Children Of The Damned (1964)

Scientists discovers that there are six children who each have an enormous intelligence. The children are flown to London to be studied, but they each escape their embassy and gather in a church. 

Children of the Damned is a 1964 science fiction film, a thematic sequel to the 1960 version of Village of the Damned. It is about a group of children, with similar psi-powers to those in the preceding film, but enabling an opposite interpretation of the children as a more good and more pure form of human instead of evil and alien.

Children of the Damned has generally been considered grossly inferior to Village of the Damned.  I don't know if I agree with that.  In Village of the Damned the children were the result of alien insemination (presumably) and were simply evil. In Children of the Damned they are the result of a jump in evolution and they, themselves, are unsure of who they are and why they are here.

The Plot.  A study, led by the United Nations results in bizarre and alarming findings. Six children, from all corners of the world, score unusually high on intelligence tests. It becomes even more remarkably when it seems that none of them has a father and all of them have label mothers. One mom even declared her boy is `not from this world'. While psychologists and other prominent scientists from all over the world search for explanations, the group of prodigies together seek shelter in an abandoned church….Things are getting more and more frightening when it turns out they're telepathic and able to hypnotize humans with their minds and eyes…

Bring me pork fried rice and a kabob.

 Rather than the aliens invaders of the first film, the children here are a human super-species, socially and intellectually incompatible with the rest of humanity. They don't seem to mean any harm, but their eerily cold and quiet presence provokes the authorities into a fearful contemplation of what they might do. John Briley's adult and intelligent script takes an insightful look at how our inherently insecure systems of authority might hunt and destroy that which merely suggests a challenge to their control.

The cast is excellent. Ian Hendry and Alan Badel as the two conscientious scientists trying to fathom the children's secret, are terrific. They bounce Briley's sometimes caustically witty lines between them with a delightful, naturalistic touch. The rest of the cast play it for keeps too, imparting a sense of urgency and, as with Alfred Burke's government man, icy menace.  The children themselves are surprisingly well played. No brattish over-acting here. Instead, the group of young, multi-racial actors exude a perfect sense of other-worldly calm, and, when necessary, chilling ruthlessness.

Paul we need to talk about how goofy your choice of attire is.

 The lead kid is named Paul and as a super genius, the dude doesn't dress himself very well.  Pull your socks down son. I hope mankind doesn't evolve to dress like that.  There is also a mix of kids.  We have the Indian kid, black kid and Chinese kid. They're not all blond haired and creepy eyes this time.

The production values of the film are excellent. In particular the stark black and white cinematography of Davis Boulton gives the film a strong sense of atmosphere and menace throughout which helps the film immensely. The production design of Elliot Scott give the film the same feeling as the cinematography, especially in the form of the destitute church the children come to occupy for much of the film. One element that improves in this film is the score by composer Ron Goodwin that, after a rather mixed result in the original film, is never out of place and put to good use throughout. The success of the production values helps the film out immensely.

Paul....lose the tie son.  You're 5.

Opinion about which of the 'of the Damned' films is better is seriously divided, but given the choice, I would always go for the freaky, blonde-haired and undeniably malevolent mutants of 'Village' over the normal looking, multi-cultural, and possibly benevolent saviours of mankind from 'Children'.  Viewing it is not a bad way to spend an evening.