El bicho

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

Loosely based on the novel "The Hephaestus Plague" about a strain of self igniting cockroach that is unleashed on a rural town following an earthquake. Local professor (Bradford Dillman) must learn more about the bugs in an attempt to stop the path of destruction, but finds himself aiding their evolution into unassailable marauders.

Interestingly handled thriller, produced by horror royalty in William Castle focuses on the mental disintegration of the lead character, following the death of his spouse. His obsessive determination to destroy the bugs leads him to the brink of insanity, while the bugs conversely enhance their intelligence through the reinforcement gained in his experiments. Where most of the cast (Gilliland, Vint, Jackson, Miles) fade out after the first half, Fudge and McCormack come into focus in the second half, as they attempt to coax Dillman out of his self imposed isolation.

The concept that mankind is the subject of the experiment and ultimately the more vulnerable of the two species, is canvassed abundantly in the second half of the film and while engaging, slows the pace considerably. Overall, I found "Bug" an entertaining tale that improved with each subsequent viewing and an ideal swansong for horror maestro Castle.

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 once about 20 years ago. If you read other's comments you'll find that just about everyone hates the second half of the movie. For me it was the reverse. The first half wasn't particularly interesting. Bugs starting fires, BIG DEAL. Then the movie apparently ends and you're wondering what else could happen. That's where it gets interesting. I liked the doctor's slow descent into madness. It was highly original and refreshing twist. The bugs on the wall just rocked! If you want to make more sense of the doctor's actions read the book, The Hephaestus Plague. The book actually continues on beyond where the movie ends. I'd really recommend this movie unless of course you want stupid CGI instead of plot and character development.

So in this movie, there are some scenes that take place in the Brady Bunch house. It is true. But it's really only obvious in the kitchen, especially the scene where the scientist's wife's head goes up in flames. The other parts of the set were modified to make it somewhat inconspicuous... but if you have a keen eye, you'll notice it. This was filmed sometime in 1974, which was the year the final episodes of The Brady Bunch aired. So it appears that the bugs chased the Bradys out. Cousin Oliver probably brought the fiery critters into the house in his luggage. That kid ruined everything. He was said to be a "jinx." This proves it!

This movie has some fun moments but it does start to get a bit boring as it drags on. The Brady house stuff wraps up somewhere around the middle and the last half doesn't include it any longer. We get trapped in some tiny shack with the mad scientist who is doing weird breeding experiments with the fire bugs and regular cockroaches. I won't spoil how it turns out but you can probably guess. Cousin Oliver's jinx is a strong one.