User reviews

I originally saw this when I was in junior high on late night TV. Those glowing eyes gave me nightmares for weeks! Seeing it now MANY years later, it still scares me. It's very quiet but very spooky. No real on-screen violence, no special effects (with the exception of the eyes) and all talk but never dull. The film is intelligent, doesn't talk down to the audience and handles the subject matter in a very realistic manner. Most people in horror films act like idiots--not in this one! Also some superb acting by George Sanders, Barbara Shelley (as his wife) and those creepy little kids (especially Martin Stephens) helps a lot. Proves a quiet little, goreless film can scare you silly. AT ALL COSTS, AVOID THE 1995 REMAKE!!!!!!! Carpenter's a great director, but you can't remake a great film. See this one!!

Village of the Damned is directed by Wolf Rilla and is a fairly faithful adaptation of the novel The Midwich Cuckoos by John Wyndham. It stars George Sanders, Barbara Shelley, Martin Stephens & Michael Gwynn. It was originally meant to be an American produced picture starring Ronald Colman but MGM got itchy feet on account of what they deemed as some sinister issues. A couple of years down the line the film was relocated to England and shot on location at Letchmore Heath, with Sanders stepping in for the recently passed away Colman.

The peaceful English village of Midwich falls victim to a strange occurrence that sees the inhabitants fall asleep for several hours. With no clue to exactly what happened or what caused such an event, the villagers are further baffled to find all the women of Midwich have suddenly fell pregnant. Come the births of the children it's apparent that all is not well here in this once sleepy little village.

The 1950s was a great decade for the sci-fi movie fan, with the paranoia of potential atomic war and communist fervour taking hold, a ream of B movie schlockers tapped into this feverish air of mistrust. With the sight of giant creepy crawlies and atomic monsters rampaging across America creating much fun, it's arguably with the alien invasion that 50s cinema garnered its real terror. Enter English sci-fi writer John Wyndham (The Day Of the Triffids), who wrote The Midwich Cuckoos in 1957. Wyndham came up with an original idea to take the alien invasion premise to another level, use children. Horrible, creepy, blonde haired, blank staring, children.

The film in truth is too short to fully do justice to Wyndham's frightening novel, while other issues such as the barely believable coupling of Sanders and Shelley ensures the film has a lot of creakiness within. But it's still a potent bit of sci-fi horror that, come the latter stages, cranks up the creep factor as the children are born and the piece becomes a conventional monster movie. It's here where Rilla does a terrific job of building the dread. Armed with a small budget of under $300 thousand (it was a monster box office smash), the stop frame effects work is surprisingly effective, as are the child actors. Led by the impressive Martin Stephens who a year later would continue the creepy vein as Miles in The Innocents. A more than decent sequel would follow three years later {Children Of the Damned} and a poor remake by John Carpenter would surface in 1995. But it's this one that stands the test of time as a genre classic. Spooky atmosphere coupled with a genuinely intelligent and sinister story makes for an eerie 70 odd minutes of cinema. 8/10

Some women give birth various strange children with supernatural power and extraordinary intelligence . An suspenseful and interesting premise dealing about several strangely emotionless children all born at the same time in a small village in Midwich . The scene is a village called Midwich in which a rare event overcomes the idyllic location . At the same moment, every single person and animal in town has passed out just as suddenly ; some unknown force has put all the inhabitants of Midwich to sleep. Everybody falls into a deep, mysterious sleep for several hours in the middle of the day. When the army gets involved, they find this force has precise boundaries. A few hours later, this strange force disappears and everyone wakes up. The mystery remains unsolved for weeks, but it has a sequel. Later on , every woman (Barbara Shelley married to George Sanders) capable of child-bearing is pregnant . All Midwich women of childbearing age are unaccountably pregnant . Nine months later, the babies are born, and they all look normal, but it doesn't take the "parents" long to realise that the kids are not human or humane .And the glowing-eyed children (Martin Stephens , among others) they have will prove to be worse than what they could have feared. The children that are born out of these pregnancies seem to grow very fast and they all have the same blond hair and strange, penetrating eyes that make people do things , all of them have telephatic powers , the stare will paralyze the will of the villagers . They result to be mind-controlling demons or aliens . Meanwhile a government officer (good performance by George Sanders) along with the doctor (Laurence Naismith) attempt to stop their plans of conquest .

