Synopsis
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.
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Cast
- Nancy KellyChristine Penmark
- Patty McCormackRhoda Penmark
- Henry JonesLeroy Jessup
- Eileen HeckartHortense Daigle
- Evelyn VardenMonica Breedlove
- William HopperCol. Kenneth Penmark
- Paul FixRichard Bravo
- Jesse WhiteEmory Wages
- Gage ClarkeReginald "Reggie" Tasker
- Joan CroydonClaudia Fern
Recommendations
- 75
TV Guide Magazine
An erratic but compelling film that lingers long after the fade-out. - 75
San Francisco Chronicle
The film is filled with unintentional laughs and with other moments that are simply jaw-droppingly absurd, either for the histrionic acting, the dated style of writing, the pseudo-science or just the spectacle of evil in pigtails. One could easily make the case that the movie is simply awful. Yet everything dated and peculiar about it is fascinating and does not detract -- it may even enhance -- the fun of the central premise. [05 Sep 2004, p.28] - 75
TV Guide Magazine
An erratic but compelling film that lingers long after the fade-out. - 75
San Francisco Chronicle
The film is filled with unintentional laughs and with other moments that are simply jaw-droppingly absurd, either for the histrionic acting, the dated style of writing, the pseudo-science or just the spectacle of evil in pigtails. One could easily make the case that the movie is simply awful. Yet everything dated and peculiar about it is fascinating and does not detract -- it may even enhance -- the fun of the central premise. [05 Sep 2004, p.28] - 63
Slant Magazine
The Bad Seed might not have the lurid veneer of Oedipal conflict that turned The Good Son into a supreme guilty pleasure, but it’s got more false-façade performances than you could ever hope for. - 63
Washington Post
The Bad Seed was a successful novel and Broadway play before it was made into a movie, and the melodramatic quality of much of the writing and acting betray these roots. But the movie's artful black-and-white cinematography still contributes much to making this a remarkably gripping chiller. [05 Apr 1987, p.Y6] - 63
Slant Magazine
The Bad Seed might not have the lurid veneer of Oedipal conflict that turned The Good Son into a supreme guilty pleasure, but it’s got more false-façade performances than you could ever hope for. - 63
Washington Post
The Bad Seed was a successful novel and Broadway play before it was made into a movie, and the melodramatic quality of much of the writing and acting betray these roots. But the movie's artful black-and-white cinematography still contributes much to making this a remarkably gripping chiller. [05 Apr 1987, p.Y6]
