Bug (Special Edition)

Bug (Special Edition)
by William Friedkin

Bug (Special Edition)
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Category: DVD
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DVD Cover Information

Actor: Ashley Judd, Brian F. O'Byrne, Harry Connick Jr., Lynn Collins, Michael Shannon
Director: William Friedkin
Brand: LIONS GATE HOME ENT.
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Special Edition, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.78:1
Running Time: 102 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2007-09-25
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: Lionsgate Home Entertainment

Movie Reviews of Bug (Special Edition)

Movie Review: Bug is Manipulation of the Mind
Summary: 5 Stars

I just want to start off by saying that I loved this film. A lot of people have given it bad reviews, which is respectable, but many of the reviews were about people being "mislead" by the ads and trailers for the movie. One reviewer said that the trailer showed actual bugs - well, they DID show bugs in the movie. There would be brief clips of bugs squirming around; those brief clips helped show you what Agnes and Peter were seeing, especially under the microscope. But, they weren't real. I watched this movie KNOWING that it was going to be a psychological thriller, NOT a horror movie. So I honestly don't know why people get upset about thinking that it was going to be a "sci-fi" or about "monsters". All you have to do is read the back of the box, or better yet read some reviews.

But, regardless of the bad reviews, I really enjoyed this movie. I like movies that have to do with mental illnesses and people going insane. What really got me was Judd's character just eating up everything that Peter told her. She was such a vulnerable character to begin with, so in misery and even a bit paranoid herself. Needless to say, she was already a bit mental before Peter arrived. He just helped her step out of the circle and into the expanding madness. A lot of people complain about movies that have to do with mental illnesses. Not me. I love both books and movies like that.

I do want to mention that a lot of people are confused about the doctor smoking. I didn't think anything of it at the time because what I was thinking was "Okay, he's a doctor and he's trying to sit down and calm her down so that he can talk to her and they can feel comfortable". In otherwords, he's trying to tell her "Look, I'm just like you, let's try and see eye to eye". So, it makes sense to me, not so much to others obviously.

The only thing I didn't like was that it was too short. I feel like if they had drawn it out more it would have been better, much more impacting. It didn't really creep me out. I didn't expect it to. I didn't even consider it a horror. It's the concept and everything behind it that stays with you. This guy thinks he has bugs and he's manipulated this woman to think she has them too. That's the idea, not that "this isn't even about bugs" or "this isn't horror" or "where are the monsters and action". It's a psychological thriller. You've got to think deeper than just what's given to you in the film. The idea is to leave you with thinking that, if you're not careful, anyone can manipulate you, just like Jim Jones and just like Peter did with Agnes. Especially vulnerable people. That is what I got from the film. That people can be twisted into something that isn't real and how, as humans, we can believe almost anything, no matter how bizzare.

Great movie overall. I won't recommend other movies like reviewers on here do. Instead I'll just say give this one a try. If you don't like it, that's cool. But personally, I loved it.

Summary of Bug (Special Edition)

A lonely waitress with a tragic past, Agnes (Judd) rooms in a run-down motel, living in fear of her abusive, recently paroled ex-husband (Connick Jr.). But when Agnes begins a tentative romance with Peter (Shannon), an eccentric, nervous drifter, she starts to feel hopeful again - until the first bugs arrive...
William (The Exorcist, The French Connection) Friedkin directed this harrowing portrait of slow-boiling paranoia about a lonely waitress (Ashley Judd) whose world spirals out of control after meeting a charismatic but damaged drifter (Michael Shannon). Said drifter fills the gulf of loneliness that has swallowed Agnes (Judd) whole as she struggles to stay afloat in a backwater desert town; gradually, Shannon reveals that his stint as a soldier in the Middle East has left him infested with microscopic bugs that he believes are part of a government conspiracy. The force of his conviction (combined with the horrific physical self-abuse he endures) slowly persuade Agnes that she, too, is infested, and the pair undergo a gruesome mental and physical meltdown. Based on the theatrical production by Tracey Letts (who also wrote the screenplay), Bug has a hard time escaping its stage origins (much of the action takes place in one dingy motel room), but Friedkin ramps up the intensity to near uncomfortable levels, and Judd and Shannon (recreating his performances in the New York and London productions) are more than up to the challenge. Their fearless turns are well-matched by Harry Connick, Jr., as Agnes' creepy ex-husband and Brian F. O'Byrne as a medic who may or may not be part of Shannon's shadowy government cabal. Viewers should be forewarned that the violence is intense and often bloody; those that find insects unsettling should avoid at all costs. -- Paul Gaita

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