Bug

Hadn't seen this since I was 8,so I didn't know what to expect,since it was directed by the infamous Jeannot Szwarc,who helmed such big budget disasters such as Supergirl & Santa Claus The Movie,have to say it was very creepy,well made, & even scary in some spots,believe me,after watching this,you'll be up all night spraying your kitchen with heavy doses of Raid.I hope that Paramount releases this on DVD.Check It Out!!!

I saw this movie when I was about 8 years old in a very old, ornate theater. At that time, it absolutely scared the hell out of me. This movie has been burned in my memory as being incredibly terrifying. I would love to see it now because in retrospect, it was probably one of the cheesiest movies I have ever seen. Great for B movie fans.

I'm pretty sure the music is what drove him crazy. It certainly made me want to scream.

Released in 1975, "Bug" stars Bradford Dillman as a professor who becomes fascinated by a fire-starting breed of large cockroaches after they're released from their subterranean habitat via an earthquake. As he descends into madness he descends into hell.

The movie starts off good with an earthquake at a church in rural Southern California and the ensuing mystery of the fire-starting roaches, but the second half becomes draggy as it largely consists of the professor going recluse as he studies the roaches and performs an experiment. While I didn't find the roaches particularly scary, they're ugly and depicted in a creepy manner. The most memorable part of the movie occurs near the end when the bugs do something on the wall, which utterly freaks out the professor (and the viewer). The climax is pretty good too, but also unsatisfactory.

On the female front, Jamie Smith-Jackson (Alice from 1973's "Go Ask Alice") earns top awards, lookin' great in a pair of jeans, and Patty McCormack (Sylvia) gets second place. Unfortunately, not enough is done with 'em.

The "Brady Bunch" reference refers to the fact that the professor's house is the re-painted and re-arranged house-set of that popular early 70s' show. I was expecting Alice to appear in the kitchen at any moment! Needless to say, if you need a 70s' fix "Bug" fills the bill.

The film runs 99 minutes and was shot in Riverside, California, and Paramount Studios.

GRADE: C+

Viewers who may be having some insect problems in their own abode may feel a bit better about their domestic situation when they see what the residents of a small California desert town have to contend with, in 1975's "Bug." After a seismic event releases the titular nasties from deep underground, the ugly, beetlelike creatures start making trouble, setting fires wherever they go by rubbing their chitinous rear antennae together. And then things get even more problematic, when a balmy biology teacher (excellently portrayed by Bradford Dillman) decides to cross the "Firebug" with the ordinary domestic roach! OK, first let me say what "bugged" me about this film. It is occasionally slow moving and, other than Dillman's character, there is no other character of any depth or interest to speak of. And since even Dillman's character goes bonkers halfway through, there's really nobody for the viewer to root for or identify with. There is, however, plenty of good news. The film IS creepy as can be (roachaphobes, be forewarned!) and features an eerie electronic score by Charles Fox and interesting directorial touches from Jeannot Szwarc. And those bugs really are something! I could not tell half the time if I was looking at a genuine insect or the result of some special FX wizardry; probably a cunning mixture of the two. And the four bug attack sequences, three of them on women, are gruesomely effective and well done. A tip of the hat to producer and co-writer William Castle, who, in this, his last film, demonstrated that he still knew how to deliver a gripping entertainment. (Come to think of it, the Firebug almost looks like a pint-size Tingler!) My buddy Rob has astutely pointed out to me the picture's skillful use of establishing shots, prolonged silences, "disturbing imagery" and "unnerving stillness," and I must admit that a repeat viewing revealed the film to be not so much slow as deliberately paced. Ending on as bleak a note as can be, the picture will most likely send viewers off to the hardware store to pick up a preventive pack of Combat!