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Peter Horton, Linda Hamilton, R.G. Armstrong, John Franklin, Courtney Gains ... see more see more... , Robby Kiger , Annemarie McEvoy , Julie Maddalena , Jonas Marlowe , John Philbin , Mitch Carter , David Cowan , Eric Freeman , Dan Snook , Suzy Southam , Patrick Boylan , D.G. Johnson , Elmer Soderstrom , Teresa Toigo , Anne Marie McEvoy

Narrator Job (Robby Kiger) relates the tale of Gatlin, NE, where one day the children, led by a boy preacher named Isaac (John Franklin), rose up and slaughtered all the grown-ups. A few years later, ... read more read more...Job and his sister, Sarah (Ammemarie McEvoy), help their friend, Joseph (Jonas Marlowe), try to escape through the cornfields of Gatlin. Meanwhile, Burt Stanton (Peter Horton), a commitment-phobic young doctor, and Vicky Baxter (Linda Hamilton), his frustrated girlfriend, travel through the cornfield-lined roads of Nebraska on their way to Burt's new internship in Omaha. Their car hits Joseph, who appears out of nowhere, but upon examining him, Burt realizes the child's throat was slit before he ever wandered out from the corn. Attempting to locate help, Burt and Vicky turn to gas-station owner Diehl (R.G. Armstrong), who urges the couple to go anywhere but nearby Gatlin to report the murder. Several contradictory street signs later, they arrive in Gatlin anyway, and, befriending Sarah and Joseph, attempt to uncover the mystery behind Isaac's cult and its mysterious deity, known only as He Who Walks Behind the Rows. Stephen King cash-ins flooded the market between the successes of Brian DePalma's Carrie (1976) and Rob Reiner's Misery (1990), many of them, like Children of the Corn, based only loosely on the author's fiction. The original short story appeared in the collection Night Shift. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi

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49% liked it

81,560 ratings

Critics

39% liked it

23 critics

R, 1 hr. 33 min.

Directed by: Fritz Kiersch

Release Date: January 1, 1984

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DVD Release Date: April 10, 2001

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Stats: 2,997 reviews

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Isaac and the Older Kids Children of the Corn Children of the Corn IN THIS PIC IS MALACHAI OFF OF CHILDREN OF THE CORN Children of the Corn Children of the Corn THIS PIC IS ISAAC OFF OF CHILDREN OF THE CORN Children of the Corn the corn children Children of the Corn Children of the Corn Children of the Corn Children of the Corn Children of the Corn THE BLUE OFF OF CHILDREN OF THE CORN Children of the Corn Children of the Corn Children of the Corn
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Flixster Reviews (2,997)

  • blkbomb
    March 4, 2012
    blkbomb
    Isaac: Malachai! He wants you too, Malachai. He wants you too! 

    "And a child shall lead them..."

    Children of the Corn quite possibly might be the worst Stephen King adaption I have ever seen. You know a movie is terrible when an hour and a half feels like three days. Everything... read more about this film is amateurish and cheap. A film like this should live off of atmosphere and mood, but the director and the cast do little to achieve that. 

    The plot revolves around a religious cult of children who terrorize a couple. It may sound really stupid, but I guarantee that it's even stupider than you imagine. I haven't read the short story by King, but I would guess that it is much different than this sorry piece of shit.