This classic Sci-Fi thriller contains chills , suspense , intrigue and creepy events about some precocious deadly children and their quest of power . MGM shelved the project, because it was deemed potentially inflammatory and controversial, specifically due to its sinister depiction of virgin birth . Eerie and strange plot very well developed by the screen-written Sterling Silliphant based on John Wyndham novel titled "The Midwich Cuckoos" that focuses a British village visited by some unknown life form which leaves the women of the village pregnant. Performance is frankly good as main cast as Barbara Shelley and Ronald Colman was originally supposed to star in this film but he passed away in 1958 and was replaced by an excellent George Sanders who married Colman's widow Benita Hume . Exceptional support cast formed by prestigious Brit actors as Michael G. Wynne , Laurence Naismith and very secondary Peter Vaughan as Policeman . Special mention to Martin Stephens as an unsettling little boy , his creepy effect of the glowing eyes was made by matting a negative image of their eyes over the pupils . Intriguing and atmospheric musical score by Ron Goodwin . Furthermore , it packs appropriate cinematography in black and white by Geoffrey Faithful who photographs splendidly the scenarios from the village . This suspenseful and thrilling film is well directed by Wolf Rilla . Rating : Very good , providing pleasant screams for the viewer . Essential and indispensable seeing for Barbara Shelley and George Sanders followers .

Other renditions based on John Wyndham novel titled ¨The Midwich cuckoos¨ and well adapted by Stirling Silliphant are the following : A nice sequel titled ¨Children of the damned (64)¨ by Anton Leader with Ian Hendry , Alan Badel and Barbara Ferris . It's subsequently made an acceptable remake (1995) titled ¨John Carpenter's Village of the damned¨ with the same premise still interesting enough to watch it and starred by Kirstie Alley , Christopher Reeve and Mark Hamill ; however, it suffers from unimaginative account because being a copy from original film with more violent and explicit scenes and fails to provide the intelligent atmosphere from previous story .

This classic low budget, black and white film is right up there with the best of the sci-fi/horror movies of the time. It appears that it was shot on a very low budget ($300,000), thus no special effects beyond the superimposed glowing eyes of the children and the burning house at the end (not much of an effect). But it became a real moneymaker and a cult developed around it. They went on to make a sequel which doesn't live up to the original.

The cast, though limited, is quite good. The ever sophisticated, urbane, George Sanders as the scientist; Barbara Shelley from Hammer films as his wife; and little Martin Stephens as David, putative offspring of Shelley and Sanders. This kid is evil personified and does a bang-up job for such a youngster.

The story involves the village of Midwich and the birth of 12 children fathered in a very strange way that is never totally explained, who are intellectual giants with one purpose.....take over the world. Should they be destroyed or studied?....that's the problem facing Sanders and the government. Sanders comes to the inevitable conclusion and because they can read his thoughts, he must think of a brick wall in order to mask his intent. The ending, although not surprising is still effective.

This film is a keeper and is recommended to all those who like their films straight to the point without all the special effects and computer generated action. It's minimal with maximum punch.

On a perfectly normal, lovely afternoon in the English countryside, a small town is suddenly taken over by an unseen presence. Everyone within the town - man, woman and child - suddenly passes out cold for no apparent reason whatsoever. Anyone who attempts to enter the town from the outside is also stricken down, yet revive instantaneously when removed from the danger zone. No one, not police or military, can pass the invisible barrier, but within a few hours the strange presence is gone. Everyone seems to be alright...until a few weeks later, when all of the women in town who are of childbearing age discover themselves to be pregnant. Nine months later, a dozen identical children are born to these somewhat suspicious mothers, children with white- blond hair and scary eyes that glow. The children are oddly emotionless and only associate with each other, acting as a single entity. Worst of all, they can make anyone do whatever they want them to do, which often has fatal results. Can kindly schoolteacher (the wonderful George Sanders), whose beloved wife has borne one of these creatures, help the alien children embrace their human half? Or will he have to destroy them all?

