The Innocents (1961)

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A young governess for two children becomes convinced that the house and grounds are haunted. (imdb)

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Directed By: Jack Clayton

Written By: Henry James, Truman Capote, John Mortimer, William Archibald

Starring: Michael Redgrave, Deborah Kerr, Megs Jenkins, Pamela Franklin, Peter Wyngarde, Martin Stephens, Clytie Jessop, Isla Cameron, Eric Woodburn

Genres: Suspense/Thriller, Horror

Country: UK

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The Innocents belongs to 81 collections

1. Psychotronic Film and Video Guides (collaborative: moderated by Gregzilla - 40 stars)

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9. They Shoot Pictures 1,000 Greatest Films (2012 revision) (collaborative: moderated by PeaceAnarchy - 25 stars)

10. They Shoot Pictures 1,000 Greatest Films (2017 revision) (collaborative: moderated by iconogassed - 22 stars)

11. Based on a Book (collaborative: moderated by iconogassed - 21 stars)

12. Criterion Collection (Blu-ray) (collaborative: moderated by epiphany - 20 stars)

13. They Shoot Pictures' Recommended Viewing (collaborative: moderated by Cinephile - 19 stars)

14. Edgar Wright 1000 Favorite Movies (Aug 2016) (collaborative: moderated by Aron Ericson - 17 stars)

15. They Shoot Pictures 1,000 Greatest Films (2013 revision) (collaborative: moderated by rant1229 - 16 stars)

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17. They Shoot Pictures 1,000 Greatest Films (2020 revision) (public: djross - 14 stars)

18. Films available in HD (collaborative: moderated by kubricksucks - 13 stars)

19. Rue Morgue Magazine's 200 Alternative Horror Films You Need to See (public: jimmyjazz - 12 stars)

20. TimeOut's 1000 films to change your life (collaborative: moderated by ppinocchio - 11 stars)

21. Cinema Discusso Yearly Consensus (2008) (public: PeaceAnarchy - 10 stars)

22. The Gentlemen's Guide To Midnight Cinema Podcast (collaborative: moderated by Coheed - 9 stars)

23. Best of criticker: Suspense / Thriller (collaborative: moderated by avgcrtckr - 9 stars)

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25. Based On Novel (collaborative: moderated by tathiel - 7 stars)

26. Martin Scorsese's Top 11 Horror Movies of All Time (collaborative: moderated by Pickpocket - 7 stars)

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47. TimeOut Magazine's 100 best British films (collaborative: moderated by PeaceAnarchy - 3 stars)

48. 501 Movie Directors (collaborative: moderated by PeaceAnarchy - 3 stars)

49. UK Horror (collaborative: moderated by bizarre_eye - 3 stars)

50. Criterion Collection (Blu-ray and 4K) (public: PepeCamello - 3 stars)

51. filosofici (collaborative: moderated by Rubens - 2 stars)

52. Robert Eggers Favorite Horror Movies (collaborative: moderated by offlineoz - 2 stars)

53. BAFTA Award for Best British Film (Nominees) (collaborative: moderated by ellinikos - 1 star)

54. The Overlook Film Encyclopedia: Horror 1960s (collaborative: moderated by RoyalB - 1 star)

55. Tom & Bitches' Infinite Watchlist (collaborative - 1 star)

56. Photographed by Freddie Francis (collaborative: moderated by iconogassed - 1 star)

57. British director (collaborative: moderated by iconogassed - 1 star)

58. gork movies to get (public: gork - 1 star)

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60. Pickpocket inaccurate PSI (public: Pickpocket - 1 star)

61. Edgar Allan Poe Awards: Best Motion Picture (public: sianaa - 1 star)

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63. Cannes 1962 Official Selection (collaborative: moderated by djross)

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TCI | Percentile | Date Rated | # Stars (Reviews)

