Canadian cult director David Cronenberg shocked the public with some horror films in the 1970s, all of which bore the mark of a talented, up-and-coming filmmaker. Cronenberg's best work was to be made in the 1980s and 1990s, with several disturbing shockers that were no real horror films but couldn't belie Cronenberg's faible for the bizarre. In the 1990s Cronenberg did more acting than directing (always wearing a suit when appearing on-screen).
Cronenberg's best films are SCANNERS, THE DEAD ZONE, THE DEAD RINGERS and NAKED LUNCH. In nearly all of his films the director exploits his fascination with the clinical (doctors, hospitals, freaks of nature, etc.). From his ground-breaking horror film THE FLY onwards his films have all dealt with a person's destructive obsession. Those who are open-minded enough to discover Cronenberg's films will be rewarded with a glimpse into a filmmaker's mind whose imagination goes far beyond the ordinary. In a recent documentary (DAVID CRONENBERG - I HAVE TO MAKE THE WORD BE FLESH) Cronenberg spoke about his œuvre. His followers are advised to have a look at it. The filmography below omits the director's short films and his (early) work for TV.




Filmography:

Stereo (1969; dir, scr, cin, prod, edit)
Crimes of the Future (1970; dir, scr, cin, prod, edit)
Shivers (1975; dir, scr)
Rabid (1977; dir, scr)
Fast Company (1978; dir, coscr; based on a novel by Alan Treen)
The Brood (1979; dir, scr)
Scanners (1981; dir, scr)
Videodrome (1982; dir, scr)
The Dead Zone (1983; dir; based on the novel by Stephen King)
Into the Night (1985; act)
The Fly (1986; dir, coscr, act; based on a story by George Langelaan)
Dead Ringers (1988; dir, coscr, coprod; based on the novel Twins by Bari Wood and Jack Geasland)
Nightbreed (1990; act; based on the novel by Clive Barker)
Naked Lunch (1991; dir, scr; based on the novel by William S. Burroughs)
M. Butterfly (1993; dir; based on David Henry Hwang's stage play)
Henry & Verlin (1994; act)
Trial by Jury (1994; act)
Boozecan (1994; act)
To Die For (1995; act)
Blood & Donuts (1995; act)
Extreme Measures (1996; act)
The Stupids (1996; act)
Crash (1996; dir, scr, act; based on the novel by J. G. Ballard)
Moonshine Highway (1996; act; made for TV)
The Grace of God (1997; act)
Last Night (1998; act; made for TV)
I'm Losing You (1998; exec prod)
eXistenZ (1999; dir, scr, coprod)
Resurrection (1999; act)
The American Nightmare (2000; doc; as interviewee)
Spider (2002; dir, coprod)
A History of Violence (2005; dir, coprod)


© Ron Altman (last update 09/28/06)