While SHIVERS was not David Cronenberg’s first feature, among my friends it’s the point where the world started to take notice. Yes, in some cases it wasn’t in a good way, this is the first of the polished body horror films and some critics, and viewers, were horrified by what they saw.
My entry point was THE BROOD where his WTF plotting had me staggering around trying to explain what I had just seen on cable TV. I then had to chase down his other films, which was tough in the first days of VCRs when everything was still not available.
The plot has a parasite running through an apartment block turning people into sexually crazed maniacs.
I’m not going to say more other than if you know Cronenberg, especially his early films you know that there are really unpleasant things going on. Yes the film mirrors other “outbreak” films superficially, but the fact that it’s from Cronenberg means its minimally similar.
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| The American Poster |
The film actually has gotten new life from Covid, since the isolation of the recent pandemic hits home how much Cronenberg had with his isolated and emotionally distant characters. Everyone is kind of dead until they are infected or attacked.
It’s a really good film that is more disturbing than scary. Trust me, what Cronenberg is saying about interpersonal relationships and society is more frightening then the jump scares.
This is one of the great Cronenberg films and a must see
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