Shudder Saturday: The Child (1977)

The first of only a few films written by Robert Lucas, and the only film directed by Robert Voskanian, The Child is one of those movies that ends up making a stronger impression nowadays simply due to the fact that it has somehow endured long enough to be re-appraised by some. It's crudely made, very strange, and not that good. But that doesn't mean you'll resent the relatively short amount of time that you spend watching it.

Laurel Barnett plays Alicianne Del Mar, a new housekeeper for an employer named Nordon (Frank Janson). Nordon lives with his older son, Len (Richard Hanners), and his daughter, Rosalie (Rosalie Cole). It soon becomes clear that Rosalie is a bit strange, to put it mildly, and she keeps going on about her friends. She also likes to visit the local graveyard. Perhaps aiming to avenge her dead mother, or perhaps just being childish and playful, Rosalie eventually starts to terrify, and harm, some of the people around her. It's impossible to tell whether or not Alicianne will figure everything out in time to get herself to safety.

I'm not sure what's worse here, the acting from some of the main cast members or the clunky script. I'm tempted to go with the former, because Lucas has at least written something which focuses on atmosphere and scares ahead of dialogue. With some more money and resources, Voskanian could have made a very effective film in line with his main inspiration, Night Of The Living Dead. The central idea is certainly interesting enough, and the finale hints at how things could have played out in a number of different set-pieces. 

Barnett isn't terrible in her role, although she's not great either. But she's the best of a bad bunch, when it comes to the central quartet. Cole has that awkward way some children act, trying to overdo the earnestness and emotion in every line, so it helps that her moments of dialogue aren't too numerous. Janson is so-so as the typical patriarch, and someone who knows more than he is letting on, while Hanners is pretty weak as Len, particularly when given more to do in the third act. Ruth Ballan is quite good as an elderly woman who lives quite close to the Nordon house, but she's not given enough screentime.

There's an ugliness to the visuals, there's nothing memorable at any point in the music by Rob Wallace, and the plotting leaves the whole film to sag in between the few more impressive moments, but I still ended up liking this. It brings to mind a mix of other, better, movies, but it blends ideas together in a way that leaves it feeling unique, especially when compared to hundreds of other horror movies you could pick out from the past five decades. Is that strangeness, that one of a kind feeling, enough to make you feel as if you can overlook some of the failings? It was for me, and I hope that others give it a try.

6/10

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