The Swarm (1978)

User Rating:

3.9/10   

Director:

Irwin Allen

Writers:

Stirling Silliphant (screenplay)
Arthur Herzog Jr. (novel)

Release Date:

14 July 1978 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

It's more than a speculation - it's a prediction !

Plot:

A huge swarm of deadly African bees spreads terror over American cities by killing thousands of people.

Plot Keywords:

Swarm | Bee | Military | Killer Bee | Scientist

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar.

Cast

Michael Caine	...	Brad Crane
Katharine Ross	...	Helena
Richard Widmark	...	General Slater
Richard Chamberlain	...	Dr. Hubbard
Olivia de Havilland	...	Maureen
Ben Johnson	...	Felix
Lee Grant	...	Anne MacGregor
José Ferrer	...	Dr. Andrews (as Jose Ferrer)
Patty Duke	...	Rita (as Patty Duke Astin)
Slim Pickens	...	Jud Hawkins
Bradford Dillman	...	Major Baker
Fred MacMurray	...	Clarence
Henry Fonda	...	Dr. Krim
Cameron Mitchell	...	General Thompson
Christian Juttner	...	Paul Durant
Morgan Paull	...	Dr. Newman
Alejandro Rey	...	Dr. Martinez
Don 'Red' Barry	...	Pete Harris
Elizabeth Rogers	...	Woman Scientist (extended version only)
Doria Cook-Nelson	...	Mrs. Durant (as Doria Cook)
Robert Varney	...	Mr. Durant
Ernie F. Orsatti	...	Duty Officer (as Ernie Orsatti)
Patrick Culliton	...	Sheriff Morrison
John Furlong	...	Cameraman
Chris Petersen	...	Hal
Jerry Toomey	...	Eddie
Barbara Costello	...	Receptionist / Nurse (extended version only)
Jenifer Taurins	...	Nurse (extended version only)
David Himes	...	Radioman (extended version only)
Mara Cook	...	Secretary
Joey Eisnach	...	Bee Boy
Stephen Powers	...	Radarman
Chris Capen	...	Lieutenant
Tony Haig	...	Officer #2
Bill Snider	...	Radarman #2
George F. Simmons	...	Nurse (as George Simmons)
Arell Blanton	...	Sergeant
Trent Dolan	...	Radio Sergeant
John Williams	...	Launching Officer
Steven Marlo	...	Pilot #1 (as Steve Marlo)
Phil Montgomery	...	Mechanic
Jim Galante	...	Doctor (extended version only)
Frank Blair	...	Himself
Marcia Nicholson	...	Captain
Arthur Space	...	Engineer
Chuck Hayward	...	Standby Engineer
Glenn Charles Lewis	...	Chemical Warfare Guard
Art Balinger	...	Radio Announcer
Michael Sheehan	...	Airman #1
Howard Culver	...	Airman #2
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Marneen Fields	...	Train Passenger (uncredited)
John Otrin	...	Wild Lines (uncredited)

Directed by
Irwin Allen

Writing credits
Stirling Silliphant		(screenplay)
Arthur Herzog Jr.		(novel) (as Arthur Herzog)

Produced by
Irwin Allen	....	producer

Original Music by
Jerry Goldsmith

Cinematography by
Fred J. Koenekamp		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Harold F. Kress

Casting by
Jack Baur

Production Design by
Stan Jolley

Set Decoration by
Stuart A. Reiss		(as Stuart Reiss)

Costume Design by
Paul Zastupnevich

Makeup Department
Ruby Ford	....	hair stylist
Tony Lloyd	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Norman A. Cook	....	production manager
George E. Swink	....	post-production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Herb Adelman	....	trainee second assistant director
Mike Salamunovich	....	assistant director
Skip Surguine	....	second assistant director

Art Department
Ralph Aubert	....	property master
Tom Cranham	....	production illustrator
Irwin 'Eppy' Epstein	....	drapery
Harold Fuhrman	....	set designer
Alfred M. Kemper	....	set designer
Joseph Musso	....	production illustrator
William O'Brien	....	assistant art director

Sound Department
Jerry Jacobson	....	adr editor
Herman Lewis	....	production sound mixer
Michael Minkler	....	sound re-recording mixer
Allan R. Potter	....	sound editor

Special Effects by
Howard Jensen	....	special effects

Visual Effects by
L.B. Abbott	....	special photographic effects

Stunts
Greg Anderson	....	stunts
Larry Holt	....	stunt performer
John Moio	....	stunt performer
Paul Stader	....	stunt coordinator
Mickey Caruso	....	stunts (uncredited)
Marneen Fields	....	stunts (uncredited)
Chuck Hayward	....	stunts (uncredited)
Loren Janes	....	stunts (uncredited)
Mike Johnson	....	stunts (uncredited)
Mags Kavanaugh	....	utility stunts (uncredited)
Hubie Kerns Jr.	....	stunts (uncredited)
John Nowak	....	stunts (uncredited)
Ernie F. Orsatti	....	stunts (uncredited)
Paul Stader	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Mike Benson	....	camera operator
Hal Landaker	....	video supervisor
John Monte	....	still photographer
Edward Morey III	....	assistant camera (as Ed Morey III)
Gene Stout	....	gaffer
Serge Poupis	....	assistant camera: second unit (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Donah Bassett	....	negative cutter
Tim Board	....	assistant film editor

