Wicked Little Things (2006)

Karen, Sarah, and Emma Tunney are all moving to a small town in Pennsylvania where, unknown to them, in 1913, a horrid mine accident trapped dozens of children alive, underground. But there's a problem. They're still alive.

Director:

J.S. Cardone

Writers:

Boaz Davidson (story), Ben Nedivi (screenplay)

Stars:

Lori Heuring, Scout Taylor-Compton, Chloë Grace Moretz

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Lori Heuring	...	Karen
Scout Taylor-Compton	...	Sarah
Chloë Grace Moretz	...	Emma
Geoffrey Lewis	...	Harold
Ben Cross	...	Aaron Hanks
Craig Vye	...	Tim
Chris Jamba	...	Sean
Julie Rogers	...	Lisa
Martin McDougall	...	Mr. Carlton
Michael McCoy	...	Walter
Velizar Binev	...	Bull Foreman
Helia Grekova	...	Mary
George Zlatarev	...	Explosives Captain
Atanas Srebrev	...	Russel
Vladimir Mihailov	...	Trevor (as Vladimir Mihaylov)

Storyline

In 1913, in Carlton Mine, Addytown, Pennsylvania, the cruel owner of a mine uses poor children in the exploration and after an explosion, a group of children is buried alive. On the present days, Karen Tunny has just lost her husband after a long period of terminal disease when the family savings have been spent in the treatment. Without any money, she moves with her daughters Sarah and Emma to an old house in the mountains that belonged to her husband. Karen is advised by her neighbors to stay at home in the night, and Sarah hears that there are zombies in the area. When Emma becomes friend of Mary, he mother believes she is an imaginary friend. However, when Sarah's friends are attacked and eaten alive by zombie children and Emma vanishes, Karen and Sarah chase her nearby the mine.

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Plot Keywords:

buried alive | zombie | explosion | little sister | storekeeper | 

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Taglines:

Prey for them

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Genres:

Drama | Horror

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong horror violence and gore, language, and some teen drug and alcohol use

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 November 2006 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Children

Filming Locations:

New Boyana Film Studios, Sofia, Bulgaria

Company Credits

Production Co:

Millennium Films, Höger Human Service Medien & Personal GmbH, Nu Image Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

94 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Tobe Hooper was initially attached to direct the film.

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Goofs

This film is set in Pennsylvania. All of the vehicles featured in this film have Pennsylvania license plates on the front and rear bumpers. In reality, all vehicles registered in the state only have one license plate and they are placed on the rear bumper.

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Quotes

Aaron Hanks: As you sow, so shall you reap!

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Connections

References Sleepy Hollow (1999)

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Soundtracks

"Hush, Little Children"
Traditional
Arranged by Timothy S. Jones
Published by Brevity Music, Inc.(BMI)
Courtesy of Brevity Music, Inc.

User Reviews

A Derivative Horror Film: Little Imagination, Little Homage

A young widow and her two daughters move to a new house in a Pennsylvanian mountain town. Soon, her daughter's imaginary friend starts to let the family know she's just a little too real.

This movie was enjoyable. I liked the characters (especially the older daughter and the neighbor Hanks) and the situations. The atmosphere was perfect and dark, as one would expect from a movie about zombies roaming through the woods. And the pacing was decent, revealing the story in a good speed.

The gore was decent: not over-the-top, but not ignored. Entrails are eaten and heads are smashed in. Sure, it's not as cool as "Necromantic" or "Anthropophagus", but it's alright. (Actually, since most of the film was so blah and standard fare, this Goldilocks level of gore should be no surprise.) Some blood scenes were welcome and I could have used more.

But this film is also riddled with countless clichés. An imaginary friend who might be real. Single mom with daughters moves to new town. Vehicles that won't start. Tripping in the middle of a running scene. I could probably go on.

Some good can be said. Chloe Moretz is really blossoming into a supreme actress, and this early work deserves to be seen. Scout Taylor-Compton is another genre favorite. And the DVD has audio commentary with director J. S. Cardone and actress Lori Heuring (though I haven't listened to it yet), so that's an extra treat for those who do enjoy the film.

I found the movie too "polished": the target seemed to be Hollywood and teenage girls, rather than those who would go to see a film festival called "8 Films to Die For" (which is where I saw this). The dirty, gritty scenes were just too clean. Sure, the movie was dark... but dark in a very sanitary way. (There are better ways to word this, but I don't know what they are.) If you don't see this film, that's fine. More than likely it will fade into the background and within a few years won't even be found on video store shelves. You'll see it on Netflix and be like "what is this?", but don't bother ordering it... for all the film lacks, it will probably lack even more in a few years as it becomes stale (if it hasn't already).