[Inspector Abberline]

Bug (1975 film)

Bradford Dillman is sweaty Prof. James Parmiter,a teacher at the local High School,when he is not playing with the local squirrels,he is undertaking some rather unsavory experiments with a bunch of weirdo cockroaches that have come from the bowels of hell,or some where equally abhorrent like Croydon. What seems like innocuous insects that can set fire to objects like paper,cars and people's heads and any stray cat that might like to play with them,these creatures manage to cause chaos and destruction to small town USA just by hitching a lift inside the exhaust pipes of the locals cars,clever bleeders these bugs. Dillman gets very crazy as he experiments on his new buddies,trying all sorts of things including decompression to try and kill off his buggy nemesis. But when all else fails,he tries cross breeding,and manages to breed some sort of super bug that can fly and spell,so at least he has help for the crossword. Produced by William Castle,this would be his last film as producer,and its a fine example of showman who knew a thing or two about exploitation cinema and what can send a tingler up the audiences spines. Bugs is a fine example of that,EUGH factor,creepy crawlies getting tangled in your hair,creeping into your ear when you answer the phone and setting fire to you just as your about to tell the man on the phone that he can shove his PPI claim up his own bug hole. Bradford Dillman does an extraordinary job acting alongside these creatures,he goes from calm calculated scientist to crazy bug eyed unshaven mad scientist as seems to build some sort of symbiotic relationship with his little friends as he nurtures some new evil onto the planet,when will they learn.It has a laughable premise to be sure,but Dillman plays it straight,and gives it his all,and since he takes up the most screen time on his own with the critters, you really do feel his evolving madness.