THE BROOD

****

Directed by David Cronenberg.

Starring Oliver Reed, Samantha Eggar, Art Hindle, Cindy Hinds.

Horror, Canada, 92 minutes, Certificate 18.

Released in UK on Limited and Standard Edition 4K UHD & Blu-ray on 31st March by Second Sight

THE BROOD was something of a gear change for David Cronenberg at the time of its 1979 release. Made just after his curio racing car pic FAST COMPANY, this saw the director/writer jumping back into horror cinema but with a more measured and personal approach to his storytelling after the go for broke exploitation thrills of SHIVERS and RABID, although a Cronenberg exploitation film even then was completely different from everything else around. Often referred to as his “divorce film” after a strained marriage fell apart, THE BROOD marks a step up in his unerring talent for unnerving imagery paired up with a more mature and emotional throughline that will be immediately recognisable to anyone who has gone through a bad break-up, although maybe not one that proves as bloodily disastrous and psychologically damaging than the one on display here.

Art Hindle plays Frank Carveth, a father and estranged husband whose wife Nola (Samantha Eggar) has taken up residence in a commune run by the intense Dr. Hal Raglan (Oliver Reed), an unconventional psychiatrist pioneering in the practice of “psychoplasmics.” This form of therapy sees internal feelings manifested physically in its patients in the way of severe rashes and/or sores. Frank sees this as nothing more than a rip off form of quackery that gets in the way of access to Nola, who seems to be fully under Raglan’s spell, but after seeing signs of physical abuse on his young daughter Candice, the concerned father makes the decision of gaining full custody of his child, away from the harmful nature of his wife and Raglan. However, when a series of brutal murders occurs that strike close to Frank the true nature of what psychoplasmics can actually achieve is unearthed in typically shocking Cronenbergian fashion.

After the venereal fears of SHIVERS and RABID, THE BROOD was quite an evolution in Cronenberg’s storytelling and filmmaking, shifting from one strain of human abnormality to another. It also contains one of Cronenberg’s most disturbing and grotesque sequences that still retains the power to shock and disturb, impressive enough for a forty-seven year old film and even more impressive when you consider the rest of his somewhat depraved filmography which has managed to twist the human form inside out in all manner of ways.

Fans of physical media will no doubt be excited to see this upgraded to 4K, especially when Second Sight are involved. They continue to prove themselves here with an excellent remaster that clears up and sharpens the picture to excellent effect that still retains the vintage look in all of its 70’s corduroy and bloody glory. The special features that were on the previous Blu-ray release have also been included here as well as some new interviews with the likes of composer Howard Shore, a video essay and two audio commentaries, making this a typically stacked edition, especially whether you decide to go for the chunky limited edition with its small book and art postcards.

This is a more than welcome re-issue of one of Cronenberg’s most fascinating and personal films, especially in this spectacular new edition. No doubt a must buy for longtime fans, it can also be counted as an essential step-up from any other release to date. Looking as fresh now as at the time of its release, it is also a pleasure to report that it still manages to grip and disturb every bit now as it must have done then.

Iain MacLeod