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Special Features
- New making-of featurette
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
"A basket full of kisses for a basket full of hugs." Those are chilling words, at least when uttered by that ice princess, Patty McCormack. As Rhoda Penmark, she is as pretty as a porcelain doll but drips venom with each curtsey and polite response. Little Rhoda's mother is terrified she has passed on her own mother's corruption. Oops, turns out she's right. This passes the test of time, as it still gets under your skin. The character development is tight and the story very involving. Not even Freddy Krueger had the ability to scare like tiny McCormack, looking just like a little adult while she literally beats out the competition for a penmanship award. However, director Mervyn LeRoy's hands were tied over the ending, which was changed from the source material--Maxwell Anderson's hit Broadway play. A supposedly more appropriate, and moral, ending was demanded by the studio. This was remade (badly) in 1985. --Rochelle O'Gorman
Product Description
Classic shocker about the terrorized mother of a seemingly sweet little girl with a perverse propensity for luring people to their deaths. Based on a hit play, this chilling tale stars Patty McCormack, Nancy Kelly, Henry Jones, Eileen Heckart. 129 min. Standard; Soundtrack: English Dolby Digital mono; Subtitles: English, French, Spanish; audio commentary by McCormack; "making of" documentary; theatrical trailer.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
74 of 78 people found the following review helpful
Format:VHS Tape
I personally feel that this is one of the greatest horror movie made. Forget all of that blood and guts and popping out of the bushes to scare people. That fear only lasts for a second...This movie plays with your mind and lasts forever. Nothing is scarier than polite Miss Rhoda Penmark.
This movie contains brilliant direction and an amazing cast. Many people feel that the acting is overdone and that they act like they are still in the stage version, entertaining an audience in a theater but that is the way it was meant to be made. Making it look like a regular movie would ruin the essence of the evil, 8-year old killer. Nancy Kelly is truly amazing as Christine. Her "breakdown" scenes are heart wrenching and done very well. She is most-natural and does a wonderful job in playing a woman going through the delemma of whether or not she should hate or love her daughter. Her performance is beautiful, "She killed him! But she's my little girl...and I love her!". The highlight of her acting is when Rhoda just kills one of her victims (I won't say who) and Rhoda is playing the song she always plays on the piano faster and faster and faster. It is such and amazing scene. She deserved the Tony she won during the play and the Oscar nomination. Now, there is Patty McCormack who is definatly chilling in this role. Her perfect smile is just as scary as her evil ways. When she describes the way she killed the little boy I always shudder ,"But he told me that he was going to tell on me...SO I HIT HIM WITH MY SHOES AGAIN!! I hit him harder that time." After the scene where she confesses her murders and Christine tells Rhoda to throw her shoes down the incinerator, the shot of Rhoda's sillouette tossisng the shoes while Christine just sits in the backround and watches with fear, as Rhoda smiles, brings chills down my spine. Her acting gets an A+ and she also deserved the Oscar nomination as well as Kelly. Another, nominated for an Oscar for her role, was Eileen Heckart for the role of (which I think is one of the greatest characters in theatrical history)Mrs. Dagel..the grieving mother of one of Rhoda's vicitms. Although only appearing in two scenes, she makes just as big of an impact as Christine and Rhoda do. Heckart is brilliant in the role and it would be almost imposible to find someone who could do as good of a job as she did. Her beautiful monolougues are truly amazing and heartfelt. Other great performances are that of Henry Jones, the creepy Leroy who is the only one who realizes that Rhoda is evil, Evelyn Varden, as the housekeeper, Monica, who spoils Rhoda terribly, Miss Fern (I can't quite think of her name), as the teacher at The Fern School, and Christine's father (I can't think of his name now either), who is a former mystery writer with a big secret that he is keeping from Christine, which has to do with why Rhoda is a bad seed, something inside of Christine that she passed down to her daughter.