    Bad horror movies are at least somewhat interesting or entertaining to me, most of the time. Children of the Corn is a notable exception. I couldn't have been more bored or less interested. I don't want to even imagine what the sequels are like. As for that ginger Malachai; I'm nominating it for the worst performance I have ever seen. Fucking terrible!
  • SirPant
    March 1, 2012
    SirPant
    The general rule of horror films is that it's what you don't see that really terrifies and leaves it's imprint in your mind. Children of the Corn is the exception. I didn't really feel there was any pay-off. I haven't read the book but often when I see a Stephen King film, I can ... read morerelate to his tone and style, here I just couldn't. I'm sure the book is much better but then, that is often the case, especially with the King. I also got distracted by the fact Issac looks just like a kid I went to school with.
  • fb100000883534329
    October 29, 2011
    fb100000883534329
    I think this film is very under-rated by critics. I hear this film is cheesey and not scary when the opening scene was one of the coolest scenes I've seen. I hate how people think that films arnt scary unless there's cold blooded hack job fake blood surging from every angle typ... read moreical horror scene. This film had great set up and freaked me out. And now, unless I know the kid, I think all chrildren are evil devil henchmen.
  • TheDudeLebowski65
    October 21, 2011
    TheDudeLebowski65
    Children Of The Corn is an often overlooked horror film. Based on the Stephen King story of the same name, Children Of The Corn is the story of a boy preacher who arrives in Gatlin, Nebraska and convinces the local children to murder the adults. After noticing an injured boy runn... read moreing from the corn field and into the street, young couple Burt and Vicky (Peter Horton, Linda Hamilton) travel to Gatlin to find help. When they get there, they find that the town is empty and is only habited by children. Soon the new arrivals know what really went on, and find out that Isaac, the boy preacher has brainwashed the children into killing their parents. Children Of The Corn is not the best Stephen King adaptation, but the filmmakers do a pretty good job in creating tense, horrifying moments. Sometimes the film seems a little sloppy, and cheesy, but this is what makes it a fun film to watch. The fact that we never quit see "He Who Walks Behind The Rows" (the god that the children worship) adds to the eerie atmosphere that this possesses. We are only given a brief scene with He who walks behind the rows, and when it happens, it reminds you of the shark from Jaws. The payoff of the film was decent, and entertaining, but it was also disappointing. Children Of The Corn is still a very entertaining horror film despite it's flaws. Just watch it with an open mind, and you may not feel too disappointed.
  • bbcfloridabound
    August 17, 2011
    bbcfloridabound
    Remember seeing this one when it first came out. Think it was at a drive-in in Maine. The first film where children are killers and creepy. Come this fall if your kids are bugging you about going to the corn maze, throw this on Friday night and your weekend will be corn maze free... read more. Actually a good movie, better now then I remember it when I first seen it. Set the bar for many Crazy Killer Kid movies of the future. Good for a Halloween Movie Marathon. Worth every bit of 4 stars.
  • fb100000257973100
    June 6, 2011
    fb100000257973100
    Ever sense the dawn of man, there has been one thing that has always scared people. And that will be the influence of religion on young people. Now, with most people, they treat it responsibly. But what if one person who is obsessed with religion takes it too far and starts to ha... read moreve everyone above the age of eighteen slaughtered and control all of the children in his town? Well, what you get is a mediocre to non-watchable film adaptation of Stephen King's Children Of The Corn. To be frank, Fritz Kiersch is not that good of a director in the slightest. Under his ruling thumb, this film has a mediocre pace, cliche 1980's horror tricks, and overall poor story telling. Personally, I would have liked it if he was to have, at least, try to have the film have the same amount of terror the original story had. When one reads Children Of The Corn, you have a dread of corn because of what it represents. Here, it represents nothing and just looks like what it is: Corn. Nothing frightening at all. Now, if the corn had a quality that made it terrifying, then the film would have been better off. Acting wise, I was disappointed to be honest. Linda Hamilton (THE TERMINATOR) gives a half done performance in this picture when she should have just tried harder. Peter Horton is mediocre at best in his roles as Burt and he is just not convening. Actually, none of them are at all except for John Franklin as being Isaac. Now, he actually gives a decent performance, but it is not enough to save this film. He has such talent portraying this messed up kid. The script to this film is bad. I am sorry, but it just is. From how some scenes are written out to contradicting to flawed dialog, it is just a mess that leaves me to wonder if anyone ever actually reread the script and edited it. My favorite example is when one of the little boys try to run away from the field, he tells his friend to make sure no one is following him nor watching him. He walks a certain distance, looks around, and yells to him that no one is looking. Yeah, Oscar winning script dialog right there. Now for the only good part in this entire film: The score. I must admit: who ever done the score for this film should have been payed the most. The score is creepy, a little unsettling, and tries to it's best potential to set the tone. *sigh* Overall, this is not that great of a film and should only be seen by those that love religious horror films or cult 1980's films.
  • Deano78
    February 16, 2011
    Deano78
    I'm very disappointed with this! After hearing of it for so long and from a big Stephen King fan, I couldn't believe how poor this is! Looking very dated, thought it was an early 70's film not mid 80's! It's drawn out way too long even at 90mins. It's not scary, just weird. There... read more was a re-make recently not to mention 7 sequels!! Hopefully they are a lot better!
  • ajv2688
    January 18, 2011
    ajv2688
    Another fantastic adaptation of a Stephen King story! This classic horror film will change the way you see cornfields. I especially liked Hamilton in this movie.
  • TheGame90
    February 28, 2010
    TheGame90
    Very great start...after that I thought it would be a great movie....but after that they started to suck....and the ending was way to random. I'm a fan of Stephen King but I haven't read the book...but I guess it seemed much more logic in the book cause this.....not cool man
  • 3niR
    January 2, 2010
    3niR
    What the heck was this all about? They are just wasting their money to make this kinda cheap movie. Stop wasting your money. Donate to the poor people so that they can pray for you to make better movies.

