourite monsters (and who hasn’t had such a discussion?). Combine that brilliant set-up with a cavalcade of “blink and you’ll miss ‘em” in-jokes for horror and wrestling fans alike and you have the perfect recipe for a midnight movie experience that actually rewards repeated viewings.

Directed by Jesse T. Cook (director of the cannibal shocker Scarce) and starring Dave Foley (A Bug’s Life; Cars; The Kids In The Hall), Lance Henriksen (Aliens), cult genre movie icon Art Hindle (Black Christmas; Porky’s; Invasion Of The Body Snatchers), actor and wrestler Kevin Nash (The Punisher; Magic Mike), legendary WWF and WCW manager Jimmy Hart, former WWF star Robert Maillet (300; Sherlock Holmes; The Immortals) and MMA fighter and referee Herb Dean.

Monster's Brawl will the arriving on DVD in UK&Ireland on August 20th, thanks to Momentum Pictures, check out trailer below.

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Monster Brawl (2011) - Official Trailer [HD] Published via LongTail.tv