This movie contains brilliant direction and an amazing cast. Many people feel that the acting is overdone and that they act like they are still in the stage version, entertaining an audience in a theater but that is the way it was meant to be made. Making it look like a regular movie would ruin the essence of the evil, 8-year old killer. Nancy Kelly is truly amazing as Christine. Her "breakdown" scenes are heart wrenching and done very well. She is most-natural and does a wonderful job in playing a woman going through the delemma of whether or not she should hate or love her daughter. Her performance is beautiful, "She killed him! But she's my little girl...and I love her!". The highlight of her acting is when Rhoda just kills one of her victims (I won't say who) and Rhoda is playing the song she always plays on the piano faster and faster and faster. It is such and amazing scene. She deserved the Tony she won during the play and the Oscar nomination. Now, there is Patty McCormack who is definatly chilling in this role. Her perfect smile is just as scary as her evil ways. When she describes the way she killed the little boy I always shudder ,"But he told me that he was going to tell on me...SO I HIT HIM WITH MY SHOES AGAIN!! I hit him harder that time." After the scene where she confesses her murders and Christine tells Rhoda to throw her shoes down the incinerator, the shot of Rhoda's sillouette tossisng the shoes while Christine just sits in the backround and watches with fear, as Rhoda smiles, brings chills down my spine. Her acting gets an A+ and she also deserved the Oscar nomination as well as Kelly. Another, nominated for an Oscar for her role, was Eileen Heckart for the role of (which I think is one of the greatest characters in theatrical history)Mrs. Dagel..the grieving mother of one of Rhoda's vicitms. Although only appearing in two scenes, she makes just as big of an impact as Christine and Rhoda do. Heckart is brilliant in the role and it would be almost imposible to find someone who could do as good of a job as she did. Her beautiful monolougues are truly amazing and heartfelt. Other great performances are that of Henry Jones, the creepy Leroy who is the only one who realizes that Rhoda is evil, Evelyn Varden, as the housekeeper, Monica, who spoils Rhoda terribly, Miss Fern (I can't quite think of her name), as the teacher at The Fern School, and Christine's father (I can't think of his name now either), who is a former mystery writer with a big secret that he is keeping from Christine, which has to do with why Rhoda is a bad seed, something inside of Christine that she passed down to her daughter.
There is a lot of controversy over the ending curtain call and the happy spank that Christine lays on Rhoda. I feel that the curtain call and spanking gives the audience a sese of relief since the movie is so disturbing.
I reccomend this movie to everyone that can handle a plot that is different and disturbing.
Don't blame Rhoda for her murderous acts. It isn't her falt, she is just a bad seed.
71 of 77 people found the following review helpful
Format:VHS Tape
This movie is simply a masterpiece. There are no better words to describe it. The chilling morbidity of Rhoda Penmark, and the emotional ringer Christine goes through...it is wonderful! I am a fourteen year old girl who doesn't like the Varsity Blues and Scream movies of my generation, I love the Bad Seed. Most of my friends, however, have never heard of it and don't want to see it. I try to explain to them what a wonderful movie it is, but most of them just don't care. All my generation has grown up seeing slasher films. None of them can truly appreciate The Shining, Psycho, or the elusive simplicity of the Bad Seed. I have seen it many times and know it word for word. It's not a stupid slasher film, or even just a simple murder mystery. It is a solid psycological thriller. I adore it. I love LeRoy and his wonderful ability to be droll, I love Monica and her "I know everything" frame of mind, I love everything about the movie! My dream is to be in the play. Who knows? It could happen... :c)
56 of 64 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Does heredity and environment play equal parts in a child's development? Or is one factor stronger than the other? That's the loaded question the film The Bad Seed (1956) brings forth, seemingly siding on the side of heredity. Personally, I would tend to lean towards environment, but until we can definitely discern the nature of the wiring of our brains, mapping the neural networks and determining the thought processing pathways, we may never know...does bad beget bad? It's possible, but if so, what choices do we have in terms of ending genetically transposed evil from traversing one generation to another? Enforced sterilization? I wouldn't touch that subject with a ten foot Lech Walesa...
The Bad Seed, directed by Mervyn LeRoy (No Time for Sergeants), is actually a film based on a play written by Maxwell Anderson, which was based on a novel written by William March...quite a circuitous path to the silver screen, but one worth waiting for, in my opinion.
As the story begins, we meet the Penmarks, Kenneth (Hopper), Christine (Kelly), and their eight year old daughter Rhoda (McCormack), replete with blue eyes, blonde hair and pigtails. The family appears very normal, except Rhoda, who seems just a little too sweet, a little too ingratiating...but whatever...soon after Kenneth, who's a colonel in the military, has to leave for an extended period of time on some army business, one of Rhoda's school mates dies mysterious drowning incident, after supposedly falling off the end of a pier (seems the boy won an award coveted by Rhoda). No one is overtly posing the theory of foul play in the boy's death, but Christine discovers evidence suggesting her daughter may not be `sugar, spice, and everything nice' (by this time the audience has already entertained the notion that the glossy, sickly sweet veneer presented by Rhoda may conceal more than any of the cast is willing to accept). Connections are made, and truths are revealed (along with a long buried secret), but how does a mother accept the possibility that her child, her own flesh and blood, may be a cold, methodical, remorseless monster, especially when nearly everyone else believes differently .
