Children of the Corn

Year of Release:  1984
Director:  Fritz Kiersch
Screenplay:  George Goldsmith, based on the short story Children of the Corn by Stephen King
Starring:  Peter Horton, Linda Hamilton, R. G. Armstrong, John Franklin, Courtney Gains, Robby Kiger, Anne Marie McEvoy
Running Time:  92 minutes
Genre:  Horror

Young married couple Vicky (Hamilton) and Burt (Horton) travel through rural Nebraska on their way to Seattle.  On the road they run over a young boy, but Burt discovers that he was already dead, having had his throat cut.  Searching for help, they wind up in the small town of Gatlin.  Gatlin appears strangely deserted, but they soon discover that it is not so deserted.  The town is inhabited entirely by children, who are members of a bloodthirsty cult headed by child preacher Isaac (Franklin) and his vicious enforcer Malachi (Gains).  Three years previously, Isaac and Malachi lead the children of the town in the ritual murder of everyone in town over the age of 19.  The cult worships a demonic entity known as "He Who Walks Behind the Rows", who lives in the vast cornfields, and periodically demands human sacrifice.

Based on a 1977 short story by Stephen King, the film has an arresting premise, but ends up as a slightly frustrating mix of very good and very bad.  On the good side, the film starts off very strongly, with an effective opening as the children slaughter their parents and other adults, and some genuinely atmospheric passages early on, depicting the derelict, deserted town, and a sequence where Burt and Vicky try to head to a neighbouring town, but seem to be caught in a kind of loop, unable to escape Gatlin.  A major point in the film's favour is Linda Hamilton who really shines despite not being given nearly enough to do, and R. G. Armstrong is pretty fun as the creepy old mechanic.  On the bad side some of the performances are pretty bad and suffers the film from the limitations of an obviously tiny budget.  The climax is also pretty ludicrous.  While it may not be a "good" movie in the technical sense, it is a lot of fun, and packs in enough gore and creepy moments to appeal to horror fans.  The main problem is that while the film is enjoyable, it's really frustrating that it isn't better than it is, and it feels like a missed opportunity.  It has become something of a cult movie, spawning numerous sequels and a made for TV remake.     

  

Courtney Gains in Children of the Corn