Nicolas F. Costoglou John Carpenter's "Village of the Damned" is the second remake of a classic movie he's made after "The Thing" and in my opinion as great.I first watched the movie when i was still a little child close to my teenage years and had no idea what it was about, and it hooked me right from the start, because of the hypnotic soundtrack and the great sense of mystery. I recommend everyone who hasn't watched this film yet, to stop reading this, or any other information about it, and to watch it without knowing anything, it's perfect then.The movie is directed masterfully, every scene is well thought out and perfectly shot from director of photography Gary B. Kibbe. Most of the suspenseful scenes are incredibly subtle. Most of the time, it's just the way the scene is lit, or the camera moves, which gives you chills.The movie is also very atmospheric and it get's the right amount of juxtaposition between the village-folk, where everyone knows everyone and you care about all of them, and the terror which will take place through the only thing we thought might be innocent: Our children.The acting is also superb, everyone gives a fitting performance most of all Christopher Reeve and Linda Kozlowsky. But i also have to mention the children: The are fantastic, they act well along with the adult actors and seem very adult themselves. I'm also very impressed that they act flawlessly in long takes, and they never had to cut around their performances.This is also very important, because the actors are what holds the movie together, every scene is focused on them and it's the reason why it's such an intense and suspenseful experience.I also really love that all of the terrifying death scenes and the finale act, aren't just there to show brutal violence, they doesn't show the violence, but the reaction of the characters to it, and that's the reason why you feel the impact of it. The same with the scenes where they try to block the mind powers of the children, and most of all in the finale act, it's masterfully put together and you really feel the intensity, and helplessness of the characters.Lika all of Carpenter's movies, this one also has a double-edged- ending, which is great as always. The protagonist get what they wanted in the end, BUT there is no hope in the future, love it.All in all one of my favourite Mystery-Sci-Fi-Thrillers with great acting, direction, and soundtrack, all the more effective if you don 't know what it's about...

Rainey Dawn Not a bad remake of the 1960 classic film. Carpenter did add some violence to this remake... 1995 people are wanting more on-screen, more blood, guts and violence in their films - so Carpenter gave them some but it's not overly violent or bloody. I don't think this film is violent or bloody enough to satisfy most teens of the 1990s.The story is a pretty good alien story to begin with and I think the cast and crew did a good job on this remake. No, it is not the original but it's still a pretty good sci-fi horror movie to kick back and enjoy.As far as the children, I think both the 1960 and 1995 films are very creepy kids! I would be very nervous with them around - and the longer I was with them, the more I learned about them the more frightened I would become - if this was real! lol.7/10

gavin6942 A small town's women give birth to unfriendly alien children posing as humans.At the time this movie was made, John Carpenter was owed a movie by Universal. He was actually hoping to do a remake of "Creature From the Black Lagoon". Instead, they offered him "Village" and he agreed. The script had interestingly been worked on by none other than Wes Craven, and then Carpenter made his own changes: pushing to make it closer to the original version, but with a female perspective.The casting is pretty great, which is not unusual for a Carpenter film. He has always surrounded himself with good actors. Chris Reeve and Kirstie Alley are the big names, but horror fans appreciate the supporting cast: Buck Flower, Michael Pare, Peter Jason, Mark Hamill. Even the kids in retrospect have become small horror icons in their own way. Thomas Dekker, the main child, has gone to on play John Connor in the "Sarah Connor Chronicles" and appeared in the "Nightmare on Elm Street" remake.Charlotte Gravenor, the hairstylist, bleached the hair of the actors who played the children, and then applied white hairspray to their hair. This made them appear like aliens, and in some cases even made their hair fall out. Bruce Nicholson and Greg Nicotero applied a special effect where the eye pupil colors change when the children seize control of the adults. Critics said that the eye effect was "less impressive" than the hair effect. And I would agree. The hair is very striking, and works great with the black-and-white theme, whereas the eyes are just alright.At this point in Carpenter's career, he was not making the big hits he is best known for. Although one or two more films were pretty decent, it is interesting to see how this fits into his arc. Carpenter himself has said he wasn't "passionate" about making "Village". Was this the cause of its less-than-stellar reception by fans? Was it just caught up in the trajectory? Or maybe Carpenter had lost his "passion" for directing altogether... The Scream Factory disc includes an all-new "Horror's Hallowed Grounds" with my good friend Sean Clark. This may be his best one yet, though the sound volume seems very uneven. There is an impressive (44-minute!) retrospective on the career of Peter Jason, who (among many other things) appeared in seven Carpenter films. He has such great tales of working with Orson Welles, among others. This is the hidden gem that makes the disc worthwhile. The film retrospective, with Carpenter, Sandy King, Michael Pare, many of the child actors, and others, is also great, and at 50 minutes very thorough. I could complain about the lack of audio commentary, but with thee features it would probably be unnecessary. Well done, Scream! One of your better discs.

TheBlueHairedLawyer This eerie film isn't your typical "murderer on the loose" film. It provides horror by raising that question we all avoid... are there beings superior to us out there, and would they view us as equals, or would we be treated like cattle to them, useless creatures in the way? It starts off with Midwitch, a small town with charm and a tight-knit community. When everyone within the town faint during a school picnic one day, it intrigues the National Science Foundation, especially Dr. Verner, a stern and headstrong scientist who secretly knows what is happening but she doesn't let on. The local sheriff claims confusion; there is no industrial chemical plant nearby or anything that could knock out a whole town... when everyone wakes up, three have died, including the husband of the school principal. She is shocked and overjoyed to discover several weeks later that she is pregnant... but all the women, even ones who have never tried to have a child, are pregnant as well, and every pregnancy dates to the day of the strange fainting spell.When the children are finally born, they are all similar in appearance, white hair and hostile blue eyes, pale faces and uniform gray clothes. One of the babies is born dead, from the teenage mother who was a virgin although somehow she conceived a baby. Verner steals it for an autopsy, and in a deep depression the would-be-mother kills herself.The children, especially the leader, Mara, are all intellectually superior to the adults, don't play like the other kids in town do, and they are always around during a tragic death. They can control minds, Verner knows this, and confides in the town doctor that these kids are not from earth but are some race unknown to humanity. Only David, the principal's son, shows signs of emotion; there may be hope for him.This film is thrilling to the end, I saw it on TV once and loved it. The acting of the children is so good it's scary, likely the effect wanted, and the soundtrack is eerie yet beautiful. Every actor did a great job. I wouldn't suggest kids should watch it; there are disturbing scenes such as an unborn dead child, Dr. Verner cutting herself open with a surgical knife, a woman setting herself on fire and a priest shooting himself. If you're a fan of alien movies though, or movies about beings with psychic powers, this movie is a great one to try.