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Critic Reviews

Charles Cassady
December 14, 2010
Charles Cassady, Common Sense Media

Classic Stephen King horror, hardly popping. Full Review

Jason Morgan
September 9, 2009
Jason Morgan, Filmcritic.com

its dated look reminds us that horror movies were once made with only a camera and buckets of Karo syrup; not marketable teen models and computer-generated effects. Full Review

Peter Canavese
August 12, 2009
Peter Canavese, Groucho Reviews

It's a--look, it has to be said--corny "B" horror flick with a certain je ne sais WTF about it. [Blu-ray] Full Review

Felix Gonzalez Jr.
July 30, 2009
Felix Gonzalez Jr., DVD Review

How Children of the Corn continues to be so successful and popular 25 years after its release still remains a mystery .... Full Review

Stefan Birgir Stefansson
March 8, 2008
Stefan Birgir Stefansson, sbs.is

incredibly boring from start to finish

Anton Bitel
November 13, 2004
Anton Bitel, Movie Gazette

As ye sow, so shall ye reap - and for all its initial creepiness, in the end this Mid-western gothic yields a big cropful of corn. Full Review

Gregory Weinkauf
February 4, 2004
Gregory Weinkauf, New Times

If you need a laugh, come to Malachi!

Ken Hanke
June 16, 2003
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Grisly, occasionally effective horror flick.

Brian Mckay
March 19, 2003
Brian Mckay, eFilmCritic.com

The only halfway decent installment of the entire bloated, pitiful franchise.

KJB
August 8, 2002
KJB, IGN Movies

Ooooooo... scary kids! Don't go into the cornfields alone after this one.

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Facts

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    • Boy: The Blue Man! Yes, the Blue Man!
    • Job: Don't worry, Mister. You'll be safe here. Isaac and Malachi don't know about this place.
    • Dr. Burt Stanton: Enough! Who are Isaac and Malachi?
    • Job: Isaac started the whole thing. He's a boy preacher who came to this town three years ago. At nine-years-old back then, he had a charming way that appealed to all the kids and teens like us to follow him with his own teachings of the bible and of the Old Testiment. But me and Sarah thought he was just plain weird.
    • Isaac: Don't just stand there! Seize him! Punish him! The Lord has chosen me as the bringer of His word and the giver of His laws! Disobedience to me is disobedience to Him! Do it now, or your punishment shall be a thousand deaths, each more horrible than the last!
    • Malachi: They are tired of your talk, Isaac. I've shown them what I can do. Cut the woman down. Put Isaac in her place. We shall see how the Lord favors you.
    • Dr. Burt Stanton: What about Gatlin?
    • Diehl: Gatlin! There ain't nothin' in Gatlin.
    • Dr. Burt Stanton: What do you mean there ain't nothin' in Gatlin?
    • Diehl: Well, folks in Gatlin's got a religion. They don't like outsiders, and they probably don't have a phone there either.
    • Dr. Burt Stanton: Don't ever show up in my emergency room, buddy!
    • Job: I wish Isaac never came here.
    • Sarah: But he's always been here, just like He Who Walks Behind the Rows.
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Children of the Corn Trivia

  • What was the first movie Charlize Theron was in (although she was uncredited).  Answer »
  • In what movie do children kill off their parents, worship he who walks behind the rows and listen o a child preacher.  Answer »
  • BattleToad's Synonym Game - Name the movie whose title means the same as the clues. -Young People -Hailing From -Cobbed Vegetable  Answer »
  • Which of the following is not based on a novella in the Stephen King book, Different Seasons?  Answer »
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