Bad Seed, The (DVD)

The Bad Seed [This original 1956 version] has been just about my all-time favorite movie throughout my life, since I first saw it as a teen 40 years ago. First off, it, like many other old B&W movies, is like a time capsule. It accurately portrays a time in the recent American past, when a genuine genteelness and civility existed in spades in most places; a time when one-income families were the rule, and cops were not militarized, and children played in the street..... Just seeing the portrayal of of that time period, is worth watching any movie for! But, in addition to spending your viewing time being transported back into that world, with a movie such as this, you are also treated to a superb , which will entertain you and make you think, and even offer some grins. It is not just the died-in-the-wool simple formula "how did it happen?"- but rather a gradual reveal of a multi-faceted plot and the many tendrils which support it- and all performed by superb players (almost all of whom were also in the prior Broadway play version) and masterfully crafted with exacting attention to detail and craftsmanship by all involved at every level of production. In addition to the aesthetic values of this film, the many interesting and unexpected twists and reveals as the story progresses, as well as the unexpected ending, combine to make this a movie that I have never tired of- but which rather I always enjoy watching immensely. It's a rather long movie, but the time just flies by- even after you're familiar with it; and there is no dead space or wasted time- nothing that you'd ever want to skip over; not a moment is wasted. There are only a handful of movies in existence of this caliber- and this is the cream of that crop. I especially enjoy the performances of Evelyn Varden as the quintessential good-natured landlord/friend/"aunt" we all wish we had; Eileen Heckart as the grieving, drunken mother of the dead boy, and most of all, the great Henry Jones as Leroy The Handyman, and taunter of Rhoda. Simply brilliant! This was the pinnacle of Hollywood.

Last night I watched the classic movie "The Bad Seed" for the first time in decades, and it didn't disappoint. The acting is uniformly great; the handyman in particular is very believably creepy, and the girl's mother is quite tragic and real. Of course, the little girl is the star, and (SPOILER) she's a classic sociopath. The idea of an ?8-yr-old girl being a serial murderer was probably unique at the time that this movie was made, and it's still not a common theme. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed watching this movie, and I especially recommend it to anyone who likes a good villain in a movie.

This is a classic movie. It's dated, of course, considering how long ago it was made, but still a classic, and one of those films you remember.

This is one of my favorite movies of all time. The acting is superb. I received my item in a timely manner and it was packaged very well and all at a great price.

This is a great movie from the 50s, I watched it as a child and the DVD has as a special feature a commentary by Patti McCormick, the child star grown up now. Great surprise ending!!!

