The Brood 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		5.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.5

The Brood 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

The kids aren't alright.

Reviewed by Randy Miller III April 22, 2025

Much like their recent 4K edition of Scanners, the well-regarded UK boutique label Second Sight has lavished attention on another early David Cronenberg film, 1979’s The Brood. Written and developed during a very tumultuous time in the director’s personal life, it’s an extremely angry and turbulent film that might be the closest Cronenberg has ever come to "classic horror". Featuring great performances and a career-first collaboration with young composer Howard Shore, The Brood is a wild ride and plays better than ever on UHD thanks to Second Sight’s usual attention to detail.

For a synopsis and appreciation of The Brood, please see one of our many earlier Blu-ray reviews written by Dr. Svet Atanasov including Criterion’s 2015 edition; along with several other international releases linked below, that release features a multitude of exclusive bonus features that aren’t all included here. So while Second Sight’s Limited Edition UHD combo pack -- which is also available as a cheaper 4K or Region B Blu-ray -- certainly isn't definitive as far as supplements go, it’s far and away the best-looking and sounding version released on home video to date.

The Brood 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

NOTE: These screenshots are sourced from the included remastered Blu-ray, which is also available separately.

Those who were thrilled by Second Sight's 4K treatment of Scanners should be happy to know that this treatment of The Brood shares a lot of positive similarities. Likewise, this film has been released on Blu-ray several times already (including domestically by Criterion) and other previous releases are linked in the "Bonus Features" section below. I'll again focus mostly on comparisons to Criterion's Blu-ray since most fans are likely very familiar with it and, again like Scanners, it was the only disc previously approved by director David Cronenberg. He has once again endorsed this new remaster despite what I would consider glaring differences in color, fine detail (both for the better), framing (a toss-up), and even the aspect ratio, which is finally presented here in its correct 1.85:1 format for the first time.

There's indeed much in common with Scanners, so much so that you can read my linked review above and transpose many of my praises to this disc. Quite simply, The Brood looks much healthier now and features a notably tighter and film-like appearance with prominent grain, a more era-appropriate color palette, much deeper blacks with no brightness boosting, and improved depth that easily overtakes Criterion's comparably flat, processed, and almost anemic transfer. Fans will see huge gains from start to finish, both from the fresh 4K scan of The Brood's original camera negative and subtle but potent boosts afforded by HDR10 and Dolby Vision, both of which bolster the film's color palette, dynamic range, and overall accuracy. Once again, the renowned authoring house Fidelity in Motion has provided disc encoding; the bit rate is extremely supportive when needed and no compression-related issues could be spotted... which is very impressive, considering the film and extras have somehow been squeezed onto a dual-layered disc.

For those who appreciate direct comparisons, the first 11 screenshots in this review are close or exact matches to screenshots featured in previous Blu-ray reviews linked above and below. Happy hunting!

As with Second Sight's recent Limited Edition of Scanners, a remastered Blu-ray copy of the film is also included. This probably isn't the reason you're purchasing the Limited Edition... but just for the record, it's a proportionately perfect-looking 1080p presentation (despite being a 2K downscale without HDR) due to similarly expert encoding.

The Brood 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Unlike Scanners, The Brood has never been remixed for surround so Second Sight plays it straight with a clean and precise LPCM mono track that gets the job done. Dialogue and front-field effects are perfectly in line with expectations, delivering a no-frills experience that obviously lacks in full-bodied immersion but nonetheless allows for plenty of era-specific appeal while throwing in a few sonic surprises along the way. Howard Shore's score is a standout, even during its most turbulent and chaotic moments, and likewise enjoys a decent dynamic range with very little straining at the high end. Overall, this is fine work indeed and should satisfy purists with its no-frills approach.

Optional English (SDH) subtitles are offered during the main feature only, not the extras listed below.

The Brood 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Second Sight's brick-sized Limited Edition packaging is quite impressive in-hand, nice and hefty with attractive design elements and very little wasted space. This two-disc release sits inside a slim dual-hinged Digipack case; also included are six bound collector's art cards and a 120-page softcover book that's a work of art in itself with newly-commissioned designs, still photos, and brand-new essays by writers Jenn Adams, William Beard, Craig Ian Mann, Carolyn Mauricette, Shelagh Rowan-Legg, Amber T, Alexandra West, and Scott Wilson, as well as cast/crew info, acknowledgments and disc credits. Everything's tucked snugly inside a thick outer keepcase bearing more newly-commissioned artwork that puts Samantha Eggar's Nola Carveth front and center. An identical set of extras is included on both discs.

• NEW! Audio Commentary #1 - Journalist and film critic Martyn Contiero sits down with self-described "loudmouthed hysterical feminist" Kat Ellinger (who has contributed to other Second Sight releases including Tangerine) for this newly-recorded commentary; as expected, it's a candid and fairly enlightening track that dissects the film's autobiographical themes and where it sits within Cronenberg's filmography.

• Audio Commentary #2 - Canadian author William Beard (who penned the book The Artist as Monster: The Cinema of David Cronenberg) is next and goes deeper into the film's dark and personal themes as they pertain to the director's own life earlier that decade. There's a bit of overlap with the first track, but Beard also travels down other back roads regarding The Brood's acting, production, and visual symbolism, not to mention broader elements as they pertain to the director's career as a whole. Much like his commentary for Scanners, this track was first recorded for a 2016 German Blu-ray, which also featured other exclusive extras.

• Cast and Crew Interviews - Most of these first appeared on Second Sight's 2013 Blu-ray and some were later licensed for Criterion, while "Scoring The Brood" was seen on the German Blu-ray linked above.

• Meet the Carveths - Actors Art Hindle & Cindy Hind (19:48)
• Producing the Brood - Executive Producer Pierre David (11:10)
• The Look of Rage - Cinematographer Mark Irwin (13:33)
• Scoring the Brood - Composer Howard Shore (7:51)
• Character for Cronenberg - Actor Robert A. Silverman (10:24)
• The Early Years - David Cronenberg (13:16)

• NEW! Anger Management (22:27) - A requisite Second Sight visual essay to wrap things up, this piece --which is subtitled "Cronenberg's Brood and the Shapes of Cinematic Rage" -- is written and presented by film critic and journalist Leigh Singer, who dissects the film's darker themes and satirical elements while comparing and contrasting it to Marvel's Hulk (what the?) and other "angry" horror efforts like 28 Days Later as well as Cronenberg's previous two films, Shivers and Rabid. (We don't talk about Fast Company.)

The Brood 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Brood is yet another of director David Cronenberg's films to finally debut on UHD this year; with any luck, earlier low-budget efforts such as Shivers and Rabid and more well-known fare like Dead Ringers and The Fly will be coming soon as well. Released alongside Scanners, the UK boutique label Second Sight grants The Brood a similarly impressive 4K upgrade; it's basically definitive from an A/V standpoint, but the extras here aren't quite as exciting as others from the label. Nonetheless, this is another no-brainer for Cronenberg fans, whether you go all-in for this Limited Edition combo pack or grab the cheaper standard 4K or Region B Blu-ray versions. Highly Recommended.