Midnite Horror

What is it about small towns that just creeps me the hell out? If you are like me, driving through small towns always seems to conjure feelings of unease and dread. No, I don't really feel that my life is in danger, but I can't help but let my imagination wander as it concocts all sorts of horrific scenarios. Old run down barns and sheds could be the home of a murderous drifter. Boarded up houses that should have been torn down decades ago could be filled with spirits and evil. And who knows how many mutant, inbred mongoloids are roaming the back fields. Yes, I'm exaggerating a bit. But there is definitely something substantial about small towns that makes them perfect settings for horror. Maybe it's the lessened prevalence of technology. Maybe it's the isolation. Maybe it's the sense of camaraderie that small town folk tend to have with each other. Or maybe...it's the children.

Yea, the horror industry has capitalized on the idea of evil children in small rural towns more than once. Actually, it happens quite often. And I'll be honest. I think it's effective. I also think that one of the things that makes this idea fresh time after time is that the source of wickedness within the children can vary quite a bit. For example, let's look at the 1995 film Village of the Damned. Yes, I know it's a remake of a film from 1960, but shame on me, I haven't seen it. So, you'll have to deal with my thoughts on John Carpenter's version. Regardless, Village of the Damned takes the idea evil children and adds the sci-fi, alien twist to it.

The story starts out in the small town of Midwich, CA. Everything seems calm and peaceful, when suddenly, out of nowhere, a dark black shadow passes over the entire town. As the shadow passes, everyone withing a certain radius of the town falls into a coma like sleep. During their slumber, this phenomenon is noticed, and the feds and other government officials (led by Kirstie Alley) are called in to investigate. Shortly after their arrival, the villagers suddenly awaken as if nothing had ever happened. Except that something did happen. A few weeks after the event, ten of the women in the village all discover that they are pregnant, and the conceptions can all be traced back to that fateful day weeks earlier. All of the pregnancies progress normally, and like clockwork, all of the women give birth on the exact same day. Well, almost. But I won't get into that here.

As the children grow, it is quite obvious that they are not normal. They all posses platinum blond hair, zero personality, and oh yea, telekinetic powers. As the story progresses, we see more and more of what these children are capable of, and how malicious and uncaring they really are to the "inferior" human race.

A slightly different approach to the whole evil children idea was given to us in the 1984 Stephen King adaptation of Children of the Corn. This is a film that I think I can safely assume most of you have seen. If not, I'll set it up for you quickly.

The story takes place in the very small town of Gatlin Nebraska. The first scene of the film takes place three years prior to the rest of the story. In this scene, we learn about a young boy named Isaac, who is a prophet of sorts and spends his days out in the corn fields teaching the other children about a man/god named simply "He who walks behind the rows". Isaac's influence over the children is apparently quite great, because it is in this opening scene that we witness the children rising up against the adults, murdering anyone over the age of 18. What's even more frightening is that the mass slaughter attempt is successful. The movie then jumps forward three years, and we are introduced to Burt and Vickie, a young couple driving the back roads of Nebraska. When Burt and and Vickie get into an "accident", they are forced to look for help in the only location available to them, Gatlin. (Where else, right?) Soon, Burt and Vickie learn that something is not quite right in Gatlin, as their search for an adult turns fruitless. However, their presence does not go unnoticed by Isaac, and soon, the man hunt for an unsuspecting Burt and Vickie is on full force.

I think the thing that makes Children of the Corn so effective for people is the fact that this scenario is plausible, albeit unlikely. Sure, one would have to get past the whole supernatural corn god before they could jump on board, but if you throw that aside, and focus exclusively on the uprising of the children, there is a grain of believability here. Let's face it, children are not only gullible, but also have very vivid imaginations. (I think the poke at organized religion here is obvious.) When you put a charismatic leader in front of them, is it really so hard to believe that these children could be convinced to kill if it would mean good things for them? Add to this the fact that no normal adjusted adult would ever expect such a revolt, and the unending supply of sharp, pointy farming tools in Gatlin, and you have yourself a prepubescent mutiny that just could happen. (How long the children would survive without parental aid is another issue, but we'll leave that for the comments section.)

So, there you go. Children have always been a very effective deliverer of scares when it comes to horror. Whether they are ghosts, victims of demonic possession, are just plain crazy, it doesn't matter. Children are seen as innocent, uncorruptable angels incapable of evil. And for the most part, that's a fair generalization to make. Just don't trust the ones from small towns.