Village of the Damned
Starring
Christopher Reeve, Kirstie Alley, Thomas Dekker, Lindsey Haun
Rating
Rating within genre
Rated
R for adult language, violence, and disturbing images
Directed by
John Carpenter
Written by
David Himmelstein
John Wyndham *book*
Genre
Sci-fi horror
Film
Color; 1 hr. 40 min.
Date of Release
1995
Filming Locations
Marin County, CA (USA)
Synopsis
The white-haired-mind-controlling-out-to-get-the-human-race alien children are back in this terrifying remake of the 1960 sci-fi horror flick.
Summary
In my opinion, this 'Village of the Damned' remake is much better than the original for the simple reason that the kids' eyes light up different colors, the violence is increased, and the twist thrown in is awesome....and that is that David was the leader of the children in the original, but in this new version a girl named Mara is the leader, and David is - get this, horror buffs - the good guy!
David, being born without a female counterpart (who died at birth) began to develop feelings and other human characteristics. That makes this whole remake worthwhile. Because problems develop from that....and I'm not spoiling the ending by telling you how....but it's great! All the acting is good, but little Tommy Dekker is amazing. I definitely reccommend this film to everyone that feels they can handle a fright!
Notable Quotes
"What is this...empathy you feel?" -- David
"Don't you do it! You get those guys here and it'll result in a bloodbath!" -- Alan
Reviews
Stygian Films: "...a brilliant remake of the 1960 classic."
James Berardinelli: "Despite being an inferior remake, Village of the Damned is the most frightening motion picture that John Carpenter has brought to the screen in at least a decade."
Washington Post: "Veteran director Carpenter directs this decent flick with a steady hand and it's fairly enjoyable with a slightly better than average script."
Tucson Weekly: "...Carpenter directs with his usual immense skill..."
eFilmCritic: "... If you like Carpenters work you will like this, If you want to see a creepy film that is not gory and excessive you will like this."
Videoflicks: "I was counting the days till it came out on video. It left me on the edge of my seat, I don't care what people say, this was an excellent and chilling movie, and I have good taste."
Cast List
Christopher Reeve.........Alan Chaffee
Thomas Dekker.............David
Kirstie Alley...................Dr. Verner
Mark Hamill...................Reverend George
Lindsey Haun.................Mara
Michael Pare..................Frank McGowan
Linda Kowzloski............Jill McGowan
Karen Kahn...................Barbara Chaffee
The dog's gone home.
Now beware the children.
Also recommended
Children of the Damned
Village of the Damned (original)
Children of the Corn Series
Lord of the Flies
The Tommyknockers
Carrie