I've never read The Turn of the Screw, but supposedly The Nightcomers is a prequel to that classic story. It explains the backstory of the two adolescent children as they welcome in a new governess - but you'll be very surprised as to what kind of trouble they got up to. I was pretty shocked that the two children's parents allowed them to act in this film. Making young kids act in sexually damaging situations before an audience, with the explanation of "it's just pretend," is child abuse, in my book. Children can never get over abuse of that nature, and a "career" is never a good price to pay for a sexually abused childhood.
Why am I censuring this movie so harshly? Because the two kids, Christopher Ellis and Verna Harvey, spy on the courtship of their governess and the groundskeeper. They think they'll see a cute romance, but instead they witness kinky sex and violence. Since they're too young to understand what's going on, they think it's a funny game and decide to imitate what they saw during afternoon playtime.
I get the point of the story: adults don't realize the effect they have on children, and harmless idolatry can end up disastrous. If this were a novel, it would have been easier for me to take, but seeing two kids getting permanently damaged was pretty upsetting. However, if you like the idea of crossing The Bad Seed with Last Tango in Paris, you'll be in a better position to like this 1970s flick.
Kiddy Warning: Obviously, you have control over your own children. However, due to sex scenes and upsetting scenes involving children, I wouldn't let my kids watch it.
Why am I censuring this movie so harshly? Because the two kids, Christopher Ellis and Verna Harvey, spy on the courtship of their governess and the groundskeeper. They think they'll see a cute romance, but instead they witness kinky sex and violence. Since they're too young to understand what's going on, they think it's a funny game and decide to imitate what they saw during afternoon playtime.
I get the point of the story: adults don't realize the effect they have on children, and harmless idolatry can end up disastrous. If this were a novel, it would have been easier for me to take, but seeing two kids getting permanently damaged was pretty upsetting. However, if you like the idea of crossing The Bad Seed with Last Tango in Paris, you'll be in a better position to like this 1970s flick.
Kiddy Warning: Obviously, you have control over your own children. However, due to sex scenes and upsetting scenes involving children, I wouldn't let my kids watch it.