While I did enjoy this movie, it does have its' faults. As others have mentioned, the film appears much like that of a staged play (not necessarily good for a film). The theater and film are two very different mediums, and what's good for one may not be good for the other. The theatrics within some of the characters (especially that of Ms. Kelly), while necessary for the stage, didn't always jibe on the screen. I do think all the actors did really well, even if a few of the performances tended to be over the top, but for the sake of the film, I think director LeRoy could have provided a stronger production coaxing a bit more subtly from certain cast members. Also, I have to say I found it a little hard to swallow at times that nearly everyone should except Rhoda's sweet, sweet act so whole-heartedly, as she tended to pour it on so very thick. Are, or were, adults ever this gullible? I could understand a certain amount of denial, as we like to think children are basically pure, unadulterated little lumps of clay, waiting to be fashioned into beings better than ourselves, but it seemed everyone (well, except for the handyman Leroy, played by Jones) was so very patently blind to her rather transparent act. Maybe I complain too much...the film did have an incredibly eerie quality throughout, and Patty McCormack did a wonderful job presenting her character, often giving me a major case of the creeps with a side order of the willies. Two performances that really stand out are that of Eileen Heckart and Henry Jones. Heckart plays the mother of the boy who died, drowning herself in the drink, trying to come to terms with what happened, knowing there is more to what happened than nearly everyone believes. Jones performance as Leroy, the creepy, borderline pedophilic handyman is probably the best, as he believes, while Rhoda has most everyone else fooled, he can see right through her act she puts on for the other adults, and takes some kind of perverse pleasure in teasing and taunting her, that is until he comes to the realization that Rhoda might not be just a spoiled, bratty child but something much more...something truly evil... The scenes with Jones and McCormack are chilling, partly because McCormack's character tends to drop the sweet, charming, adorable act knowing it won't work on Leroy, but also secure in the knowledge no one would believe him. The film runs surprisingly just a tad over two hours, but I felt the time was used well. Some have commented on the ending, and the difference between the film and the play, but one should keep in mind the ending used complied with The Motion Picture Production Code which had specific requirements with regards to criminal activity portrayed on the screen. It may have felt `tacked on', but it sure was satisfying (divine retribution, perhaps?)
The full screen (original aspect ratio) picture on this DVD looks really good, and the audio is clear and sharp. Special features include an original trailer, an interview piece with McCormack titled Enfant Terrible, and a commentary track featuring Patricia McCormack and everyone's favorite cross-dressing actor/playwright and Bette Davis enthusiast Charles Busch
Cookieman108
The Bad Seed, directed by Mervyn LeRoy (No Time for Sergeants), is actually a film based on a play written by Maxwell Anderson, which was based on a novel written by William March...quite a circuitous path to the silver screen, but one worth waiting for, in my opinion.
As the story begins, we meet the Penmarks, Kenneth (Hopper), Christine (Kelly), and their eight year old daughter Rhoda (McCormack), replete with blue eyes, blonde hair and pigtails. The family appears very normal, except Rhoda, who seems just a little too sweet, a little too ingratiating...but whatever...soon after Kenneth, who's a colonel in the military, has to leave for an extended period of time on some army business, one of Rhoda's school mates dies mysterious drowning incident, after supposedly falling off the end of a pier (seems the boy won an award coveted by Rhoda). No one is overtly posing the theory of foul play in the boy's death, but Christine discovers evidence suggesting her daughter may not be `sugar, spice, and everything nice' (by this time the audience has already entertained the notion that the glossy, sickly sweet veneer presented by Rhoda may conceal more than any of the cast is willing to accept). Connections are made, and truths are revealed (along with a long buried secret), but how does a mother accept the possibility that her child, her own flesh and blood, may be a cold, methodical, remorseless monster, especially when nearly everyone else believes differently .
