Jeanskynebu the audience applauded

Vashirdfel Simply A Masterpiece

Nonureva Really Surprised!

Donald Seymour This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Scott LeBrun "Children of the Damned" is a reasonably entertaining follow-up, rather than sequel, to the 1960 classic "Village of the Damned". It explains its core idea, of a collective of aloof, powerful children, as being something *other* than the product of alien insemination. These kids - six in all - are born to mothers around the globe, without the need for conventional procreation. Officials such as Dr. Tom Llewellyn (Ian Hendry) and Dr. David Neville (Alan Badel) bring the children together for study, only for the kids to break free and hole up inside an abandoned building. They bring along a concerned adult (Barbara Ferris), and are able to build something quite remarkable. Soon, it is determined that these children may pose a serious threat to mankind, due to their superior intellect.Knowing some of the back story, and how this was intended to be a more ambitious examination of mankind and its relationship to its saviours, does give it some substance. Originally, there was a speech by the principal child, Paul (Clive Powell), whereupon he realizes what purpose he and his peers are here to fulfill. With it removed from the picture, the finale just doesn't carry the same weight, although we are still filled with a deep sense of regret. The screenplay by John Briley does a devastating job at showing how differences in thinking and methodology can lessen the chances for education and enlightenment.Once you get over the fact that this is a different variety of sci-fi, with less accent on horror elements, from "Village of the Damned", this does start to look better. If you compare them too much, this is naturally going to come as a letdown to some folk. It's still somewhat sad and scary, just in a different sort of way.The acting is solid from the adults - also including Alfred Burke, Sheila Allen, Patrick Wymark, Harold Goldblatt, and Bessie Love - and just right by the blank-faced children. Powell and the others do a capable job of barely showing any emotion, right up until the end.It's slowly paced, and low key, but it does have its rewards for patient viewers.Seven out of 10.

Hitchcoc This turns the intent of the original around and makes the children victims and the humans the bad folks (at least the government and the military). In science fiction, those who have moved way beyond us in evolutionary development are seen as threats, pure and simple. It has been used in stories where we automatically assume and advanced alien arrival means bombs will soon be dropped. Kill them before they kill us. This is understandable, but it gets in the way of our moving our own world along. Here, the blond haired, spooky eyed children (who aren't children in the conventional sense) make an appearance and are destined to meet. They have been conceived in non-traditional ways and have parents who don't have a clue. Eventually, moral people see what is going on, but must butt heads with the larger culture and the "protective" forces. This is nearly as disturbing as the original. However, other than the appearances of the children and how they came to be, this is an independent film and has no connection with its predecessor.

LeonLouisRicci It has the Same Theme as Village of the Damned (1961), a Surprise Hit, so the Inevitable Sequel Followed Three Years Later with Mixed Results. It is Widely Shouted that "THIS IS NOT A SEQUEL" from Various Quarters, Does it Really Matter That Much?The Children in This Film have the Same Super-Intelligence and Glowing Eyes that Paralyze and Can Read Minds, have a Hive Mind of Their Own, and can Manipulate Mere Humans with a Stare.This One is So Heavy with Social, Philosophical, Cold-War/Political, Scientific, and Biological Concerns it is No Surprise that it Never Fully Makes a Whole Lot of Sense and is a Bit Clunky Trying to Come to Terms with Such Deep Demands.But it is At Times Quite Chilling and After a Talky Slow Start the Second Half of the Movie Kicks Some Serious Butt. Once the Children Enter the Church All Hell Breaks Loose. There are a Number of Things Like a Dog Sparking a Horrific Revenge, a Solar Powered Hydrogen Gizmo Using Super-Sonic-Sound to Incapacitate, and the Killing of One of the Kids.Overall, the Movie Looks Great and is Claustrophobic with Confined Streets and Interiors with Sharp Angles and Low Key Lighting. The End May be Unsatisfying but it Sure is Unexpected Proving that Accidents Will Happen in the "Fog of War" and if Something Can Go Wrong, Something Will Go Wrong.

Matthew Kresal When a film is a success, it is almost inevitable there will be a sequel to it. The classic 1960 sci-fi film Village Of The Damned is no exception to that rule and 1964's Children Of the Damned would be that sequel. While any sequel to Village Of The Damned would have big shoes to feel, this film doesn't quite live to the standards set by the original film. In fact, it is easy to say that Children Of The Damned is very much a sequel in name only that, contradictorily, requires knowledge of the original film for it to make sense as well as being a terribly dated Cold War parable.The film certainly has a respectable cast. Ian Hendry and Alan Badel play Tom Llewellyn and David Neville, who both give believable performances as the two scientists who uncover the children and their powers. Barbara Ferris plays the aunt of one of the children who ends up becoming a spokesperson for the children while under their control. Alfred Burke gives perhaps the film's best performance as British government agent Colin Webster whose involvement only makes the situation worse as the film goes on. Together they are a cast that is more then a match for that in the original film.One of the film's problems though is in its title characters: the children. Due to whatever reason, gone are the seemingly normal yet otherworldly and menacing children of the original. These children are the exact opposite. They are utterly normal children from five places around the world who lack any of the otherworldly feeling or menace of the original children. Even the special effect used on the eyes when the children are using their powers isn't really used and, when it is, it just doesn't look stand up to the effect used in the original film. The result is that perhaps one, single essential element of the film that needed to work just doesn't work.The production values of the film are excellent. In particular the stark black and white cinematography of Davis Boulton gives the film a strong sense of atmosphere and menace throughout which helps the film immensely. The production design of Elliot Scott give the film the same feeling as the cinematography, especially in the form of the destitute church the children come to occupy for much of the film. One element that improves in this film is the score by composer Ron Goodwin that, after a rather mixed result in the original film, is never out of place and put to good use throughout. The success of the production values helps the film out immensely.Along with the children, the script is another essential element that ends up having a rather mixed result. If anything, the script presents this film as a rather confused sequel to say the least. The script seems to require that the viewer have seen the original film to understand all the events taking place. Yet the film seems to spend most of its time wanting to distance itself as far as possible from the original film. The result is a confusing mix: the plot and events make little sense without having seen the original film but the story might as well be anything but a sequel. It also doesn't help that the film, by the admission of screenwriter John Briley, was more or less meant to be more of a Cold War parable. The children can be viewed as scientists around the world who the major Cold War powers (represented by the government officials in the film) want to put to use building ever more powerful weapons of mass destruction. While this would be a good idea to have explored somewhere else, this film doesn't really seem to be either the place to do it or even do it well. If anything the script seems to be drowning in good ideas (such as the revelations that come out in the films last few minutes) that are never put to good use. Also the Cold War parable gives this film something the original doesn't have: a terribly dated feel to it. The result is that the script is a rather mixed affair.Children Of The Damned, even when viewed on its own and not as a sequel, is a rather mixed affair. Despite a fine main cast and excellent production values, the film's supporting cast (the children) and its script both are rather mixed in their results. When viewed as a sequel however, the film comes across as a rather confused sequel that requires knowledge of the original film for it to make sense as well as being a terribly dated Cold War parable to the point of becoming a sequel in name only. All this means that, while a decent film, it never quite works either as a sequel or as an original film either and is a bit of a letdown overall.