Classic Horrors Club

Disaster Film Checklist

All-Star Cast (Oscar Winners):

• Michael Caine
• Olivia de Havilland
• Ben Johnson
• Jose Ferrer
• Patty Duke
• Lee Grant
• Henry Fonda

All-Star Cast (Oscar Nominees):

• Richard Widmark
• Katharine Ross

All-Star Cast (Others):

• Richard Chamberlain
• Slim Pickens
• Bradford Dillman
• Fred MacMurray
• Cameron Mitchell
• Alejandro Rey

Multiple Lives in Danger:

• Marysville, TX
• Houston, TX
• The United States
• The world?

Threat Beyond Control:

• Swarms of African killer bees

Warning Disbelieved:

• Gen. Slater (until the President himself emasculates him)

Difference in Opinion About How to Proceed:

• Gen. Slater wants to spray pesticides, but
• Brad Crane and Dr. Hubbard want to protect the environment.

Dramatic Confrontations:

• Shouting matches between Gen. Slater and Brad Crane

Characters & Relationships:

• Brad Crane and Cpt. Helena Anderson develop a romance
• Mayor Clarence Tuttle competes with Felix for attention of Maureen Schuester
• Rita is pregnant and goes into labor during evacuation of Marysville
• Dr. Tomas Martinez is in love with Rita; the feeling is mutual
• Jud Hawkins’s son is killed in initial attack

Mental Handicaps and Phobias:

• Victims hallucinate a giant bee
• Brad Crane can’t look at dead bodies because his parents were killed in a fire

Themes:

• Power of nature
• Faith vs. science

Bonuses:

• Impending doom is not prevented
• Efforts to stop the bees anger them, creating…
• Multiple tragedies.

Thoughts

Irwin Allen lost so much money on The Swarm that he forbade his employees from ever mentioning it again. It was the first of three big-budget films, along with Beyond the Poseidon Adventure (1979) and When Time Ran Out (1980),  that performed so poorly at the box office, they were blamed for ending the disaster film genre of the era. Yea, I’m going to be watching them all this month.

Michael Caine joined the production when he saw the number of stars that were involved; however, he never even read the script. He took the brunt of criticism and tried to share it with other members of the cast, but he’s largely responsible (in my opinion.) He’s awful in this, sacrificing authentic collection of emotion and going straight for the shouting. It’s mostly between him and Richard Widmark, but at least Widmark maintains his composure.

It’s not just the actor who under/over performs; it’s the character. We don’t know the timeframe within which the story unfolds; however, he appears in nearly every scene regardless of logistics. The most ridiculous one is when his Brad Crane and Katharine Ross’s Helena Anderson are suddenly walking through the evacuated town dressed in their Sunday best as if impending doom is as good a time as any to go on a date.

Had I known I was watching an extended version (156 min.) of the film on Blu-ray from Warner Archive, I might have sought the original version (116 min.) that IMDb claimed was the running time. I’m not convinced, though, that removing any padding would help. To be fair, it doesn’t feel like it’s padded. It’s just that every minute of it is long and boring. I felt it especially in the underground headquarters of the team trying to save the world.

I will credit The Swarm for breaking some of the rules of the disaster genre. While no one makes a brave, personal sacrifice, there is a higher than usual body count among the all-star cast. It also breaks the cardinal rule of no children or pets dying. The additional dark subject matter could balance the nonsense, but you’d need to throw a little more meat on the scale. My memories of bad special effects must pertain to the TV bee movies; these are OK.

I also liked the brief mention of the old faith vs. science debate. When all of Crane’s efforts have failed, he resorts to prayer. Major Baker (Dillman) asks Gen Slater, “Can we really count on a scientist who prays?” Gen. Slater responds, “I wouldn’t count on one who doesn’t.” That’s all the time devoted to the theme and soon control of the effort is returned to Gen. Slater. I guess there’s a more pervasive theme of scientific thought vs. military might throughout the film.

Some good did come out of this film. Michael Caine used his salary to buy his mother a house.

Quotes

Entomologist Brad Crane vs. General Thadeus Slater

We’ve been fighting a losing battle against the insects for 15 years, but I never thought I’d see the final face-off in my lifetime. And I never dreamed, that it would turn out to be the bees. They’ve always been our friend.

Crane

Are you endowing these bees with human motives? Like saving their fellow bees from captivity, or seeking revenge on mankind?

Crane

We have been invaded, by an enemy far more lethal than any human force.

Crane

Is it me you’re seeing? Or a bee?

Crane

It’s damn hard to believe that insects have accomplished what nothing in the world could have done, except germ warfare or a neutron bomb: neutralize a ICBM site.

Crane

Houston on fire. Will history blame me, or the bees?

Slater

Maybe you shoulda tried bourbon and branch water and got ’em drunk!

Slater

So, the occupation of Houston has begun – and General Thailus Slater is your first officer in history to get his butt kicked by a mess of bugs!

Slater