Growing up as a child in a divorced home, one where my parents were not friendly with one another is not a unique experience. As a child of the '80s, divorces began to fall slightly from their peaks in the '60s and ‘70s but that didn’t mean that their impact on the family had changed. I wasn’t old enough to remember the details, being 5 when my parents divorced, but I saw how that played out throughout the years of my development having to split time between my mom and dad’s house while also realizing in my teens that I preferred to spend time with my mom more than my dad despite having a strong support network on both sides through my grandparents, aunts, and uncles. Divorce is messy, and while it is necessary it doesn’t come without casualty, something that David Cronenberg channels directly in this 1979 film, “The Brood.” Second Sight Films has released a stunning 4K UHD restoration of the film for the 45th anniversary alongside some newly commissioned features and essays, and we unpack this challenging and important film for you below.

WHAT’S IT ABOUT?

A worried father attempts to uncover a controversial psychologist's unconventional therapy techniques on his institutionalized wife, amidst a series of horrific murders that seem to be targeting those closest to him.

HOW IS IT?

“The Brood” is easily one of our favorite Cronenberg films but is also one of his most antagonistic. Its history is as complicated as the film itself. It takes place shortly after Cronenberg’s difficult divorce from his first wife and the ensuing custody battle that he and his ex had over his daughter. His ire is more than apparent in the film, as seen through the eyes of our protagonist Frank Carveth (Art Hindle) as he literally fights to protect his daughter from her mother, Nola Carveth (Samantha Eggar) who is under the care of a new-age psychiatrist, Dr. Ha Raglan (Oliver Reed). There are many ways to view the film, both affirming and rejecting Cronenberg’s perspective, but each exploration is no more objectively right than another making this one of the more subtly complex films in Cronenberg’s filmography.

The narrative revolves around Frank seeking to retain custody of his daughter with Nola, Candice Carveth (Cindy Hinds), and the lengths to which Nola will go to protect her own from Frank. This manifests in little, deformed children which are literally born from Nola like some sort of alien gestation, although these little mini versions of Candice are more feral and mutated operating solely to execute Nola’s murderous will. At the center of this is Dr. Hal Raglan, played stupendously by Reed, who is experimenting with new therapies aimed at trying both control Nola while at the same time leveraging her physical manifestations of rage as some sort of treatment. It plays out like a standard horror film, with Cronenberg even calling it“the most classic horror film I’ve done”. However, the classical horror structure is merely the delivery vehicle for something far more personal, and in some ways therapeutic and malicious. Nola is characterized only as being “crazy” and a direct harm to Candice, something which Frank is trying to save her from, and the parallels to Cronenberg’s personal history at the time make this connection more than just coincidence. Here, he is working through his issues in the role of Frank while also manifesting his rage in the form of Nola and her murderous mutant offspring. In a way, Cronenberg is Nola, manifesting “The Brood” as his physical representation of anger against his ex-wife. Read in this way, it is easy to see why “The Brood” is often discarded by some as a rejection and fear of the feminine. Those readings aren’t wrong, which is what makes “The Brood” infinitely more fascinating because it can be seen from both sides.

The other viewing of “The Brood” looks at how society often favors the mother in terms of child care and custody, even when signs point to that being a worse-off situation for the child. Some of this is born out of a patriarchal society that places caregiving solely on the mother while leaving the father to tend to things like work. Times have certainly changed in some regards, especially insofar as gender representation in the workforce (despite a still looming pay equity gap that favors men), but recent global events like the COVID-19 pandemic also saw some of those gains diminish as women bore the brunt of decreases in wellbeing, increases in workload, and having to choose between work and home life. There is still a pervasive perception that men are not as fit to be caretakers of children as women are, and while there is no objective data to support this claim, it has been studied that women tend to take different tasks concerning housework and child-rearing which often renders them by default to be the ones to carry the load. Cronenberg’s film can be viewed as a progressive stance in defense of men carrying more of the child-bearing weight, while also acknowledging that biologically women are the ones who can only physically carry and deliver a child to birth. In the same vein, “The Brood” can be seen as a fear of biological superiority and how that alone can cause a rift between the genders out of a simple lack of control. In our current moment, that kind of message couldn’t be more relevant as women in the US have less control over their bodies than they did a decade ago. While there will always be a personal grudge inherent to “The Brood,” what helps it stand the test of time is how broadly applicable and multi-faceted the themes are, and how sadly relevant some of them still are in a world where progress is slow and often unsure.

HOW DOES IT LOOK?

Second Sight has released two of David Cronenberg’s most pivotal films, “The Brood” and “Scanners” both of which previously had fantastic releases from The Criterion Collection. Those Criterion releases were Blu-ray only, thus limiting their potential to take advantage of the rapid improvements in home video capabilities such as 4K UHD and OLED screens and projection equipment. As usual, Second Sight does not disappoint and has provided a transfer that is more than worth the upgrade. The film remains authentically intact at a visual level by not feeling overly glossy or over-corrected, and the late 70s color palette of oranges, tans, and beiges feels natural while still glistening with a fresh new look. Images from this release are used throughout this review.