This review is for the DVD version of 'The Bad Seed' released by Warner Brothers in 2005. DVD & EXTRA'S: The picture is very good and is as good as you could expect for a standard DVD. There are some excellent extra's included. They are: -'Making of' documentary called, Enfant Terrible: A conversation with Patty McCormack. -Audio commentary track with Patty McCormack and Charles Busch. -Theatrical trailer -Subtitles *****WARNING - SPOILERS BELOW THIS POINT***** PLOT/SUMMARY: Rhoda Penmark (Patty McCormack) is a 8 year old girl with a very disturbing personality. She seems to be far more mature than her age would indicate. Rhoda's father, Kenneth Penmark, is a military man. At the beginning of the movie, he leaves for military duty. Rhoda lives with her mother, Christine. The two of them are quite friendly with their landlady, Evelyn, who is also their neighbor. Rhoda is enrolled at a private school. One day she comes home and expresses disappointment at having lost a penmanship contest to her schoolmate, Claude Daigle. She says that she deserved the medal. Shortly thereafter, Claude drowns in a lake. He was last seen in an area forbidden to the children... with Rhoda. Rhoda denies any wrongdoing. The caretaker of the property, LeRoy, is an odd character who is employed because of the good graces of Evelyn, the landlady. Evelyn warns him him to stay away from Rhoda, lest he be fired. LeRoy seems to know there is something odd about Rhoda and teases her every time he sees her. Soon after Claude disappears, LeRoy accuses Rhoda of killing him. It is not clear if he really believes this and teases Rhoda. She reveals to him some information that could prove her guilt. LeRoy is killed in a fire shortly thereafter. Rhoda's mom, Christine, is horrified and is of the belief that Rhoda is responsible. Christine learns her families true history from her father. Christine believes that a person with an evil personality trait can pass this trait on to future generations. She is of the belief that Rhoda may be an evil person. Her father and friends try to keep her calm and tell her she is mistaken. Christine has a talk with Rhoda. Rhoda reveals to her some terrible secrets. Christine makes a fateful decision. PRODUCTION/THOUGHTS: -'The Bad Seed' is based on a play. Thus, it has very few locations. Most of the movie is filmed inside the house but there are some other scenes at a park and some scenes outside the home. Some of these scenes were added to give some scope to the movie. The ending was changed from the play. -This movie uses mostly the same actors that were used for the play. As a result the acting is excellent. The actors obviously knew their roles and most of their lines by heart and pretty much 'nailed it.' Especially impressive was Patty McCormack as Rhoda. I was impressed with how good her acting was. -'The Bad Seed' gets a lot of points in my book for tackling territory that was tough to tackle in conservative, 1950's America. *****MAJOR ENDING SPOILER ALERT BELOW***** THE ENDING: I didn't find the ending shocking but I did find it a bit surprising. Being that this was filmed during the time of the Code and no bad deeds could go unpunished in a movie, I was interested to see how this would play out. You didn't see many movies with children committing outright murder during these times. I kind of figured she'd be sent to either a sanitarium or home. Also at this time you also didn't see children being killed in movies very often. So, yes, Rhoda's end was a bit surprising, but Rhoda's demise was not unexpected. Once I saw her head to the dock during the storm I fully expected her to fall in the lake drown but the director and writer obviously had a different ending in mind. *****END OF MAJOR SPOILER***** CONCLUSIONS/RECOMMENDATIONS: This is recommended for anybody who enjoys psychological horror and obviously anybody who likes 'creepy children' movies. I'm giving it 4 stars. It was good but not great. I find movies to that are based on plays to drag in places and often have a lot more dialogue that is necessary. Alfred Hitchcock made a few movies based on plays and they are among my least favorite of his movies. For example, I did not like 'Rope' at all. If you liked this movie, I strongly recommend seeing 'Never Take Sweets From A Stranger' made by England's famous Horror studio, Hammer Film Productions. I found this movie even more shocking to watch (for the time period) than 'The Bad Seed.' When I watched it, it caught me off guard and was one of the best 'Hammer' films I've ever seen.

Great movie

Patty McCormack won a nomination as Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her portrayal of Rhoda Penmark, the eight-year-old socio-pathic serial killer in the 1956 film, "The Bad Seed." The film shocked audiences then and still has an equal capacity to shock now. In fact, the last eight reviews of the film were written in the last ten months, indicating the continued popularity of this controversial film. It raises the question: What causes killers--heredity or environment? Few would disagree with the influence of environment as a catalyst for the incubation of murderers. Horrible living conditions, brutal parents, absorbed violence from television and video games, neglect, the list goes on. But heredity? Does a murderer pass on murder genes? Such is the gist of "The Bad Seed." The film is what some would call a "talking" movie, i.e. much of the background and foreshadowing are established through dialog. Basically, the plot reveals a happy family with kind and loving parents, Ken and Christine Penmark and a perfect little girl, Rhoda, who prefers dresses to jeans. Early on the viewer learns that Rhoda has crescent-shaped taps on her shoes to prevent the heels from wearing down. And the most important thing is that Rhoda did not win the coveted penmanship medal, which she most emphatically wanted! I have seen this movie many times, but did not notice until this last viewing that Christine has been concerned about Rhoda a long time now. In fact, she and her husband think Rhoda too grown-up for her age and want her to be a little girl. Christine also worries that she herself is a changeling and that her father is not her father. But enough background. Every detail, every sentence uttered is an important piece of information in the unraveling of the plot, in reaching that final scene. I've always considered the movie's ending perfect because it settles everything. As for that spanking, it's just a fun addendum to the introduction of the cast and not part of the plot. It becomes an "if this, then not that" scenario, but definitely not part of the movie. An intriguing aspect of the story is the addition of the slightly mentally challenged LeRoy, the handyman who has free run of the property. It's as if his intellectual lessening heightens and intensifies his ability to read people, as he shows in several scenes. And of course, he knows Rhoda, but not well enough. The premise of nature vs nurture is not the only controversial topic of the film. However, mention of two other equally explosive subjects would be a spoiler. Suffice it to say, viewers will want to plan time for a good discussion afterward. Note: What ever happened to Patty McCormack? She went on to have a film, television, and film career, but not one of importance. However, her latest role is Pat Nixon in "Frost/Nixon."

