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The Swarm

Play trailer Poster for The Swarm PG 1978 1h 56m Horror Play Trailer Watchlist
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9% Tomatometer 23 Reviews 19% Popcornmeter 2,500+ Ratings
Scientist Dr. Bradford Crane and army general Thalius Slater join forces to fight an almost invisible enemy threatening America; killer bees that have deadly venom and attack without reason. Disaster movie-master Irwin Allen's film contains spectacular special effects, including a train crash caused by the eponymous swarm.
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The Swarm

Critics Reviews

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Empire Magazine 05/25/2015
3/5
Hammy action yarn with an entertaining performance from Michael Caine. Go to Full Review
Variety Staff Variety 03/26/2009
Killer bees periodically interrupt the arch writing, stilted direction and ludicrous acting in Irwin Allen's disappointing and tired non-thriller. Go to Full Review
Jennifer Selway Time Out 06/24/2006
A number of journalists, rolling in the aisles with laughter, were ejected from the press screening. Go to Full Review
David Nusair Reel Film Reviews 08/26/2021
1/4
The Swarm's arms-length vibe is perpetuated by its pervasive assortment of inept, incompetent elements... Go to Full Review
Richard Freedman Newhouse News Service 08/05/2021
[It's] a movie without a smidgeon of redeeming social esthetic or entertainment value: The Swarm manages to be both cruel to older actors by holding their failing techniques up to ridicule and to be at least subconsciously bigoted. Go to Full Review
Eddie Harrison film-authority.com 03/15/2021
1/5
'...it's the soapy elements which truly chill the senses... Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Azam A. @Azam1030 Nov 18 Too long, no interest, great over acting from Michael Caine See more Russ G Nov 4 Another PoS that Michael Caine somehow couldn't resist! Did this guy ever see a script, or a paycheck, to turn down? See more CodyZamboni Z 10/20/2024 Appallingly bad. Silly, laughable, and dumb, Zero thrills and suspense Cheap looking fx. The once dependable Irwin Allen seriously has lost his touch. Maybe except for convincing top stars to appear in such dreck for an easy paycheck. See more 10/20/2024 Well, that certainly was a film. I saw this for free on YouTube, cause it looked interesting and it had an ensemble cast. Even with Caine, Chamberlain, and Ross the film was just….. not that good lol. Honestly though you can’t hate this movie with a passion, for one thing the cinematography was surprisingly competent. Like genuinely in a lot of scenes I found myself thinking “damn, that looks good”. The movie also had no chill, they were killing off literally everyone. Even the children, which is something you don’t see too much in modern cinema. So kind of a nice change of pace. I also really like the ending, I kind of hate endings that are all happy or whatever. Either way, avoid this one unless you don’t want to, it’s up to you I guess. Don’t let online reviews dictate whether or not you like a movie. 1.5/5 stars funny little horror movie here, with some pretty crazy stuff. (Also Jerry Goldsmith went crazy on that end title theme, so crazy in fact that it was later used in the Alien movies. Nice that it found new life in a completely different horror film.) See more Jonathan O 10/06/2024 The Swarm looks thrilling and exciting but is so dumb and silly that you will laugh at the characters doing dumb things and Jerry Goldsmith's score really gives us the chills and excitement but as for the cinematography is fine but really bad camera work and Irwin Allen did great in the poseidon adventure and the towering inferno but the swarm is too long and you can tell which scene shouldn't be in the movie and script is so ridiculous it makes no sense but it's a good bad movie to watch on Netflix, YouTube and Tubi. See more Mark B 09/12/2024 It is a classic disaster movie with not great acting ridiculous plot and cheesy special effects, but it is entertaining enough. A throwback to the 70’s See more Read all reviews
The Swarm

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Movie Info

Synopsis Scientist Dr. Bradford Crane and army general Thalius Slater join forces to fight an almost invisible enemy threatening America; killer bees that have deadly venom and attack without reason. Disaster movie-master Irwin Allen's film contains spectacular special effects, including a train crash caused by the eponymous swarm.
Director
Irwin Allen
Producer
Irwin Allen
Screenwriter
Stirling Silliphant
Distributor
Warner Bros. Pictures
Production Co
Warner Bros.
Rating
PG
Genre
Horror
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jul 14, 1978, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Nov 7, 2008
Runtime
1h 56m
Aspect Ratio
Scope (2.35:1)
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