¿Quién puede matar a un niño? (1976)

Director:

Narciso Ibáñez Serrador

Writers:

Juan José Plans (novel)
Narciso Ibáñez Serrador (screenplay)

Release Date:

June 1978 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Suddenly . . . They were the only adults left alive on the island.

Plot:

A couple of English tourists arrive on an island where all the children have gone crazy and are murdering the adults.

Plot Keywords:

Children | Island | Boat | Murder | Dead Woman Stripped

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Lewis Fiander	...	Tom
Prunella Ransome	...	Evelyn
Antonio Iranzo	...	Father of Crying Girl
Miguel Narros	...	Guardacostas 1
María Luisa Arias		(as Mª Luisa Arias)
Marisa Porcel
Juan Cazalilla
Luis Ciges	...	Enrique Amorós - the Postman
Antonio Canal
Aparicio Rivero
Fabián Conde	...	Camera shop clerk
Andrès Gomez		(as Andrés Gómez)
Maria Druille	...	Child (Crying daughter)
Lourdes De La Camara	...	Child (Lourdes) (as Lourdes de la Cámara)
Roberto Nauta	...	Child

Also Known As:

Death is Child's Play (UK)
Island of Death (UK) (video title)
Island of the Damned (USA)
Los niños (Spain) (short title)
Lucifer's Curse (USA)
The Killer's Playground
Trapped (USA)
Who Can Kill a Child? (International: English title)
Would You Kill a Child? (UK)

Runtime:

Argentina:107 min (Mar del Plata Film Festival) | Australia:90 min | Spain:100 min (approx) | USA:111 min (DVD)

Country:

Spain

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:(Banned) (1977) | UK:X (1976) | Argentina:18 (re-rating) (1982) (cut) | Argentina:X (original rating) | Argentina:16 (re-rating) (2003) (uncut) | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Germany:18 (re-rating) (2009) | Italy:T (DVD) | Australia:M | France:-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:R | Spain:18 | Iceland:(Banned)

Filming Locations:

Almuñécar, Granada, Andalucía, Spain

Company:

Penta Films

Trivia:

The film was released simultaneously as "Would You Kill a Child?" and "Death is Child's Play" in the UK. Similarly, American International Pictures released the film as "Trapped!" and "Island of the Damned" simultaneously in the USA.

Quotes:

Evelyn: [to Tom] There is something wrong on this island and you're trying to keep it from me. If there is something wrong, then whatever it is, I think we should leave.

Movie Connections:

References The Birds (1963)

frighteningly original

I came across this movie, in a second-hand shop, about 3 years ago (i paid 99 pence for it!) and i've got to tell everyone how good this movie is. The movie opens in a typical 70's fashion, lush music and pretty scenery, whilst building a slow start. The couple in this movie, are played very well (probably because, they are unknown actors) and their reactions to these horrific situations are quite realistic.

Anyway, the basic plot is this, Whilst travelling in spain, a married couple (who VERY fortunetly for them, have left their child at home) hire a boat, and sail off to a little island, that the husband has visited before. When they arrive, the island is practically deserted, except for creepy looking children. The couple think up all the excuses, that you or i would think of, MAYBE THERES SOME FESTIVAL ? MAYBE THE ADULTS ARE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE ISLAND AS SOME FORM OF RITUAL? These questions (all wrong) exploit our usual under-developed knowledge of other countries and their people, we invent things, for when, we simply do not understand them.

As it turns out, the children have taken over the island, and the couple end up running for their lives. I won't give away the ending to this fine movie. But let's just say that it's up there with THE WICKER MAN.

A few nice touches in this movie are the fact that the children spread their anti-social disease, merely by contact. And also the horrificness of a unborn baby attacking the mother. I have read in some other magazines, that the original print of this movie, runs well into 2 hours, and that the director cut out the sub-plot of the childrens actions deriving from some spannish war atrocities committed on children.......mmmm, very interesting!

Big lee gives this movie 10 out of 10