1956 : une date marquée d'une pierre noire dans le monde du cinéma. En effet, jusque là, les enfants faisaient soit sourir, soit pleurer (ainsi dans le "Kid", "Qu'elle était verte ma vallée", "Jane Eyre"...). Mais cette année là, arrive Roda (Patty Mc Cormack, excellente) et "Mauvais Graine". Pour la première fois, l'enfant devenait un monstre de froideur à l'absence total de scrupule et de sentiment. Ainsi s'ouvrait pour la première fois la porte à ne pas ouvrir : celle qui cachait les enfants monstres. Et profitèrent par la suite tous les damnés ("le village des damnés, je recommande très chaudement l'original bien sûr), tous les possédés ("Les Innocents",là encore l'original très chaudement recommandé lui aussi, "l'Exorciste"...), pour le plus grand malheur des adultes, voir du genre humain. "Mauvaise graine" raconte l'histoire de cette gamine à l'apparence plutôt angélique et aux couettes blondes, toujours propre sur elle et fort bien vêtue, qui pour des raisons futiles, élimine son entourage, proche ou non. Une grand-mère qui lui avait promit un objet à sa mort tombe dans les escaliers; un enfant reçoit une récompense qu'elle convoite, elle le noie; un jardinier trop malin devient une torche humaine. Et tout celà entrecoupé de leçons de piano et de jeux de fillette. Le dialogue dévoile peu à peu son esprit démoniaque, véritable nature de la fillette qui révèle ses actes à sa mère avec un naturel déconcertant (c'est par les dialogues que nous apprenons ce qui est arrivés aux victimes). Pour elle, rien de plus naturel que de tuer pour obtenir. Elle n'est pas folle mais diabolique, ses meurtres étant méticuleusement préparés. Et face à elle, une mère (Nancy Kelly) absolument dépassée et désarmée. Effrayée et horrifiée. La fin du film, hélas, atroce mais ô combien crédible qui voyait la mère tuer sa fille en l'empoisonnant avant de se tuer elle même était une chose impensable sur les écrans. Elle fut, malheureusement modifiée (je ne connais pas la version du dvd, peut-être qu'avec un peu de chance...) Le film est d'une noirceur profonde, abyssale, jusqu'à la scène finale citée au-dessus. Imaginez la mère qui berce son enfant pour l'aider à s'endormir dans un sommeil sans retour, avant de se donner la mort. L'aspect extrèmement dramatique du film est souligné par l'air de "Au clair de la Lune" mêlé au thème musical du film. "Mauvaise Graine" est un film injustement méconnu (on voisine le chef-d'oeuvre)et tout à fait dérangeant.

El producto me llegó mucho antes de lo esperado, en excelentes condiciones. The Bad Seed es un film para todos los amantes del terror psicológico, brutal para su época, repleto de actuaciones audaces. Si buscas gore o jump scares, esta no es la película para ti. En cambio si has disfrutado de títulos como El Bebé de Rosemary o Don't Bother to Knock, es perfecta para ti.

Después de ella muchos se han apuntado al boom de la niña psicópata...pero como esta historia ninguna..Magnífica película y maravillosos los señores de Hamelyn tienda...rápidos y eficaces

Un' autentica perla del regista americano. Suspence sino all'ultimo fotogramma. Molti i temi sottesi ed intrecciati, con una vena per il melodramma e qualche punta ironica, sino al siparietto finale (imposto o no dalla censura dell'epoca). Il dvd è arricchito da una lunga scheda da leggere come "bonus". La versione è inglese (senza sottotitoli italiani) e nella doppiata italiana d'epoca sottotitolata nelle poche scene escluse in Italia e dunque con lingua d'origine, grazie ad eccellenti attori della scuola (tra cui Rina Morelli). Video eccellente, sonoro con qualche imperfezione.

Brilliant film,well acted by the whole cast,Patty McCormack is excellent as the Bad Seed Rhoda.a truly great film with an un-expected twist at the end,