Stars	User	Rating
10	BeeDub	100 _97th
Like the original "The Haunting", this movie uses atmosphere, ambiguity, and a mentally unstable protagonist (rather than violence or blood) to build a palpable feeling of dread. Deborah Kerr is fantastic, and is matched by some of the best (and most disturbing) child acting in cinema history. One of the best horror movies of all time.
7	Mentaculus	89 _88th
Honestly, this is what films are about. Most everything is perfectly realized; the acting, costuming and cinematography are most superb, almost ridiculously so. Two narrative elements - the kiss and the ending - illuminate more about the supposed afterlife than many films combined. Arresting in all the right ways, and an absolute joy to watch.
6	KasperL	85 _93rd
Part chilling ghost tale, part tragic character study. The creepiness builds nicely. Teasingly deceptive and stylistically accomplished, James' classic is nigh-on impossible to get right - most of the novel consists of the governess' thoughts - but Clayton's adaptation is just about perfect. The ambiguity of the story, so cunningly concealed until the end by James, is present and correct.
5	Jimmy Suede	90 _93rd
Enchantingly creepy cinematography. Like 'The Haunting', this is the kind of horror movie I can just watch, and watch, and be completely satisfied with what is accomplished through composition, lighting and sound, rather than special effects. Also wonderfully effective is the fading between shots. Kerr and the kids are great, and the story is disturbing and ambiguous (but not overly so), and as much about the governess's instability as about the ghosts.
4	Barthalen	79 _77th
An old mansion with Ye Olde Dark Secrets. A wonderful buildup of tension. Great sound effects. A creepy (musicbox) melody. And yet it did not manage to deliver the goods in the second half. Maybe it was the somewhat spotty acting of the children or the very sudden ending. Still, the mystery is fun and some of the scenes were rather creepy in its simplicity. Maybe I just have had bad experiences with people standing around my house, looking at me. Always.. looking.. looking!! AIEEE!
4	paulofilmo	74 _90th
Tremendously creepy. The children are surreal enough to seem as though they affect the chiaroscuro; command the moon, or dim a candle.
4	wetwillies	85 _59th
A gothic horror film seen through the psychosexual dramatic tendencies of Ingmar Bergman. Brilliantly designed and utterly chilling, with great performances (especially Martin Stephens as the Norman Bates of children) and beautiful photography.
4	afx237vi	80 _84th
Remarkably creepy without ever resorting to cheap frights; what begins as a standard haunted house story soon turns into something altogether more disturbing. Beautiful black-and-white cinematography and an eerie musical accompaniment help add to the uneasy feeling you get watching this film. I was particularly freaked out by the use of mirrors and reflections... you constantly find yourself looking for things that aren't there... or are they?! Great acting by the kids, too.
4	MacSwell	85 _86th
The Innocents is wonderfully creepy, full of suspense and stylishly filmed, and thankfully it sticks with the bleak ending from Henry James' novella. There are top performances from Deborah Kerr and young Martin Stephens (acting far beyond his years), with the film's most noteworthy scenes depicting their unsettling relationship, and Jack Clayton's direction is excellent.
3	Icarus	90 _88th
Fabulous photography; the use of space gives depth to the already ambiguous mystery; and the movement of the camera offers a kind of floating, dreamlike quality that really heightens the sense of dread. The kids are perfectly cast and the film does a nice job sustaining the creepy vibe through to the end.
3	PerryStroika	73 _90th
A remarkably dense, delicate, layered piece of work. The deep focus cinematography, the sets and costumes, the acting (Kerr and the young Martin Stephens have some incredible interactions) and the superb direction are all perfectly integrated together. A highpoint in British cinema and movie ghost stories in general.
2	MartinTeller	82 _73rd
Quite an interesting slow-burn chiller that subverts expectations. Having not read the Henry James story, I honestly didn't see where it was going until near the end. The story brings in themes of corruption, domestic abuse, and sexual repression in both overt and subtle ways. The Freddie Francis cinematography is gloriously moody. A satisfyingly ambiguous ghost story.
2	twincinema	70 _53rd
Two long, uninterrupted shots of a young boy kissing an adult woman is the scariest thing about this film in 2020.
2	caiman	86 _82nd
The elegant use of shadows, flickering light, and dramatic deep focus shots makes this a beautiful movie to watch. It's also one of the creepiest movies I've seen. The scene with Kerr's character walking through the dark house with candlelight was spooky as all hell. And the plot kept me guessing the whole way through. They don't make horror movies like this anymore.
2	Suture Self	8 _81st
The Innocents succeeds because it convinces you the mansion and its grounds is a shared space for both the living and the dead; and the encounters between the two are chilling, especially compared to other movies of its time. Seems to be a significant influence on later movies like The Exorcist.
2	Stain	60 _47th
One of the many "quiet horror" efforts that doesn't really work
2	miss jesus	85 _86th
Beautiful, creepy, and gripping. It's difficult to discuss without spoilers, but the film never illuminates the underlying rules for the supernatural phenomena it's depicting, and the end is much farther from a hard resolution than modern filmgoers are accustomed to. Some viewers may find that makes it more mysterious, others will likely be frustrated.
2	glumpy_99	98 _95th