Music Department
Les Fresholtz	....	re-scoring mixer
Donald Harris	....	music editor
Arthur Morton	....	orchestrator
Arthur Piantadosi	....	re-scoring mixer
Dan Wallin	....	score mixer

Other crew
Nancy Claycomb	....	production secretary
Al Gail	....	production executive
Ron Gruchy	....	air force coordinator (as Major Ron Gruchy)
Tony Habeeb	....	publicist
Ken Harris	....	technical advisor: bees
Fred Hesper	....	technical advisor: bees
George Leslie	....	cost controller
Steven Marlo	....	dialogue coach
Sidney Marshall	....	production executive
Julie Pitkanen	....	script supervisor
Sheridan Dar Reid	....	location manager (as Sheridan Reid)
Bill Ryan	....	electronic foreman
Art Volpert	....	executive assistant to producer

Production Companies

• Warner Bros. Pictures

Distributors

• Warner Bros. Pictures (1978) (USA) (theatrical)
• Columbia-Warner Distributors (1978) (UK) (theatrical)
• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1980) (USA) (TV) (broadcast premiere)
• Warner Home Video (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner-Columbia Film (1978) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Warner-Columbia Filmverleih (1978) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Living Colour Entertainment (2009) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Sandrews (2003) (Sweden) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2003) (Netherlands) (DVD)

Special Effects

• Van der Veer Photo Effects

Other Companies

• Pacific Title  titles

Runtime:

116 min | USA:155 min (extended version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (35 mm optical prints) | 4-Track Stereo (35 mm magnetic prints)

Certification:

Netherlands:12 (orginal rating) | France:-12 | West Germany:16 (nf) | Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 (1978) | Sweden:15 | UK:12 | USA:PG | West Germany:12 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Houston, Texas, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Note character actor José Ferrer appeared in this film as the director of a nuclear power plant as a favor to Producer/Director Irwin Allen. Ferrer did his scenes all in one morning by just walking across the Warner Bros. lot from the soundstage where he was filming The Return of Captain Nemo (1978) (TV), a CBS mini-series that he was also making for Allen. The theatrical release is known as 'The Amazing Captain Nemo' (1978).

Goofs:

Continuity: The morgue at the base only shows about a dozen bagged corpses, although over twice that number were visible earlier in the movie.

Quotes:

Maureen Schuster: Attention! Attention! This is Miss Schuster. Please listen very carefully. A swarm of killer bees is coming this way.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mork & Mindy: Mork's Best Friend (#1.24)" (1979)

Great fun, depending on which version you see...

THE SWARM

Aspect ratio: 2.39:1 (Panavision)

Sound format: 4-track magnetic stereo

A swarm of African killer bees rampage across America's south-west before descending on Houston, destroying everything in their path.

Contrary to popular opinion, THE SWARM is not the worst movie ever made, and anyone who says otherwise clearly hasn't seen the collected works of Jesùs Franco, Andy Milligan or Woody Allen (just kidding!). Representing the last gasp of the disaster cycle inaugurated by Ross Hunter's big-time adaptation of Arthur Hailey's AIRPORT (1969) and further popularized by the likes of THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE (1972) and THE TOWERING INFERNO (1974) - the latter a bona fide Hollywood classic - THE SWARM encapsulates director Irwin Allen's basic commercial ethos: Big stars, big set-pieces, and big drama.

Taking its cue from previous small-scale entries like THE DEADLY BEES (1966) and TERROR OUT OF THE SKY (1978), Allen's old-fashioned monster movie revels in the destruction of towns, trains, nuclear power plants and the reputations of numerous high-profile actors. However, Stirling Silliphant's script is so hokey, it's difficult to believe he wasn't poking inglorious fun at the entire project: Michael Caine is so obviously miscast (as a 'brilliant' entomologist), and so clearly contemptuous of the material, his expression never changes throughout the entire film, though co-star Richard Widmark gives it everything he's got as a gruff military type who's eager to quell the threat by bombing everything in sight. Henry Fonda rises above the fray as a dedicated immunologist, and Slim Pickens is quietly dignified as a bereaved father, while Olivia De Havilland forms the centerpiece of a gentle romantic subplot (she's courted by Fred MacMurray and Ben Johnson). Richard Chamberlain, Lee Grant, Jose Ferrer, Bradford Dillman and Patty Duke Astin are featured in supporting roles alongside leading lady Katharine Ross, who seems particularly embarrassed by her ridiculous dialogue (get a load of her hysterical reaction to the death of a sympathetic younger character - if you lean forward, you can almost *smell* the ham!).

The film exists in two separate versions: The 116 minute theatrical print, and an expanded 'director's cut' running 155 minutes which pads the narrative with pointless dialogue exchanges, turning a tightly constructed disaster thriller into an endless yak-fest. Stick with the original.