The Swarm | | Cast : | Michael Caine, Katharine Ross, Richard Widmark | | Director : | Irwin Allen | | Studio : | Warner Home Video | | Format : | Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen | | Released Date : | July 14, 1978 | | DVD Released Date : | August 06, 2002 | | Language : | English (Dubbed), French (Subtitled), English (Subtitled), Portuguese (Subtitled), English (Original Language), Spanish (Subtitled) | | Audience Rating : | PG (Parental Guidance Suggested) | | | BUY THIS DVD FROM AMAZON |
Customer Reviews
| Rating |  | | Date | August 28, 2004 | | Summary | So absolutely horrible its entertaining | Content
 | "The Swarm" (1978) was a box-office disaster when it was originally released. And no wonder, what with its bottom-of-the-barrel special effects, absolutely horrible, illogical script by Stirling Silliphant and direction by Irwin Allen that shows none of the professionalism or pacing of his best films--namely, "The Poseidon Adventure" and "The Towering Inferno." What's more, in its original, 115-minute form, it appears to have been edited by a meat cleaver and jumps from one calamity to another with such abruptness that after a while everything becomes laughable. Yet, I actually have a certain fondness for the thing, especially in its expanded, 156-minute DVD version, which is actually an improvement, basically since it is better paced and the characters and situations prove more tolerable. Yes, it is still a horrible film, but also oddly entertaining, much like watching William Hung on "American Idol." You know it stinks but you're fascinated anyway.
The film plays on '70's paranoia in its depiction of an invasion of the desert southwest by a huge swarm of bees. The cast is large and full of disaster movie veterans and legendary big-screen hasbeens, most of whom show up just long enough to be killed by the bees. Actually, the film is best-known for featuring Michael Caine, in one of two consecutive screen megabombs (the other being "Beyond the Poseidon Adventure") which would have killed any other career; fortunately, he survived the debacles and went on to win two Oscars and become one of our greatest screen actors. His main support comes from Katharine Ross and Richard Widmark, whose careers unfortunately did not recover. The rest of the cast shall remain nameless, since the surviving players are probably still embarassed by their performances, which usually end with their characters attacked by bees, flailing their arms and screaming in slow motion before falling to the ground. At least those are the lucky ones. Others are blown up in train crashes or nuclear power plants, which are illogically overpowered by the bees, which resemble those little chocolate sprinkles you put on ice cream.
The plot? Are you kidding? The United States is invaded by killer bees from Africa. People die. Whole towns are lost. Houston is evacuated. The entire cast dies, except Caine and Ross, who evidently are immune to the bees since they manage to escape Houston by simply putting a towel over their heads while everyone else dies. All of this directed with incredible incompetence by Irwin Allen, who managed to make "The Towering Inferno" look like "Titanic" in comparison.
There's no use discussing the cast since everyone is simply picking up a paycheck. Michael Caine once said he made the film so he could build a house and he ended up with a lousy film and a beautiful house. Judging by the jokes he's endured for this atrocity, the "Poseidon" sequel, and especially, "Jaws the Revenge," he earned the house. Luckily for the viewer, the ineptitude is actually entertaining at times, and funnier than most of today's so-called comedies, so who can begrudge him?
Incidentally, this film was scored by the great, incomparable composer Jerry Goldsmith, who passed away last week. Tellingly, "The Swarm" was not mentioned when the highlights of his career were discussed. I wonder why?
In all, "The Swarm" is horrible. So horrible, in fact, it is entertaining. Now, as for "Beyond the Poseidon Adventure"---
** (out of *****), simply because it's so damned funny. And if you care? Panavision widescreen, with no other features. My opinion? Raquel Welch did a commentary track to "Myra Breckinridge" which was eons better than the film. What about it, Mike? Ready to buy a new house? |
| Rating | | | Date | August 10, 2004 | | Summary | Buy it because it's bad | Content
| Michael Caine said he made this movie because he wanted to buy a house and needed the money, and even though moviegoers might hate the movie, he's sure they'd have loved the house. Well, Michael....it's a classic because it's awful. Buzz your way through this dreadful killer bee bumblefest and have fun poking fun at it! |
| Rating | | | Date | August 02, 2004 | | Summary | JUST BEE! | Content
| THE SWARM is an interesting thriller, about hordes of killer bees, invading the United States from South America. It also boasts a swarm of big-name killer actors; Michael Caine, Katharine Ross, Richard Chamberlain, Richard Widmark, Olivia de Havilland, Henry Fonda, Fred McMurray, Jose Ferrer, Patty Duke Astin, and Lee Grant. You'll have to make up your own mind, as to the real stars of this film. The stellar bees were pretty impressive. They caused helicopters to crash, forced trains off their tracks, and were instrumental in the explosion of a nuclear power plant. Un(bee)lievable!
As you comb through this honey of a film, the plot thickens. The environmentalists, military, medical community, scientists, and your average citizen, buzzed around this set frantically, trying to get a handle on these wacko bees. This was really a fun and funny flick. It is worth watching, just to see this fabulous cast in action. Richard Chamberlain, my favorite actor, was quite wonderful as Dr. Hubbard, an environmentalist called in to outsmart the bees. He was a far better actor than the script would allow. He took a cynical approach to the power of these bees, and in the end, he dies, writhing, and screaming, as the bees swarm his body, and sting him to death. Richard Chamberlain gave his reason for performing in this movie as mostly mercenary. The actor was paid $300,000.00 for a few weeks work, and it enabled him to buy a home he had been eyeing in Hawaii. It sounds like a honey of a deal to me, and it allowed him to bee where he wanted to bee.