This is an absolute masterpiece of paranoia, sci-fi style. The acting is superb, especially by the late and under-appreciated Mr. Sanders, whose compassion and intellect sets the tone for this quiet and somewhat sad little tale. The lovely Barbara Shelley as Sanders loving wife is sweet and totally believable. Indeed, the townsfolk are all very realistic and approachable, kind and simple folk who don't really deserve the wrath of the spooky children who have invaded their small town. Young Martin Stephens, who also turned in a creepy performance in the ghostly masterpiece "The Innocents" is every bit as creepy here as George and Barbara's "son."

Filmed in moody black and white, this movie creeps along with all the menacing stealth of a thick London pea souper. This is an intelligent horror film which deserves better attention. It probably won't be appreciated by people who consider expletives and explosions to be main characters, but for people who prefer horror with brains (and not brains ripped out of skulls) this is the film for them. Fans of George Sanders shouldn't miss this; it's quite a switch from his usual smarmy roles, and a nice switch at that.

Highly recommended!

The small English town of Midwich suffers a mysterious event for several hours. Everyone who comes under the invisible dome around the town would pass out on the spot. After they wake up, all the fertile women find themselves pregnant. The children are born healthy despite an accelerated growth rate. They all have blonde hair and growing mysterious mind powers. The military discovers other similar incidents around the world during the same time. The children are studied but their powers of mind control soon becomes a threat.

This is a British indie of a sci-fi horror icon. It starts well enough with an intriguing mystery premise. The audience is slowly uncovering the mystery along with the characters. I like the logical step by step investigation. More and more mystery is added to the story until we get to the iconic children. They are a great new visual idea. Kids can be creepy sometimes and this plays up that characteristic. To top it off, the eye glow is the coup de grâce. The only drawback is the lead George Sanders. He's not a charismatic movie lead as much as he is the professor of the charismatic lead. This is smaller budget affair which is highlighted by the final toy miniature house setting off the cutest tiny explosion and a short running time. It was a solid hit back in the day and a compelling icon for all times.

Village of the Damned is a strongly compelling Science-Fiction highlight and easily of the eeriest movies I ever saw. Although it's a very modest and simply made production, the scary-effect of this film is a lot more effective than some of its big-budgeted colleagues. On a random day, the entire English village of Midwich falls into a trance-like sleep. Completely inexplicably, they awake again seemly normal but two months later it appears that every fertile woman in town got pregnant on the day of the blackout. The newborns show a strange resemblance in looks and – what is even more bizarre – they're telekinetic! Due to their amazing intelligence and emotionless behavior, they form a huge threat and freak out the entire little town. `Village of the Damned' is loyally adapted from John Wyndham's novel `The Midwich Cuckoos'. Throughout the whole film, you don't get much explanation and, as a viewer, you're forced to guess at the mystery's origin. Although highly unlikely, the events in Midwich really are alarming and make you feel uncomfortable. This effect is reached through solid tension and macabre atmosphere much more than through special effects. The eerily lit eyes of the ‘children' are the only real effects but they cause a lot more fear than gallons of blood ever could! Village of the Damned also owes a lot of its power to a terrific casting job. Essentially to achieve the obtained scary effect were the children. Well, they did a good job! The offspring looks alienated almost naturally and their appearance literally chills your blood. The concerned adult in Village of the Damned is excellently played by George Sanders. Sanders was a terrific and shamefully overlooked English class actor who committed suicide in the early 70's. He has a got a few other delightful horror movies on his repertoire like `Psychomania' and `Doomwatch' (both are some of his last films). Village of the Damned is a highly recommended picture that'll certainly keep you close to the screen till the end-credits role. Equally recommended is the (unofficial) sequel called `Children of the Damned'. There's a bit more background in that film, as well as some more explicit horror sequences. The 1995 remake by John Carpenter, however, is rather unexciting and one of the most redundant films ever made. Stick to the original and be scared!

