Frogs (1972)
Directed by George McCowan
Written by Robert Hutchison and Robert Blees
Starring Ray Milland, Sam Elliott, Joan Van Ark, Adam Roarke and Judy Pace
Runtime 1 hour and 31 minutes
Available from Kino Lorber on Special Edition Blu-ray here

by Rosalie Kicks, Old Sport and Editor in Chief

Back of box synopsis:
Today the pond…Tomorrow the world! A shocker reminiscent of Hitchcock’s The Birds, this amphibious horror flick is teeming with thousands of nasty-tempered creatures that are hopping mad—and murderous. Jumping with action, suspense, revenge and Southern Gothic charm, Frogs stars Ray Milland (The Thing with Two Heads), Sam Elliott (The Legacy) and Joan Van Ark (The Last Dinosaur) are constantly a lily pad away from croaking! Jason Crockett (Milland) is an aging, physically disabled millionaire who invites his family to his island estate for his birthday party. The old man is more than crotchety…he’s crazy! Hating nature, Crockett poisons anything that crawls on his property. But on the night of his shindig, it’s nature’s payback time, and thousands of frogs whip up every bug and slimy thing into a toxic frenzy until the entire environment goes environ-mental. Directed by George McCowan (H.G. Wells’ The Shape of Things to Come).

Features that make it special…

Audio Commentary by film historian David Del Valle and film historian/producer Dan Marino
Interview with Actress Joan Van Ark
Theatrical trailer
Four TV spots and three radio spots
Dual-layered BD50 Disc
Optional English subtitles
Slipcover and reversible cover insert

Why you need to add it to your video library…

Back in 2020 when the world was shut down, I watched a lot of movies virtually with some of my closest pals. Nikk Nelson aka Mink, hails from Kansas and together, along with my partner in crime Benjamin Leonard we formed: The Mitchum Movie Mob. This gang was created in honor of one of our favorite thespians, Robert Mitchum after we viewed the illustrious, Matilda (1978). Eventually we branched out to other actors and, while on our quest to watch more creature features, we stumbled upon Frogs (1972).

I have always been a fan of Ray Milland since first witnessing him in the motion pictures, The Uninvited (1944) and The Lost Weekend (1945). Towards the end of his career, his filmography consisted of numerous B-movie pictures. Some viewers may shy away from this type of fare, but I often find there are diamonds in the rough in low budget cinema, if you are willing to dig. Frogs is one of those rare jewels that I believe I enjoyed more than I should have. I am absolutely pleased as punch to upgrade my DVD to this special edition crisp Blu-ray from Kino Lorber.

When a gaggle of family members and friends gather to celebrate Jason Crockett’s (Ray Milland) birthday on his sprawling Floridian estate, they find that a bunch of creepy critters not on the guest list slither in as well as chap, Pickett Smith (Sam Elliot). The reptiles, insects, and amphibians may have not been welcome, but the party quickly warms up to Pickett when he essentially becomes their denim draped hero/corpse remover. Milland’s performance in this flick is dialed up to eleven and I absolutely can’t get enough of it. His character’s insistence on keeping to the schedule, despite the entire manor being overrun with insects, frogs, and reptiles, was acting at its finest. However, there may have also been some truth in art on display as I have a feeling Milland pined for this production to wrap as soon as possible. Florida weather can be extremely unpleasant due to humidity and during production Milland sported a toupee which was said to have fallen off his head at various times during filming due to sweat. Word on the street is that Milland despised making this movie so much that he wound up leaving three days prior to it wrapping and a body double was used in order to finish filming. Even with his early departure, he still manages to leave his mark, particularly in the scene where he shoots with a pistol when he finds it dangling from his dining room chandelier.

Which brings me to the elephant in the room. Despite the poster prominently featuring a frog with a severed limb dangling out of their mouth, they do not actually partake in murder. Instead, they take more of a Charles Manson type approach by inciting others creatures to do their bidding while they lay low in the swampy marsh. There is no question of their presence though, as the entire film score is composed of their soothing ribbits. This may not be a cinematic masterpiece, but I guarantee if you open your mind to Frogs, it will manage to leap straight into your heart. Want to know more about Frogs? Listen to episode 015 of my movie pod, Best Friends Forever here or wherever you snag other fine movie podcasts.

Check back next week for a new installment of Kino Lorber creature features! During the month of October Rosalie Kicks will share some of the spooky critter offerings presently available from Kino Lorber.