The bees were the real thing, kept in refrigerated railway cars, cold enough to make them drowsy and slow. Women with small hands squeezed each individual bee belly, snipped off the stinger, enabling the swarms to attack the actors, without really doing them harm. Still, the sensation of having these insects crawling over one's face, down one's neck, and into one's clothes, is enough to give the most courageous actor....hives! So, here is the buzz on this sweet film. It is a real honey, if you take the time to comb through it, and are willing to accept what will bee! |
| Rating | | | Date | June 04, 2004 | | Summary | A laugh riot! | Content
| Remember the days of Irwin Allen? During the 1970s, this director ruled Hollywood with several all-star, action packed disaster films. There was "The Towering Inferno" with Paul Newman and Steve McQueen. "The Poseidon Adventure" with Gene Hackman and Shelley Winters. The only one he wasn't associated with, I think, was "Earthquake" with Charlton Heston and George Kennedy. A cast of stars both major and minor populated constellation Irwin Allen. He could do no wrong-his films weren't masterpieces of cinematic art, but they drew in audiences willing to spend money to watch these epics. Then Allen made "The Swarm," and a horribly swift silence descended over Hollywood. The 1978 film about a pack of civilization threatening killer bees should receive cult classic status from lovers of crud cinema. Where else are you going to see Henry Fonda inject himself with bee venom? Or Richard Widmark going down for the count while trying to stave off bees with a flamethrower? Say what you will about this film, and you could say plenty of terrible things about it, but it definitely falls under the "so bad it's good" category and thus deserves are attention. Something's amiss at a missile silo somewhere in Texas. The military sends in a crack team of orange suited soldiers to discover what went wrong. It turns out a swarm of killer bees attacked the installation and killed all the personnel. General Slater (Widmark) arrives on the scene to supervise only to find Dr. Brad Crane (Michael Caine) strolling around the silo. Crane claims a swarm of deadly bees did the damage, a statement confirmed by a radar operator noticing something moving away at seven (!) miles an hour. A chopper sent up crashes when the bees attack (!!). Once the military defines the problem, Crane receives the go ahead from the president to take charge of the situation. He brings in all sorts of specialists, including world-renowned immunologist Dr. Krim (Henry Fonda) and the cranky Dr. Hubbard (Richard Chamberlain). Crane ramps up the hysteria by claiming that the bees will attack anyone in sight, including population centers. Sure enough, the focus jumps to a family picnic where we see Mom and Dad collapse under the weight of a thousand bee stings. Back at central control, Crane and Krim discover that a single bee sting is enough to kill a human being. The situation rapidly deteriorates. The bees swarm through a town, ravaging the locals at will. A train full of evacuees derails as the killer insects attack with abandon. Hundreds die as Crane and an Air Force officer named Helena Anderson (Katharine Ross) try to find a solution out in the field. More problems emerge as the bees wipe out a nuclear power plant run by Dr. Andrews (Jose Ferrar) before moving on to Houston. Every solution the military attempts fails, including an effort to use flamethrowers to burn the bees out of the city. As Houston burns in the background, as ambulances crash through windows and blow up with the force of atomic bombs, Slater worries whether history will condemn him to the ash heap for what he has done. Crane offers one final idea, an idea that, if it works, could finally destroy the swarm once and for all. Barely escaping from the flaming wreck that is Houston, Crane and Anderson execute an intricate plot involving sound and helicopters. Fortunately, science again triumphs over the evil forces of nature. And not a moment too soon, I say. Nothing works in "The Swarm." Plot holes abound, so many that it is impossible to mention them all here. How did the bees get into an underground bunker and back out again without leaving any trace of their passing? If the swarm is such a threat, how come only one immunologist is working on finding a cure? Could bees really cause a train to derail? Questions without answers will constantly sidetrack your attention as you watch this film. Moreover, the performances from big name stars achieve a level of ridiculousness that is simply delicious to watch. Caine sleepwalks as Brad Crane, Ross looks like she's in a coma, and Widmark chews scenery without a thought to his future career. Allen throws in a bunch of ineffective and clichéd subplots, including a three way geriatric love triangle between Olivia de Havilland, Fred MacMurray, and Ben Johnson that ends in tragedy. Then there's the obligatory pregnant lady about to give birth (Patty Duke), and the altruistic self-sacrifice of Dr. Krim. Fonda's melodramatic final minutes are a marvel of hammy acting. Best line here? His vital signs are "swinging from the norm to really spooky levels." Another personal favorite occurred when de Havilland's character, a school principal, witnesses a bunch of kids falling prey to the bees outside a building. She utters a hilarious groan of agony as she turns away from the window in horror. The movie, for some reason, shows this in slow motion. Are we supposed to be laughing this hard, Mr. Allen? I could go on and on and on again about the hammy and ridiculous levels "The Swarm" achieves during its nearly three-hour runtime. I loved every minute of it, and am thinking about buying a copy of the film soon so I can roar with derision at my leisure. Sadly, the DVD doesn't have a lot in the way of extras. There is a short television style documentary about some of the stunt work in the film that in its own right is hilarious. You get to see Henry Fonda earnestly lecture the public on the real threat of killer bees, thereby implying that the over the top stuff in the movie could "really happen." Pshaw, Henry! You ought to know better than that. Of course, I should have known better than to try and take this film seriously. A comedy classic! |
| Rating | | | Date | October 16, 2003 | | Summary | The Swarm | Content
| The Swarm was a very realistic movie about the attack of the Afraican Bee's. It shows realism and what we can face in the future ahead of us. It was a really intersting plot.Micheal Caine was at top notch performance, also Irwin Allan did a fantastic directing job. the last 20 minutes was a great the best 20 mintues in the ending |
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