HOW DOES IT SOUND?

“The Brood” retains the same LPCM mono track that the previous Criterion edition had, and while it sounds great it does make one wonder why there wasn’t an investment in a new mix for this release. Howard Shore’s score is symphonic and startling, and given how it was recorded (more on that later) it makes us wonder how the orchestral composition would sound with something like an Atmos track or at least a 5.1 mix. This is not to say the mono track is bad, rather it’s a missed opportunity for the film’s 45th anniversary.

ANYTHING SPECIAL?

If there are three things we can count on they are; death, taxes, and Second Sight delivering killer special features. “The Brood” is no exception, and is packed with a host of newly commissioned material alongside some archival material, even though some of the previous Criterion material isn’t carried over. The first feature we took in was Producing The Brood, an 11-minute interview with Producer Pierre David who collaborated with Cronenberg on three of his most-known films, “The Brood,” “Scanners,” and “Videodrome.” Pierre discusses how the Canadian government essentially created a film industry as a means to celebrate and promote the arts, while also trying to compete with US film production, and in the early years was a kind of gold rush for folks seeking tax havens that delivered significant returns. One of the major reasons a film like “The Brood” was even made was because as Pierre puts it, “money was chasing projects” and risk-taking was encouraged. Something like “The Brood” wasn’t in line with Cronenberg’s previous collaborates on “Shivers” and “Rabid” so that left an opportunity for Pierre who had the largest distribution company in Canada. Pierre recalls the film fondly and says that Cronenberg was a delight to work with and highly rational. He has some truly amazing stories about Oliver Reed who is well-known for his drunken exploits, and shares a story about how in the first days of production he had to pick Reed up from the police station after he was arrested for drunkenly adhering to a bet he made to walk home to his hotel naked. He also comments on how amazing it was for Reed to show up on time, deliver a stellar performance, and be easy to work with during the day while turning into a drunken mess at night.

The second feature we reviewed was Scoring The Brood, a 7-minute interview with Composer Howard Shore. This was fascinating to watch as Shore recalls being a fan of Cronenberg and even seeing his super8 and 16mm films at underground Toronto film festivals. Shore approached Cronenberg to score “The Brood,” and it was the first time that David had used a composer for a film. Shore’s method was largely self-taught through his own research and time spent at Berkely to get the technical chops, but for “The Brood” he said most of the composing was done live. A 21-string orchestra was assembled and due to budget constraints had to work fast and often doing minimal editing to the scoring while just getting it done live in long takes. Shore’s approach consists of first watching the film as an audience member, and using his memories of the images, colors, and dreams he has about the film to craft the musical stylings. Shore had no help with this, so talks a lot about sketching scenes out, testing them, and then conducting them, and still uses his viewing process to this day on the films he has scored since. Not to be outdone by the video features, Second Sight has also compiled yet another stellar collection of written essays from various critics and academics that highlight the same complexities we alluded to in our review. For our money, these essays are one of the sole reasons collectors should be ponying up for these limited releases, especially if you are seeking to get a more thoughtful exploration of the genre beyond just the aesthetics.

Special Features

A new 4K restoration approved by Director David Cronenberg
Dual format edition including both UHD and Blu-ray with main feature and bonus features on both discs
UHD presented in HDR with Dolby Vision
New audio commentary by Martyn Conterio and Kat Ellinger
Audio commentary by William Beard
Meet the Carveths: An Interview with Actors Art Hindle & Cindy Hinds by Fangoria Editor Chris Alexander
Producing the Brood: An Interview with Executive Producer Pierre David
The Look of Rage: An Interview with Cinematographer Mark Irwin
Scoring the Brood: An Interview with Composer Howard Shore
Character for Cronenberg: an interview with Actor Robert A Silverman
Anger Management: Cronenberg's Brood and the Shapes of Cinematic Rage - a video essay by Leigh Singer
Cronenberg - The Early Years: An Archival Interview with David Cronenberg

Limited Edition Contents

Rigid slipcase with new artwork by Krishna Shenoi
120-page book with new essays by Jenn Adams, William Beard, Craig Ian Mann, Carolyn Mauricette, Shelagh Rowan-Legg, Amber T, Alexandra West, and Scott Wilson
6 collectors' art cards

LAST RITES

“The Brood” is a complicated, erratic, and personal film from David Cronenberg that single-handedly elevated the filmmaker to new heights in his career. The release from Second Sight is nothing short of outstanding, and is an essential addition to every genre fan’s collection, especially the Limited Edition release!

THE GORY DETAILS

Thank you to the fine fiends over at AIM Publicity and Second Sight Films for providing a review copy for the crypt! The Brood is available NOW and can be ordered via Second Sight Direct!

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Nov 4, 2020

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