Bug

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Bug

R

Released May 25, 2007

1h 42m

Drama

Mystery & Thriller

Horror

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

62%

Tomatometer

131 Reviews

34%

Popcornmeter

250,000+ Ratings

At a rundown desert motel, Agnes (Ashley Judd) begins a tentative relationship with a newcomer named Peter (Michael Shannon). He has a strange charisma, one that offers fearful and unstable Agnes a flicker of hope. When Peter reveals that the military deliberately infected him with a bug and that he has tiny insects crawling under his skin, paranoia begins to envelop the desperate pair.

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Critics Consensus

Disappointing resolution aside, Bug uses its claustrophobic setting and cinéma vérité camerawork to tense, impressive effect.

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David Fear

Time Out

Rated: 4/5

Nov 18, 2011

Full Review

Joshua Land

Time Out

Rated: 4/5

Nov 17, 2011

Full Review

Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

It starts off like a horror film, or like a modern-day Tennessee Williams piece and then transmutes into ... something very different indeed.

Rated: 3/5

Nov 17, 2007

Full Review

Joe Lipsett

Anatomy of a Scream Podcast Network

William Friedkin's adaptation of Tracy Letts' play features stunning performances by Ashley Judd and Michael Shannon, disorienting editing, and a truly tragic, albeit inevitable, ending.

Rated: 4/5

Aug 30, 2024

Full Review

Debbie Lynn Elias

Behind The Lens

Despite an unevenness to the story and the fact that it lends more to a psychological drama than horror, there is an overall darkness to BUG that shouldn't be missed.

Nov 7, 2019

Full Review

C.H. Newell

Father Son Holy Gore

Relationships, even if they feel like deep love, are sometimes entirely geared towards the annihilation of one singular self rather than the elevation of two whole selves.

Rated: 5/5

May 3, 2019

Full Review

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Dennis P

One of the best films ever made, the performance by Judd and Shannon was impeccable, Not many movies like this and wish there were more. What do we get these days ?, Cartoons, remakes of a bygone era that fail in their attempts, new, so called horror/suspense movies that are a complete waste of time Gripping, suspenseful and totally out there, isn't that called real entertainment and fabulous cinema experience ?

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

06/18/25

Full Review

Audience Member

WOW. Ok, the performances were some of the best I've ever seen- not unlike Aronofsky's The Master. But, also like that, it was easily one of the most inane, nonsensical, s- shows I've ever watched. Justy the absurdity of the premise and that 2 'normal/sane' people would so quickly devolve into what they did- laughable as F. I have schizophrenia, I have for about 10 years now. I totally see the great scripting of what occured but there isn't a way to make a sane person become as crazy as you are. There just isn't. She would've told him to kick rocks as soon as he busted out with the 'invisible bug' poppycock. I AM going to keep the movie in my collection, not b/c I thought it was good, but as a reminder that you can't just make a movie anyway you want and not have some kind of Logic structure to it.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

02/15/25

Full Review

Carl G

Very disappointing! I was expecting a lot more from the film. Michael Shannon was great but the characters were annoying. Not as horrific as I would want it to be, but also wasn’t as deep as I would want it to be.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

02/02/25

Full Review

Tyler B

The best and most realistic D.A.R.E. campaign ever made.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

12/15/24

Full Review

Jerry H

Starts out slow but gets intense Michael Shannon and Ashley Judds acting just blew me away actually made me nervous towards the end kind of comical but in a sad way mental illness isn't funny but Michael Shannon absolutely kills it. And then some. 👍

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/05/24

Full Review

Emilliano S

Great performance from both Michael Shannon & Ashley Judd but the story plot somehow has been 'bugged'.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

05/23/23

Full Review

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William Friedkin

Director

Ashley Judd

Agnes

Michael Shannon

Peter

Lynn Collins

RC

Brian F. O'Byrne

Dr. Sweet

Harry Connick Jr.

Jerry

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Bug: Official Clip - Pliers

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Bug: Official Clip - I Don't Want Any Trouble

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Bug: Official Clip - Dr. Sweet

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Bug: Official Clip - I'm Not an Axe Murderer

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Synopsis

At a rundown desert motel, Agnes (Ashley Judd) begins a tentative relationship with a newcomer named Peter (Michael Shannon). He has a strange charisma, one that offers fearful and unstable Agnes a flicker of hope. When Peter reveals that the military deliberately infected him with a bug and that he has tiny insects crawling under his skin, paranoia begins to envelop the desperate pair.

Director: William Friedkin
Producer: Holly Wiersma, Kimberly C. Anderson, Malcolm Petal, Gary Huckabay, Michael Burns, Andreas Schardt
Screenwriter: Tracy Letts
Distributor: Lionsgate Films
Production Co: LIFT Productions, Lionsgate, DMK Mediafilms
Rating: R (Language|Drug Use|Nudity|Sexuality|Some Strong Violence)
Genre: Drama, Mystery & Thriller, Horror
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): May 25, 2007, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 1, 2011
Box Office (Gross USA): $7.0M
Runtime: 1h 42m
Sound Mix: Dolby, Dolby SRD
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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