The Space Children

1958

Action / Sci-Fi

7
Rotten Tomatoes Critics - Rotten 24% · 2 reviews
Rotten Tomatoes Audience - Spilled 24%
IMDb Rating 4.3/10 10 1506 1.5K

trailer park military base world peace rocket family relationships alien

Plot summary

A glowing brain-like creature arrives on a beach near a rocket test site via a teleportation beam. The alien communicates telepathically with the children of scientists. The kids start doing the alien's bidding as the adults try to find out what's happening to their unruly offspring.

Director

Jack Arnold Photo
Jack Arnold

Top cast

Larry Pennell Photo
Larry Pennell as Major Thomas
Vera Marshe Photo
Vera Marshe as Frieda Johnson
Ray Walker Photo
Ray Walker as Reporter Richard Lloyd
Eilene Janssen Photo
Eilene Janssen as Phyllis Manley
720p.BluRay 1080p.BluRay
487.52 MB
1280*694
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 9 min
Seeds ...
1.03 GB
1920*1040
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 9 min
Seeds 2

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by zetes 5 / 10

Bad, though not THAT bad

This film has an abysmal 2.7 rating on IMDb. It's not really that bad, but it is a pretty big disappointment coming from a director who made The Incredible Shrinking Man the year before. This is a smaller, less ambitious film for sure. A meteor lands in a cave on a beach and its alien essence possesses a bunch of children (I think - it's kind of vague what kind of influence the thing has on the children) who then help it stop their fathers from launching a nuclear warhead into space. It's pretty cheesy, but not badly acted for this kind of movie (the kids in particular are far from awful). The sets are very cheap looking. At one point a flashing light causes the shadows of the actors to appear on the matte painting of the sky in the background. It's more forgettable than detestable.
Reviewed by Coventry 4 / 10

The Big Jack Arnold interview!

Hi, this is your horror correspondent Coventry bringing you an exclusive interview with Jack Arnold! He's the guy who directed some of the most memorable horror landmarks of the 1950's, like "Tarantula", "Creature from the Black Lagoon" and "The Incredible Shrinking Man", but he also directed … THIS movie! "The Space Children" is a completely obscure Sci-Fi movie that only has a rating 2.2 out of 10 on this famous movie website. And it's not like he made this movie at the very beginning of his career or at the end. No, Jack Arnold made this film right after all the aforementioned winners; in the year 1958. More than enough reasons to have a little chat with the director, if you ask me… (Coventry): "What exactly went wrong with "The Space Children", Mr. Arnold? (J. Arnold): Hmm (panting) … Well yes, hmm, I clearly hadn't got any budget to work with here. That is noticeable straight from the opening credits already, and from there onwards it just got worse! I had to work with obvious cardboard set pieces and lousy special effects. (Coventry): Yes, indeed… But there are also a lot of problems with the script. A great director like yourself should know a good script when he sees one or at least have the talent to turn a mediocre plot in a worthwhile movie? (J. Arnold) Ha… well … (mumbling) I personally saw some good potential in the story of an extraterrestrial stone crashing on earth and "hypnotizing" the children. And I still think that I'm right, by the way. If my movie would have been slightly better, it would have been a bigger classic than "Village of the Damned", which has a similar theme and got released two years later. (Coventry): Maybe, but … (J. Arnold) Oh, and another thing, "The Space Children" does undeniably contain a handful of highly effective sequences! For example when the leader of the kids, you know the 12-year-old James Dean wannabe, hypnotizes two truck drivers into parking their vehicles on the beach! Or when he takes away the scientists' ability to speech! Or when all children stand in front of the glowing stone and the camera zooms in on all their faces separately! I think I'm entitled to say there's some quality and ominous atmosphere in all of those sequences. (Coventry): I agree, Mr Arnold, but those are merely isolated moments that point out your personal craftsmanship. You can't really deny that "The Space Children" is an overall tame and unexciting Sci-Fi story. (J. Arnold): It's true that are long periods of boredom in the film, I admit, and that some of the overly talkative scenes could easily have been cut on the editing table, but there just weren't any opportunities to put spectacle or suspense in a movie that constantly features children! If I would have shown footage in which children are harmed, I can forget about a career in the film industry. It had to remain child-friendly at all costs. (Coventry): I thought it was childish rather than child- friendly, but that's one man's opinion, of course. One more question, if you'll allow me, would you really recommend "The Space Children" to your fans? (J. Arnold): Well, in all honesty and I know I'm speaking against my own financial interest here, there are many 50's movies that you should see before "The Space Children". It's nowhere near a classic, or even a good and memorable movie for that matter. But still, if you've seen everything else already and if you're in the mood for some charming and typically cute Sci-Fi, you won't regret choosing this movie. (Coventry): Thank you so much, Mr. Arnold.
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