Speaking as one for whom the average British sci-fi film is complete and utter anathema, this one must be considered way above average despite its miniscular budget and the decidedly low-key treatment by director Wolf Rilla.

The first quarter of an hour is riveting and although, for this viewer at any rate, the remainder of the film does not quite live up to it, the all-pervading sense of unease remains constant whilst the setting is inspired. The bucolic tranquillity of a quaint English village with its bobby on a bicycle and telephone exchange is shattered by an existential threat which transforms the familiarity of a rural community into hate, distrust and paranoia, not to mention the threat of infanticide.

The leading role was intended for Ronald Colman who sadly passed away and George Sanders stepped up to the plate. Ironically Sanders married Colman's widow, Benita Hume. It is not often that a sympathetic role came Mr. Sanders' way but he acquits himself extremely well whilst his indefinable star quality dwarfs the other competent cast members with the notable exception of the splendid Barbara Shelley as his wife. It has been said of her that her 'grounded, rational quality' transcended whatever the lunatic nature of her material and this is certainly true of her fine performance here. As their distinctly out-of-the ordinary son, the wonderfully old-fashioned Martin Stephens is auditioning for his role as Miles in 'The Innocents'.

The 'freeze-framing' of the children is extremely effective, the black and white cinematography adds to the chilling ambience and Ron Goodwin's score is suitably menacing. One of the adaptors of John Wyndham's novel is Stirling Silliphant which reflects the fact that MGM originally intended shooting the film in California. The script had therefore to be 'anglicised' by Rilla and his producer Ronald Kinnoch.

Whatever its shortcomings this opus remains a classic of its type and will continue to fascinate long after John Carpenter's pointless remake has been forgotten.

Before I get into the review, here are my ratings for the movie.

The story gets 1.75 out of 2: The Direction a 1.5: The Pacing receives a 0.75: While the Acting gets 1.25: And my Enjoyment level earns a 1.5 out of 2: Which, brings the total for Village Of The Damned to 6.75 out of 10.

The best thing about this film is undoubtedly the story. Luckily, the writers, Wolf Rilla (who also directed), Stirling Silliphant, and Ronald Kinnoch, kept to the basis of John Wyndham's novel beautifully. In the small and secluded village of Midwich, something strange occurs one summers day. Everybody within the hamlet falls asleep, at the same moment. No matter what they were doing. Luckily, when they all awaken at the same minute, nobody is injured. The snooze-fest isn't the only curious incident to baffle the residents and military though.

Within a few days, the doctor pronounces all the women who can bear children are now pregnant. The unwanted and unnatural impregnations are where the real horror of the story starts to creep under your skin. I love the way the writers don't push this horror but weave it subtly into the story. You can't help but think, how would I feel if I were in this predicament. The women have had their bodies abused and are now carrying something alien within them.

Their husbands and families have to accept this reality, and in most cases, it doesn't sit well. There is one great moment when a father and a mother take their virgin daughter to the medical check-up. The dad hugs his daughter lovingly, letting her know he'll always be there. She leaves his embrace and walks into the small portacabin. At this moment, the mother then moves forward and onto the steps of the cabin. Suddenly, the father, and husband, realises his daughter isn't the only one bearing an unholy child.

The bloke's dispirited awakening to the situation, for me, is the best thing about the film. It shows the complete lack of control that the villages have on this situation. And, as I've grown older, it deepens in the chill factor.

And it gets even weirder when the children are born.

Rilla's direction isn't as pleasing as his storytelling, though. For the most part, this is an averagely filmed story with standard camera angles and lighting.

For example, in one scene The Children get into a starring battle with the village kids. The struggle is shot from a couple of stationery points and isn't too engaging.

