4/5 Horror that's Truly Horrifying!
  by John D. Glaser Jr. (in front of a 60'' screen, USA)
This is a great film in any genre, the children really delivers the horror unlike 95% of other movies that claim to be horror and just plain suck. I'm an avid horror fan so trust me when I say you can't miss with this one. From the very beginning the tension and unease continue to build until it's so thick you can push it aside like a curtain. You actually wish something would happen just to let the air back into the room, even though you know it will be terrible. Prepare for some truly disturbing material with visuals to match!

5/5 Only two reviews for this excellent film?
  by D. Ritter (Portland, OR)
It's not often any more when I watch a modern horror movie, and instantly fall in love with it. "The Children" is a movie that should impress not only horror fans, but fans of good cinema.

The plot may be farfetched (to the point of being ridiculous, maybe?): Children encountering an unknown substance develop an illness that eventually makes them murderous against the adults taking care of them. But what this movie does with this simple concept is nothing short of amazing, evoking horror, sympathy, empathy, and for those of us who are parents -- genuine sorrow and thought-provoking (albeit disturbing) themes.

I won't rehash the plot here (there are plenty of "reviews" that will do that for you on the web), but I will say that the acting is top-notch. It's extremely rare in horror movies that acting can reach this caliber. You can not only see, hear, but also FEEL the horror the characters are experiencing. There's a particularly nasty injury that occurs about midway through the film, and the actress plays it out to the HILT, reacting realistically to the pain -- a rarity in horror movies.

But the child actors really take the cake. Often in movies like this, the kids ham it up to the point of not being believable. NOT in THIS movie. Having had a minor acting background, I'm dying to know how they made the kids as . . . emotionless as they did. But that's what sealed the deal for me.

I am relatively new to the BD market, having obtained my first BD player back in March. I don't have a very large collection, and because of the price difference between BD and DVD, I'm very selective about the movies I purchase on BD. That said, this will be the 7th BD in my collection. I may revise my review to talk more about the features on the BD when I receive it (just ordered it last night), but don't bet on it (I'm a serious flake), so all I can do is review the movie now.

If you like horror movies that rely on blood & gore to "scare" you, then you might want to steer clear of this movie. But if you want a lean & tight psychological thriller that is truly chilling, then I cannot recommend this one high enough. A warning to fellow parents out there: This movie WILL disturb you . . . but if you like that, then get this movie. Now.

4/5 The best thing to come from Ghost House Underground
  by N. Durham (Philadelphia, PA)
These lines of direct to DVD horror flicks to come along recently, the After Dark Horrorfest and more recently Ghost House Underground, usually feature a diamond in the rough among their various lineups. British import The Children is by and far such a film in this year's Ghost House Underground lineup, and it may in fact be the ballsiest horror film you'll come across right now. A family get together turns deadly when a virus infects the young children, which subsequently causes them to attack and murder the adults. As they fight for survival, it becomes clear that director Tom Shankland (The Killing Gene) is quite simply going for the throat of the viewer, as he pulls no punches in presenting some shocking scenes of brutality and bloodletting. Not to mention the fact that the film is actually suspenseful and it features a simply dynamite ending, The Children winds up being a blood-curdling shocker. The film's editing may be occasionally sloppy, but regardless of that, The Children is definitely worth your time if you're a horror fan. Be on the lookout for the gorgeous Hannah Tointon, who may in fact be a star in the making.

4/5 My New Favorite "Evil Children" Movie
  by Nanook (Culver City, CA USA)
I saw this film a few months ago and it immediately became my new favorite "evil children" movie, but also one of my favorite recent horrors. And it gets huge bonus points for being actually frightening. This review is of the US Region-free Blu-ray release from Lionsgate/Ghost House Underground, released today, Oct. 6, 2009.

The performances are uniformly excellent, which is crucial for a horror film to be scary. Special kudos for Mr. Shankland for coaxing genuinely creepy performances out of very young children. See recent The Omen remake to see how not to do it. ;)

This film is not for fans of jump scares or fast-paced editing. Well, to be honest, there are a couple brief flash-cut editing moments, but they are thankfully brief, and I can see the point to them, so they are forgiven. My point was, this is a slow burner that takes its time to establish the setting, characters and mood. And as a real horror fan, I can appreciate this deliberation as true scares are built from those building blocks. The horrors that do happen, in time, are that much more effective wen they do.

The picture on the BD looks great to me, but I'm not a real A/V geek, so you can look elsewhere to discuss crushed blacks. ;) There are a wealth of special features here, too, but noticeably absent is a director's commentary, alas.

On a side note, what was wrong with the fantastic cover art of the UK release? And why does Ghost House feel the need to plaster their graphics all over more prominently than the film title?

Anyway, highly recommended for horror fans who are tired of cheap jump scares. But parents beware, as the themes here are truly disturbing.