The Bad Seed

"Talk all you want about the man and the woman -- but please don't tell about the girl!"

1956 2h 9m EN

👍

7.1

SOLID

🍅

64%

FRESH

😬

METACRITIC

⭐

7.4

IMDB

★7.1TMDB · 276🍅64%Rotten Tomatoes●51Metacritic★7.4IMDB · 17,233

DramaHorrorThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Air Force Colonel Kenneth Penmark and his wife, Christine, adore their daughter Rhoda, despite her secret tendency for selfishness. Christine keeps her knowledge of her daughter's darker side to herself, but when a schoolmate of Rhoda's dies mysteriously, her self-deception unravels.

“Talk all you want about the man and the woman -- but please don't tell about the girl!”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Where to watch · US

PhiloSubscription

Amazon VideoRent

Apple TV StoreRent

Google Play MoviesRent

Google Play MoviesBuy

YouTubeBuy

Fandango At HomeBuy

Cast

Patty McCormack
Rhoda Penmark
Nancy Kelly
Christine Penmark
Henry Jones
Leroy Jessup
Eileen Heckart
Hortense Daigle
Evelyn Varden
Monica Breedlove
William Hopper
Col. Kenneth Penmark
Paul Fix
Richard Bravo
Jesse White
Emory Wages

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Mervyn LeRoy
Writers: John Lee Mahin
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $1.0M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

70 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "The Bad Seed - Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Directed by Mervyn LeRoy, shot by Harold Rosson. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Alex North. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Warren Low shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Patty McCormack and Nancy Kelly and Henry Jones carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Talk all you want about the man and the woman -- but please don't tell about the girl!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Mervyn LeRoy directs. Harold Rosson behind the camera. Alex North scores. Warren Low cuts. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $1.0M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
270 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Part of the "The Bad Seed - Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
4Directed by Mervyn LeRoy, shot by Harold Rosson. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Alex North. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Warren Low shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Patty McCormack and Nancy Kelly and Henry Jones carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "Talk all you want about the man and the woman -- but please don't tell about the girl!".
9IMDB entry: tt0048977 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Classified under 12 themes, including "lightning", "confession", "child murder", "murder".

The technical file

Cinematography: Harold Rosson
Original score: Alex North
Editing: Warren Low
Makeup / hair: George Lane
Runtime: 129 min · 2h 9m
Status: Released
Budget: $1,000,000
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: The Bad Seed (1956)
Rotten Tomatoes: 64% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 51/100
IMDB rating: 7.4/10 · 17,233 votes
MPAA: Approved

Awards

Nominated for 4 Oscars. 1 win & 6 nominations total

Part of

The Bad Seed - Collection

The collection of Lifetime's Bad Seed series of films.

Also by

Mervyn LeRoy

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2013-11-16
★ 7.5/10
Sowing the seeds of evil. The Bad Seed is directed by Mervyn LeRoy and adapted to screenplay by Maxwell Anderson from the novel of the same name written by William March. Anderson had also adapted for the stage play as well. It stars Nancy Kelly, William Hopper, Patty McCormack, Henry Jones, Eileen Heckart and Evelyn Varden. Music is by Alex North and cinematography by Harold Rossen. Is there such a thing as Bad Seed? Where I grew up there was a violent family of four brothers, each one would think nothing of doing a Begbie on you. It was the first time I heard the saying Bad Seed, with the conversation basically saying that their father was a psychopath and the four lads just inherited the violent tendencies by way of Pops. It's this theory that drives LeRoy's movie, only here it's a young "butter-wouldn't-melt-in-her-mouth" girl who has murderous leanings courtesy of her Nana's iffy genetics. The theatre origins are very much evident, there is no hiding this fact, with the acting (some of the actors are held over from the play here) very much as if playing to an open auditorium, while at over two hours in length there's an over stretching of the talk heavy material. However, this is a very engrossing piece of horror cinema, pulsing unpleasantness and mood oppressive by way of black and white photography and a musical score that underlines the blending of sweet innocence and sinister evil. McCormack as the Devil Child is outstanding, likewise Jones as the simpleton handyman who recognises evil when he sees it. Kelly, Heckart, McCormack and Rossen were all Academy Award nominated for their respective work in the film. As for the much discussed finale? Personally I have no problem with what transpires as regards mother and child. Oh for sure the ending to both the novel and play is far darker and dramatic, but there's a campy bizarreness in this Production Code influenced denouement that befits the whole production. Though the end credits curtain calls by the cast members is pushing it too far... 7.5/10

Production companies