Screenhead

I will admit, before I segue into today’s movie review, the 2009 remake of Children of the Corn of which Anchor Bay provided a copy, that it’s been a while since I last saw the original Children of the Corn, a movie that featured a young Sigourney Weaver.

But the remake, while not really how I remember much of it, did at least manage not to suck.

Children of the Corn takes us back to Gatlin, Nebraska (which makes it doubly ironic that this was shot entirely in Iowa) where a group of children live.  This group of children has killed off all the adults in town , as directed by their theocratic leader, a tiny preacher in short pants by the name of Isaac.  Isaac, aided and abetted by his sociopathic cohort Malachi, control the town full of children with an iron fist.  But when outsiders appear in Gatlin, this may be a test for the children–but will they pass?

Now, there are SIGNIFICANT differences here between the remake and the original.  The remake, for example, casts Burt as an insane Vietnam veteran who runs amok and kills a few kids by the time he’s done.  Isaac, in this movie, is not the stubby shrieking psychotic personality he was, but is now a young preacher that seems almost placid in his duties.  For those of you who love the original and can’t abide any changes, don’t even bother watching this one.  It won’t be the same movie, though it will be within the same ballpark.

However, there do at least seem to be more parallels between this version and the original Stephen King short story, so that’s a very definite plus.

The remake is good, just not in the same way as the original.  Fans of the original who don’t mind a few changes will likely be just fine with the new one.

The Screenhead Ten Scale, meanwhile, is fairly forgiving of this reasonable facsimile and hands it a seven out of ten for being a satisfying watch, if not exactly respectful of the original canon.

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