Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘Village of the Damned’ (1995)

Written by Scott Edwards

​There is something about the unknown that always fascinates us. Not knowing how or why something will happen leaves everyone to interpret exactly what happened in their own way. While opinions will vary from person to person, the final result is always seen and whether it be good or bad, everyone will remember. There can be plenty of disagreements about what is happening when the moment finally arrives, but there is no mistaking the final result.

After driving out of town to visit with a patent, Doctor Alan Chaffee is shocked to see a barrier has been formed between himself and his hometown. Finding out that everyone in the immediate area is unconscious and that it seems to be very contained, he is dying to get back to see his wife. Meanwhile Doctor Susan Verner has other things on her mind such as the possibility that this event could have spread further than the public will ever know. Waiting to see the folks inside the quarantine line start to wake up, the town is opened up once again, but with a major change that no one expected, all of the female residents are pregnant.

As tensions start to mount between some couples, others are taking it as a gift from above since they were not able to conceive on their own. Needing to decide what to do with their new gifts, Susan Verner has an offer for the town that nobody can pass up on. If they keep their child, they will receive three thousand dollars a month, plus have their medical expenses covered, even if their newborns will need to be poked and prodded for a short amount of time. As everyone decides to keep their unborn children, all of the women in the town go into labor at exactly the same time and seeing the healthy babies coming into the world, Susan is miffed that there is one that would not make it. Removing the baby from the barn, she has tests of her own that she is ready to administer to find out what was really behind this event.

Years pass, and the new white-haired children are finding their place in the small town, but at a cost to the adults that are trying to care for them. With a rash of accidents and suicides, there is no one else to blame but the children as they have powers that nobody in town can recognize. But Doctor Verner knows exactly what is happening in the town and wants to keep a close eye on everything until her time runs out. As the children continue to come of age, they pair off, but one is left without his mate as she died during childbirth and he wants to find out where she has been placed. Starting to have feelings, unlike the rest of his group, young David becomes more open to allowing his adult counterparts live and help him develop, but his gentleness comes too late as Alan’s daughter Mara is ready to inflict her wrath upon the entire world.

Quite the impressive little story that makes you wonder what might actually be out there. I will tell you one thing about me however, if my child comes out with funky eyes and white hair, I am bolting to another country to escape the wrath they will impose upon me. What I really liked about how the story played out is how David was never feeling the desire that his group shared to destroy everyone in their path and started to have feelings all his own. Showing that the evil can be defeated at least once is a huge victory for what little humanity was left in the town as Mara and her group were ready to unleash hell on Earth. With creepy kids, silly parents, messed up eyes, imaginative kills and a young leader who can control the hive, this is a story that will never get old, mainly because evil kids are just the creepiest thing ever. Stay Scared.

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