The Innocents (1961)

How sad is this?

Highly Overrated But Still Good

It's an amazing and heartbreaking story.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Just saw it in dvd. Classic scary film where we wonder if we have ghosts or insanity. Advanced cinematography for the time. Great acting by all.

My sister took me at about ten years of age to see this as a play on Broadway, starring Beatrice Straight. I'm certain that she could not have been aware of how frightening this play would be for a ten year old. In plain words, it scared the be jabbers out of me. I was leery of being alone in a darkened apartment for years afterward. We can now jump forward a bunch of years to the winter of 1961. By this time, I was married and in the service. I was still in training , in Army Administration School at Ft Jackson, SC. since this was a Training Base, it emptied out during the Christmas Holiday, and most of us went home for the ten days between Christmas and New Years. I hadn't been able to see my new wife for six weeks, so I got myself home ASAP. WE went to several first run films, while we relaxed for the time I was home. One was THE INNOCENTS, now starring Miss Kerr and Michael Redgrave. Even though I was an adult and in the army, the story and characters had lost none of it power to still scare the be jabbers out of me. This film has been shown uncut on several cable channels and TMC and I never could bring myself to watch it again. It's still SCARY, SCARY, THE SCARIEST to me. There have only been two films in my close to eighty years that have affected me in this manner. THE INNOCENTS and HITCHCOCK'S masterwork, PSYCHO. If you do not wish the be jabbers scared out of you. stay away from these two films.

Based on the 1898 novella "The Turn of the Screw" by Henry James, this is a superb psychological / supernatural horror film. I have not read the original story but I understand that it sticks quite closely to it. The film is imbued with a wonderful sense of tension caused not so much by the admittedly very effective and memorable visuals but by the ambiguity regarding the exact nature of the events being portrayed, specifically whether they have a natural or a supernatural origin. It has a first rate script by William Archibald, Truman Capote and John Mortimer and the excellent direction of Jack Clayton is certainly up to the task. Much of the credit for the film's atmosphere has to go to the beautiful black and white cinematography of Freddie Francis, a master of his craft and a great director in his own right. I was particularly impressed the use of deep focus on numerous occasions and the interaction of light and shadow throughout the film.The film stars Deborah Kerr, probably my favourite actress of her generation, in an utterly fantastic performance as the fascinating character Miss Giddens. In spite of the fact that she has no previous experience, she is hired to be the governess of the orphans Miles and Flora by their emotionally distant uncle, who would rather spend his time cavorting in London and elsewhere than raise his charges. Miss Giddens loves children and looks forward to bonding with Miles and Flora over the course of many years but almost as soon as she arrives at the luxurious country estate Bly, strange things start to happen. She hears voices and she sees figures that cannot possibly be there and which no one else seems to be able to see. The figures in question are a man and a woman which Miss Giddens believes to be the ghosts of her predecessor Miss Jessel and the uncle's valet Peter Quint. She learns from the housekeeper Mrs. Grose that the two of them were lovers and were not great believers in discretion since their behaviour left very little to the imagination of the other servants and possibly even Miles and Flora. After Quint's death, Miss Jessel fell into a deep depression and committed suicide. Since Miles followed Quint around like a puppy and Miss Jessel was a mother figure to Flora, Miss Giddens concludes that both their strange behaviour and her experiences are being caused by Quint and Jessel taking control of the children. However, Mrs. Grose is rather less convinced.One of the major reasons why I found the film so effective is that I could never make up my mind as to whether Miss Giddens was entirely correct about Bly being haunted by the ghosts of dead servants or whether she is insane. There is ample evidence to support both scenarios but whenever I thought that I had decided on one of them, something else happened to make me reconsider. For instance, in the film's most frightening scene, Miss Giddens sees Quint at the window and his cold, piercing eyes make quite an impression on her. However, she had discovered his photograph in the attic only minutes earlier so he was certainly on her mind. She thought that he was the man that she had seen on top of the tower earlier but his face was not clearly seen so her mind may have been filling in the blanks. On the other hand, the children are very, very odd and there are a few moments where I thought that the supernatural explanation was the more likely one. Miles in particular is a rather disturbing child who is far too mature for his age, complimenting Miss Giddens in a very flirtatious manner and even giving her an inappropriate kiss on the lips at one point. As Miss Giddens thought, he may be possessed by Quint's ghost. Then again, it may be because he spent so much time with Quint when he was alive and he is imitating his inappropriate behaviour since he has no idea how to act around women. Flora is the more normal of the two children, comparatively speaking, but there are numerous moments in which it seems likely that she is in contact with or even possessed by Jessel's ghost. While the film most certainly belongs to Deborah Kerr, it has a strong supporting cast. Martin Stephens, presumably cast based on the strength of his performance as David Zellaby in "Village of the Damned" (1960), is incredibly creepy as Miles and it is easy to see why Miss Giddens suggests that there is something otherworldly about him. Pamela Franklin manages to be both sweet and a little off-putting as Flora. Her innocent face may hide a mind that has been corrupted by either natural or supernatural forces. Peter Wyngarde does not have any dialogue but he makes an unforgettable impression as Quint in the aforementioned window scene. Megs Jenkins is excellent as Mrs. Grose, who becomes increasingly concerned about Miss Giddens' mental health as the film progresses and perhaps with good reason. Michael Redgrave has a great cameo as the uncle, who is mentioned throughout the film but only actually appears in the opening scene. I think that Mrs. Grose and the uncle are the only characters whose roles are entirely straightforward, incidentally.Overall, this is an engrossing, thought-provoking and incredibly clever horror film which I have not been able to stop thinking about since I watched it. The title was very well chosen as it is unclear who exactly it refers to, which is rather appropriate under the circumstances.

Yes. This 1961 Supernatural-Thriller certainly had its fair share of good points, as well as its not so good points.The one thing that really impressed me about this particular ghost story was that it delivered its eerie, little story quite effectively without spilling even a single drop of blood.I think that, alone, earns The Innocents some rightful and respectful recognition in the realm of "horror". 'Cause, even way back in 1961, a fright flick could never be expected to hold the viewer's rapt attention without the necessity of blood & gore.Anyways - With strong performances given by all of its principal cast members, I thought that the overall subtlety of The Innocents' sinister and nightmarish tale was quite impressive. And I wasn't in the least bit disappointed with this supernatural story as it slowly, but surely, unravelled its mystery of mounting madness that seemed to rise from the depths of a very dark and curious netherworld.