There is some tension because you're waiting for The Children to act. Rilla could have amplified the tautness if he had used a little imagination. If he had zoomed from the village kids into the eyes of the Female Child involved in the conflagration, it would have been more gripping.

I'm not saying the direction of the film is weak, but it could have been stronger. There are some nice close-ups of The Children and their glowing, penetrating eyes.

And, the scene with the Father, Mother, and Daughter is beautifully filmed from a high camera angle and superbly lit; which adds power to that scene. Making it a favourite of mine. Another favourite is the tractor scene in the opening sequence. The farmer falls unconscious while tilling the land and his tractor continues in a decreasing circle until it hits a sapling. Now, I always wonder if this was the first take or if they had countless tries before hitting the tree.

It would have been nice if Rilla possessed a better sense of tempo. There are a lot of scenes that could have done with a slower pace and a few which deserved a faster tempo. The best example of this is the end sequence. Had the scene been slowed, it would have shown Gordon Zellaby's fight and struggle with the minds of The Children greater. It works as it stands, though it could have been better.

The acting is outstanding. Though I don't like David's voice as it appears overdubbed. I'm not sure if this is the case, but it does pull your attention from the story. It's a shame because Martin Stephen and Clive Powell, who play David, give a good portrayal of The Children's leader. In fact, all the kids in this film are great. And, honestly, every actor and actress give there best performance.

Their portrayals add to the believability of the story, and the relatability of the characters. Though George Sanders is billed as the lead, he doesn't outshine any of the other cast members. Which is great. Village Of The Damned became an instant favourite. If I'd had a video player as a kid, when I first watched this film, it would have been rewound immediately and watched again. This movie and story have that special something. I would gladly recommend this for everyone.

Once you wake up come on over and visit my The Final Frontier and Absolute Horror lists to see where these spooky kids exploded into my Rankings.

Take Care & Stay Well.

Village of the Damned is a very well-made thriller that seems to have been overlooked because of the sheer magnitude of its competition - Psycho. Both of these films are testaments to the idea that low budgets are very capable of producing great films. It is not the size of the budget that matters, it is the skill of the filmmakers and the actors. Village of the Damned makes use of a variety of very easily done but also very effective special effects, such as the boundary across which all people and animals lose consciousness, the creepy eyes on those kids, and their hypnotic powers.

The discussion of the exact same phenomenon happening to a few remote towns all over the world does a lot to show what these kids can do, and it increases the dramatic tension of the film as a whole. Cheaply made, but also very well made because a lot of thought was obviously put into it, Village of the Damned is a timeless thriller, even in black and white. When you watch a movie like this, if you are the kind of person who is so superficial about your movies that you refuse to watch black and white films, keep in mind that black and white photography REQUIRES good acting, to put it in the immortal words of Orson Welles. You can't have black and white photography and bad acting, the film would never work. Village of the Damned takes black and white photography and fills it with excellent acting, a fascinating story, and good direction that makes me wonder why this was the only film that Wolf Rilla ever directed.

Wolf Rilla directed this expert thriller from John Wyndham's novel "The Midwich Cuckoos", coming up with pretty stylish returns on such a tight budget. The mystery begins one day in the small British village of Midwich: all the residents are rendered unconscious for nearly four hours by an unseen substance which, three months down the road, results in pregnancies in every of-age female in town. When the babies are born, they are extraordinarily healthy and intelligent, paving the way for some scary behavior once the kids reach school-age. These tykes are the most exasperating little prigs imaginable, yet Professor George Sanders (himself the 'father' of one of the boys) is the only man unafraid of them--and perhaps the only one who can stop their path of destruction. Rilla doesn't overload the picture with nonsense; his narrative is clean-cut and the pacing is quick. Still, there's the usual leaden discussion-phase, wherein the adults have to formulate a plan which we in the audience know will soon be rendered moot. Sanders isn't really into his role, though he plays along rather splendidly, and the child actors have amazing faces. We don't get a sense of how many extraordinary children there should actually be however, and the pack of spooky towheads keeps changing in size. Followed by a sequel, "Children of the Damned", in 1964; remade by John Carpenter in 1995. *** from ****

