The Bad Seed (1956)

A housewife suspects that her seemingly perfect eight-year-old daughter is a heartless killer.

Director:

Mervyn LeRoy

Writers:

John Lee Mahin (screenplay), Maxwell Anderson (play)

Stars:

Nancy Kelly, Patty McCormack, Henry Jones

Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Nancy Kelly	...	Christine Penmark
Patty McCormack	...	Rhoda Penmark
Henry Jones	...	Leroy Jessup
Eileen Heckart	...	Hortense Daigle
Evelyn Varden	...	Monica Breedlove
William Hopper	...	Col. Kenneth Penmark
Paul Fix	...	Richard Bravo
Jesse White	...	Emory Wages
Gage Clarke	...	Reginald 'Reggie' Tasker
Joan Croydon	...	Claudia Fern (as Joan Croyden)
Frank Cady	...	Henry Daigle

Storyline

Christine Penmark seems to have it all: a lovely home, a loving husband and the most "perfect" daughter in the world. But since childhood, Christine has suffered from the most terrible recurring nightmare. And her "perfect" daughter's accomplishments include lying, theft and possibly much, much worse. Only Christine knows the truth about her daughter and only Christine's father knows the truth about her nightmare.

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Plot Keywords:

evil child | colonel | girl | female protagonist | family relationships | 

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Taglines:

For little Rhoda, murder is child's play.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 September 1956 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Bad Seed

Filming Locations:

Burbank, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

129 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Apparently director Mervyn LeRoy did little to persuade Nancy Kelly to modulate her performance for the screen, rather than simply replicate her stage interpretation of this same role. As a result, many of Kelly's facial expressions, gestures and movements have an exaggerated, "stagey" quality.

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Goofs

While Christine is reading a bedtime story to sleepy Rhoda, Rhoda's pigtails change positions multiple times between shots.

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Quotes

Leroy: They got what they call stick bloodhounds to help them look. And them stick bloodhounds can find any stick there is that's got blood on it.

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Crazy Credits

"You have just seen a motion picture whose theme dares to be startlingly different. May we ask that you do not divulge the unusual climax of the story. Thank you."

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Connections

Referenced in Relative Fear (1994)

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Soundtracks

Au clair de la lune
(uncredited)
Attributed to Jean-Baptiste Lully
Played on the piano by Patty McCormack and whistled by Henry Jones
Played often in the score

User Reviews

Eileen Heckart Is Heartbreaking ....

as the mother of the drowned boy.... a performance that must rank with the best of the 1950s. Heckart repeated her stage role in the 1956 film with Nancy Kelly and Patty McCormack as the mother and daughter. Henry Jones (also in the stage production and excellent), Evelyn Varden, Gage Clarke, Paul Fix, Joan Croyden and Jesse White are good in support. Jones and Varden are especially good. William Hopper is and always was BLAH. But Eileen Heckart is superb as the drunken, crushed woman who knows there is something more to her son's death than she is being told. Her two scenes are riveting as she lurches across the room, begging for information, yet totally in control of the situation. Kelly, McCormack, Jones, and Varden are also good (if stagy) in their roles. Kelly seems hopelessly hammy but grows on you even though she seems to be imitating Gloria Swanson in Sunset Boulevard most of the time. Great film, literate, interesting, riveting..... a must!