Magnificent, understated chiller benefits greatly from its psycho-sexual/incestual subtexts, as personified by Kerr's Kidman-like frigidity, a startlingly mature supporting performance from Stephens, and Redgrave, whose brief appearance beautifully sets up the rolling boil within Kerr's psyche. Unsettling staging (especially involving surprise appearances behind windows and doorways) only adds to this quite masterful horror film.
2	Lord Moe	88 _77th
Shadows lurk around every corner in this film and seem to engulf the borders of the frame. Like "The Haunting", the story of "The Innocents" is ambiguous and mysterious, opting to rely more on atmosphere and uncertainty. The film centers around secrets and I never truly felt like I was in on the secret. The cinematography by Freddie Francis sets the old house as if it exists outside of the rest of the world and creates a fear of being alone and most of all a fear of the dark.
2	damil	75 _81st
It's a quite effective one adaptation of the book. It's a ghost story, but also somewhat of a psychological thriller, with lots of elements left ambiguous. It's well-directed and rather creepy at times, especially concerning the children. Deborah Kerr was great in it too.
2	Paxton	82 _90th
Really effective ghost story involving two precocious children and their caretaker. The kiss scene is all kinds of awkward.
1	Moribunny	55 _44th
Slightly reminiscent of Hitchcock, not necessarily in a good way. The whole visual aspect of it is remarkably calculated and well-planned, and that's what's most effective, but something about the ongoings is all too prim and proper. As a mystery/horror film, it's a bit too tame and 'straight' to really mystify or horrify. I wish this film's slight sexual streak were much more pronounced. A decade later, William Friedkin took a similar script and totally nailed it in The Exorcist.
1	billythekyd	88 _73rd
Good storytelling relies always involves an element of surprise; good horror always involves shock. This movie has one surprising, shocking scene, and it involves a kiss rather than a death. When the little boy suddenly gives his governess a very adult kiss full on the lips, and she reacts with shock and horror, we learn something essential about the psychological underpinnings of this ghost story.
1	PeaceAnarchy	77 _51st
Chilling, at times, thanks mostly to the photography but at times other times the tone was too inconsistent. I liked it yet still felt somewhat underwhelmed.
1	tomoscaradog	59 _40th
Slow and pretty dated, but a whirlwind ending makes the film well worth sticking through.
1	graveyardtan	85 _71st
One of the most innovative and frightening horror films of the era, The Innocents revels in its own boundary pushing. The children are much better actors than Kerr, however, and the dialogue can be a bit wooden.
1	sellis	77 _52nd
A polished, black-white-and-silvery-grey horror thriller. The full impact of its characters and story seem to be lost due to its brisk pacing or the myriad of films influenced by it since its release (or both?). What leaves more of an impact, however, are its aesthetic flourishes - especially the sound, the textures and motifs of which feel almost lyrical in nature.
1	critique	98 _91st
This was probably one of the most dignified and beautifully-made horror films ever when it first came out. It holds up well, thanks to the period setting. There's some pretty kinky things going-on in this movie, as well. You can go either (or both) ways with this movie. It's all in the governess' sexually frusrated mind...or...there really are ghosts possessing the children and messing with the governess' head...either way, it's creepy as hell!
1	lupister	32 _31st
A good "wall paper" movie: some beautiful shots, but the main story is pretty damn dumb. There's way too little development on how anything works and how on earth the governess comes up with her theory and it's details.
1	SirRobbie	80 _81st
Simply beautiful. The cast was mesmerizing.
1	Prismatic	82 _61st
Great film about a repressed female pedophile.
1	newbiepsych	73 _38th
Old fashioned but still a pretty chilling haunted house story.
1	Roberta	78 _67th
As usual I find the book much better. In this case because it's more dubious, but this take has its moments. The governess is a very interesting character and can be interpreted in so many ways. This is based on the novel The Turn of The Screw which also inspired The Others with Nicole Kidman, which is a favorite of mine and, in my opinion, much more terrifying than this one.
1	CHR1S	65 _36th
Beautifully-made, but not creepy at all.
1	SeanBerndorff	60 _40th
Suspenseful at times for sure, but the plot doesn't offer much. Amazing use of sounds as an effective mean to scare (especially the children laugh), but it doesn't quite creep under your skin as it's supposed to - guess it's an age thing.
1	payens	82 _68th
Not as good as the book (but what would you expect?!), specially because the ambiguities are missing. But still a good movie, with a solid suspense and great cinematography. Kerr is very good as the governant.
1	Trooth	76 _73rd
I tell ya man, little kids are just evil. Always.
1	rttntomatoes	97 _92nd
Creepily atmospheric, The Innocents is a stylishly crafted, chilling British ghost tale with Deborah Kerr at her finest.
1	mwestcott	99 _90th
It could almost be a companion piece to The Haunting. In that the focus on psychological horror rather than violence elevates it far beyond it's own ambitions. No shock needed. Just pure incredibly painful suspense and atmosphere. All held together by a phenomenal performance from Deborah Kerr. The Innocents is another 1960s benchmark for the horror genre. Today's films could learn something from it. Sometimes less is more.
1	nobamba	80 _88th
Rewatch. Great B/W cinematography. It's one of my go-to scary movies for people who don't like horror. Nice creepy house film and children singing always make things more terrifying. Deborah Kerr recycled her outfits from The King and I. Must be nice to be so rich to have a country estate filled with junk that you don't bother to visit. Fav scene: the boy was MVP in the final possession scene with the face in the window.

Average Percentile 70.06% from 1154 Ratings