While I did enjoy this movie, it does have its' faults. As others have mentioned, the film appears much like that of a staged play (not necessarily good for a film). The theater and film are two very different mediums, and what's good for one may not be good for the other. The theatrics within some of the characters (especially that of Ms. Kelly), while necessary for the stage, didn't always jibe on the screen. I do think all the actors did really well, even if a few of the performances tended to be over the top, but for the sake of the film, I think director LeRoy could have provided a stronger production coaxing a bit more subtly from certain cast members. Also, I have to say I found it a little hard to swallow at times that nearly everyone should except Rhoda's sweet, sweet act so whole-heartedly, as she tended to pour it on so very thick. Are, or were, adults ever this gullible? I could understand a certain amount of denial, as we like to think children are basically pure, unadulterated little lumps of clay, waiting to be fashioned into beings better than ourselves, but it seemed everyone (well, except for the handyman Leroy, played by Jones) was so very patently blind to her rather transparent act. Maybe I complain too much...the film did have an incredibly eerie quality throughout, and Patty McCormack did a wonderful job presenting her character, often giving me a major case of the creeps with a side order of the willies. Two performances that really stand out are that of Eileen Heckart and Henry Jones. Heckart plays the mother of the boy who died, drowning herself in the drink, trying to come to terms with what happened, knowing there is more to what happened than nearly everyone believes. Jones performance as Leroy, the creepy, borderline pedophilic handyman is probably the best, as he believes, while Rhoda has most everyone else fooled, he can see right through her act she puts on for the other adults, and takes some kind of perverse pleasure in teasing and taunting her, that is until he comes to the realization that Rhoda might not be just a spoiled, bratty child but something much more...something truly evil... The scenes with Jones and McCormack are chilling, partly because McCormack's character tends to drop the sweet, charming, adorable act knowing it won't work on Leroy, but also secure in the knowledge no one would believe him. The film runs surprisingly just a tad over two hours, but I felt the time was used well. Some have commented on the ending, and the difference between the film and the play, but one should keep in mind the ending used complied with The Motion Picture Production Code which had specific requirements with regards to criminal activity portrayed on the screen. It may have felt `tacked on', but it sure was satisfying (divine retribution, perhaps?)
The full screen (original aspect ratio) picture on this DVD looks really good, and the audio is clear and sharp. Special features include an original trailer, an interview piece with McCormack titled Enfant Terrible, and a commentary track featuring Patricia McCormack and everyone's favorite cross-dressing actor/playwright and Bette Davis enthusiast Charles Busch
Cookieman108
Most Recent Customer Reviews
The Bad Seed censored.
Has Warner Bros re-edited this movie. I first saw this movie in the mid 1950s at the local cinema as a ten year old. Read more
Published 20 days ago by drg
One of the all time best movies ever!
I don't need to add another long review. If you have never seen this one its an absolute must see. Forget any of those horrible remakes. This one IS a classic. Read more
Published 28 days ago by Madame T. DeFarge
Nature vs nurture. Ha ha ha.
This movie blew my mind. I am not sure what to talk about first, so I'll try to break it down into a list.
1. The acting. Read more
1. The acting. Read more
Published 29 days ago by Joey Comeau
Stunning drama. Nasty child.
Just bought this today. I love it and I don't think I have ever seen it. For its age, it looks pretty nice on Blu. Not a referance quality disc but good for a transfer. Read more
Published 1 month ago by lovethebrits
Fantastic Classic
This movie is unmatched in its psychological suspense and is smartly written. As a parent what do you do when you realize your own child is a psychotic killer? Read more
Published 1 month ago by Avid Reader
Disappointed!
I loved this movie, but version was send to me will not allow me to copy it to my iTunes. I wanted to it on my iPad . So for that reason the cd is not what I thought it's worth.
Published 2 months ago by Deb456
The Bad Seed
This is the best movie of all times. I can still hear her telling Leroy "give me those shoes Leroy" and see the fear on his face once he realize that she is not playing and that... Read more
Published 2 months ago by chance
Bad Seed Blu-Ray DVD
I recieved my DVD as stated," The Bad Seed [Blu-ray]". It came quickly, and the quality is as stated, also. Nice and easy doing business with you, Thanks!
Published 2 months ago by Gbrown
A sleeper that turns into a keeper
In the begining, the bad seed is a bit slow, but don't go shutting off the dvd player so quickly. The movie builds a story for you before you get into all the nitty gritty details... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Ann Marie S. Nassif
The first film to feature a child kller?
I have always loved this movie. I remember watching it on TV in the '60s as a kid -- it chilled me to the bone. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Gregory M. Maldonado
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