There are old horror films that deserve to be called classics, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Blob, Carnival of Souls , so many more, but Village of the Damned just isn't one of them. Maybe it's the British constraint, but this was boring and I didn't feel anything menacing or even creepy about it. No great camera work, George Sanders seemed miscast, and in the end I was nodding off. It really wasn't it's age, I love old horror/thriller and I love B&W, but this is way over-rated. Unless you find children creepy to begin with, this is one to skip.

A small countryside village in England experiences a time period of several hours where all living things lie lifeless and helpless. Anything living that connects within this sphere of lifelessness gets the like treatment. Everyone soon awakens from whatever happened, and soon the women of child-bearing years all get pregnant and are all due on the same day. Village of the Damned is one of those discerning, intelligent science fiction films of yesteryear that tends to leave much to your imagination in terms of gore and violence as well as make you think and ponder important questions about the limits with which humanity should go to procure knowledge. The children are decidedly very creepy as their eyes glow when they are angered. Martin Stephens as George Sanders' boy is particularly good as he looks and speaks with such class and distinction yet has the conscience of a cold-blooded, calculated killer. Sanders is also very good in his role as a man torn between bridging the field of knowledge with the unknown and protecting mankind from foreign/alien harm. His wife, played with credibility, is Hammer beauty Barbara Shelley. A great British science fiction film and certainly one of the more thought-provoking ones around.

Wolf Rilla directed this adaptation of the John Wyndham novel set in the small English town of Midwich, which one day underwent a bizarre occurrence when the entire town went to sleep for several hours, without explanation. Several months later, scientist Gordon Zellaby(played by George Sanders) links the blackouts to the oddity of all women of child-bearing age being pregnant at the same time. The children born all oddly look alike with blond hair and expressionless faces, though with a high intelligence, which includes his wife Anthea(played by Barbara Shelley) and his "son" David(played most effectively by Martin Stephens). Are these children of alien origin, and what is their purpose? Nicely done sci-fi with thoughtful script and good direction. The children are not evil, just different, and how society treats them is as much a reflection on it as it is on them. A bit dry perhaps, but most worthwhile.

Village of the Damned is a spooky and dark 1960 British thriller. One day, everyone living in a small village fall unconscious. The reason is a mystery to outsiders and medical doctors. All of a sudden, the people regain consciousness and don't remember being out cold. Some time passes when some of the women in the village become pregnant. Problem is, most of them don't know how that could have happened. For example, a 17 year old became pregnant after the incident, yet she had never had sex. The children are eventually born after a few weeks instead of the normal nine months. As they grow at a rapid pace, they are shown to be remarkably intelligent. Moreso then the average child at their age.

Pretty soon it is apparent to viewers and the townsfolk that these kids are evil and have the power to read peoples minds. If they feel like they're in danger at any time, they can also use mind control to kill that person putting them in harms way. The clever and unique thing about Village of the Damned is that the children sometimes tell us what the people are thinking and what they are going to say before we actually get to hear it. It works very well in this film.

The ending is kind of bittersweet. Sad, but in a way satisfying for this kind of movie. And of course, it leaves the door open for a potential sequel. I liked Village of the Damned a lot. It didn't go into too much detail regarding how the children came to be and things like that. The movie would have felt a little dull I think had they gone into so much detail and explanations. The kids are very creepy, especially the main child David. Check it out.

7/10

Intelligent low-key sci-fi thriller about a small English village where all the women become mysteriously pregnant and give birth to strange emotionless children with telepathic abilities. Brilliant script adapted from John Wyndham's novel The Midwich Cuckoos. Taut, suspenseful direction from Wolf Rilla. Superb performances, particularly from the legendary George Sanders and child actor Martin Stephens as the leader of the creepy kids. It's such an effective, eerie film; a true classic. They sadly don't make them like this anymore, as you can see by the inferior 90's remake. I recommend this to anyone with a brain.

