The Swarm (1978)

A huge swarm of deadly African bees spreads terror over American cities by killing thousands of people.

Director:

Irwin Allen

Writers:

Arthur Herzog III (novel), Stirling Silliphant (screenplay)

Stars:

Michael Caine, Katharine Ross, Richard Widmark

Nominated for 1 Oscar.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Michael Caine	...	Brad Crane
Katharine Ross	...	Helena
Richard Widmark	...	Gen. Slater
Richard Chamberlain	...	Dr. Hubbard
Olivia de Havilland	...	Maureen Schuester
Ben Johnson	...	Felix
Lee Grant	...	Anne MacGregor
José Ferrer	...	Dr. Andrews (as Jose Ferrer)
Patty Duke	...	Rita (as Patty Duke Astin)
Slim Pickens	...	Jud Hawkins
Bradford Dillman	...	Major Baker
Fred MacMurray	...	Clarence
Henry Fonda	...	Dr. Krim
Cameron Mitchell	...	General Thompson
Christian Juttner	...	Paul Durant

Storyline

Killer bees from South America have been breeding with the gentler bees of more northern climes, slowly extending their territory northward decade after decade. Entomologist Brad Crane has discovered that something is making them come together in huge, killer swarms. He wants to keep the General Slater from using military tactics from further upsetting the balance of nature as they join to try to stop the swarms from approaching Houston.

---

Plot Keywords:

swarm | bee | military | killer bee | scientist | 

---

Taglines:

It's more than a speculation - it's a prediction !

---

Genres:

Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

---

Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 July 1978 (USA)

Also Known As:

Der tödliche Schwarm

Filming Locations:

Houston, Texas, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$21,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$10,000,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros

Technical Specs

Runtime:

116 min 155 min (extended)

Sound Mix:

Mono (35 mm optical prints) 4-Track Stereo (35 mm magnetic prints)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Michael Caine has claimed in interviews that he used his fee from this film to buy a house in LA.

---

Goofs

As the flamethrower team sets a car on fire, you can briefly glimpse a film crew rushing up with water to put it out.

---

Quotes

[as helicopters drop special sound-emitting floats to attract the swarm to its doom]
Helena: Won't the noise of the helicopters drown out your sound?
Brad Crane: No. It's an entirely different sonic level.

---

Connections

Referenced in Mork & Mindy: Mork's Best Friend (1979)

User Reviews

"Bees! Bees! They're all around us! Bees! Bees!"

Killer bees attack residents in a small town preparing for a flower festival. Fred MacMurray BEGS Olivia de Havilland to marry him and she looks to the heavens with an empathic, "Oh, how lucky I am!" (they both perish.) When the train, packed full of stock characters, derailed, the theater audience I saw this with actually cheered; too bad producer Irwin Allen wasn't aboard. This film ranks right up there with Allen's "When Time Ran Out...", still to this day the reigning champ of bad cinema. The special effects are actually very good here, but the script is so lame and the direction so stilted that the results are not uneven so much as they are unintentionally funny. B-grade actors like Richard Chamberlain must've been mighty grateful for Irwin Allen's disaster films (and the chance to work in big-budget productions), but that's no excuse for Michael Caine's limp appearance. Had Mel Brooks put his name on it, "The Swarm" might have been the top comedy of its year. * from ****