The Bad Seed
by Mervyn LeRoy
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DVD details
Actor: Eileen Heckart, Evelyn Varden, Henry Jones, Nancy Kelly, Patty McCormackDirector: Mervyn LeRoy
Brand: WARNER HOME VIDEO
Cinematographer: Harold Rosson
Producer: Mervyn LeRoy
Editor: Warren Low
Writer: John Lee Mahin
Writer: Maxwell Anderson
Writer: William March
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: French (Unknown); English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Format: Black & White, Closed-captioned, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 129 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2004-08-10
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Warner Home Video
DVD Reviews of The Bad Seed
DVD Review: A movie and a little girl you'll love to hate!
Summary: 5 Stars
I have seen this movie maybe three or four times since the early 60s. It's one of my favorites. So why, at 60 years of age, only 3 or 4 viewings? Well, the movie leaves you with an unnerving feeling at the end that will stay with you for a very long time. Mention this movie a few years after you have seen it and the feelings are back. I believe the studio added the "comic relief" epilog to help disspell some of the tension this movie will create in the viewer. A CLASSIC and STILL GREAT!!!DVD Review: A Classic Must See
Summary: 5 Stars
I first saw this movie on TV when I was a kid, and I can't even count the number of times I have seen it since. I first was happy to have it on tape, now I bought it on DVD from Amazon. I just can't watch this movie too many times.
This story is from a book by William March, published in 1954. It was made into a broadway play in 1955 and in 1956 the entire cast from the play was used for the movie. Patty McCormack was outstanding as Rhoda Penmark, "the bad seed". The entire cast is fantastic, and the writing, direction and cinematography keeps you riveted until the very last moment.
This film had an alternate ending that I saw off and on when it was on TV years ago. I finally got a copy of the book several years ago, and the end of the book is different than either one of them. Not only do I highly recommend this DVD, but I also recommend that you watch the movie first (usually I would do it the other way around) just so that you can see how faithfully the writer of the screenplay followed the book - until the very end. I was surprised to see that it doesn't match either ending that I had seen in the movie!
This book and film was very shocking for its time, and people had a very hard time accepting that a little girl could be a killer. That is what made it such a unique and awesome thriller.
One thing I love at the end of the movie is that they bring out each actor to take a bow just like they would in the live play. They all deserved Oscars as did the movie.
DVD Review: The Bad Seed
Summary: 5 Stars
I seen the Movie A Long Time Ago? I Always Wanted to Get The Movie? It was so Funny To Me!DVD Review: Bad seed, bad ending
Summary: 3 Stars
I watched this movie again today, not having seen it in more than 50 years. It has the same flaws I remembered quite clearly.
For one thing, it never got much beyond the stage play. Nearly all the action takes place in the Penmark living room, which looks like a stage set. The dialogue is stilted. The psychology is sophomoric--people spouting nonsense as if it were wisdom. For the most part, the acting is stagy. For example, Eileen Heckart as the drunken mother of the murdered boy is grossly overdone. In fact, the only acting worthy of note is by Patty McCormack as Rhoda and Henry Jones as Leroy the janitor. I'm always astonished to see a very young person who is good--and Jones is an old pro who always came through.
But worst of all, from my view, the ending goes about five minutes too long. Maybe they thought they had to show come uppance in 1956, but it is a groaner today. I can't be more specific without ruining the surprise completely. See for yourself.
DVD Review: A very bad seed
Summary: 5 Stars
This movie at the time may have been a shocker for it's audience of the day,but today it can still stand up to any current movie,simply because it has a great script,and a great cast in particular Patty McCormack as the nasty and evil Rhoda.
Some people have never seen the movie,so i won't say too much,but the way Rhoda plays the polite and sweet little girl that everyone is fond of,masks a secret they are all unaware of.
Some later movies have been influenced by this movie,and portrayed the child with all the nasty things that they do on screen,but this movie let's your imagination do that for you.
Watch as Rhoda's temper starts to flair with the gardener,because he can see through her sweetness,and as her mother quizzes her about event's that have been happening,only for Rhoda change the subject with, "A basket full of kisses for a basket full of hugs." ,as this is a line she uses a lot throughout the film.
This is a great movie from 1956,when movies were all about good scripts and a good cast,and i purchased this because a friend recommended it,and plus they said you will never believe the ending,as they felt that was more shocking than Rhoda was.
Description of The Bad Seed
Movie DVD"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
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