Science fiction is, I assert, difficult to write well; unlike many other genres of "fiction", it requires some imagination, a strong ability to relate characters to values, and a ruthless logic. "Village of the Damned", adapted, by Stirling Silliphant, the film's director Wolf Rilla and George Barclay, from the famous novel by John Wyndham "The Midwich Cuckoos" is often an absorbing film. It never, in my judgment, establishes enough of a reality of English life against which to set the presence of the film's aliens. These are children; ordinary looking children, who are super-intelligent, have psychic powers and whose eyes glow gold. One cannot discuss this film's eerie story line without disclosing too much of its evolving direction; suffice it to say that one day, strange occurrences happen in a number of countries: everyone blacks out for four hours in the small town of Midwich England as elsewhere, the setting being the one for the British whose fortunes we follow. As a result of these happenings, every fertile female in town--married or not--gives birth to an odd child--strange, to say the least, but blond-haired and human in a full sense by every appearance. The central characters of the film are an older couple played by Barbara Shelley, who is beautiful and very professionally sympathetic in her role; George Sanders also does quite well in the part of an understanding teacher who demands that the children be taught ethics and tries to do the job himself; thus he becomes the children's professor. The alternative is a plot to kill all the children, the military's position-to safeguard the country's populace. Others prominently featured in the steady but not stellar cast include fine actor Laurence Naismith, Richard Warner and Rosamund Greenwood. The plot moves the participants from shock, to curious acceptance of the strange offspring, to fear and then beyond at a surprisingly good pace, I suggest. Ron Goodwin's usual musical contribution is very successful indeed, aiding the atmosphere of the film. Cinematography was by Geoffrey Faithful with consistent Art Direction by Ivan King and convincing special effects by Tom Howard. The taut and moving first half of the film seems to me as a writer a bit rushed in the second portion of the work; However, this very influential film--whose effects, ideas and setting have been copied many times since, stands on its own. It has some very good actors, a straightforward development and two leads who are world class--plus a very logical and memorable ending. This is a taut and often literate black-and-white sci-fi film that can be watched more than once, I suggest.

Clearly Michael, the son of the professor, is the scariest little devil human. His voice dub was interesting, I wonder how high (or low) his voice was at that time that they didn't want to use it.

The plot:there's a kind of force-field around a small town in England for a few hours, everyone passes out, then several women find themselves pregnant with too-rapidly developing babies, even virgins. The babies come out all looking like little goths, wearing black, white-blond hair. They have a mental community amongst themselves, when one devil kid learns something they all do, and they communicate telepathically. They are scary because they can control people's minds, and make them commit suicide. There's the wacko military that wants to kill them, the professor who naively wants to study them and use them for good, and the small boy with glowing eyes that makes a guy shoot himself. Most were downplayed, which was the strongest point of the film. Everyone was very British; ie. they are calm and polite, even when discussing small satanic kiddies. The lack of melodrama saves it and makes it a little more intelligent than it could have been.

This is a great Classic film mainly because of the great movie star George Sanders(Gordon Zellaby),"Hangover Square",'45, who unfortunately took his own life. In this film Sanders plays a professor and has the great pleasure of raising a child with Barbara Shelley(Antnea Zellaby), who turns out to become a child with glaring eyes and a very bad temper! It seems the children in this film seem to grow at a very rapid pace and have great hidden abilities to do just about everything they want in controlling the minds of all ADULTS! In 1960, this was a great Horror film and captivated the movie goers. This is truly a great Classic Film to enjoy!

I can appreciate classic horror cinema, but this one has been completely neutered with time. Everything about this movie is horribly dated - from the stilted action to the corny effects. Instead of atmosphere, we get countless scenes of old white men sitting around talking about what is going on. The finale is so rushed as to be completely ineffectual - it's over before we get a real chance to feel any tension. Even in 1960 this was old-school horror. The infinitely superior Psycho came out the same here.