The Children Review

Fans of W∆Z can expect more grisly gore in this Brit-set horror from director Tom Shankland. It’s Christmas, and Elaine (Eva Birthistle) arrives at her sister’s rural home with family in tow. The adults are too busy raiding the drinks cabinet to notice that their children are behaving strangely — until a series of nasty events indicates their offspring are turning against them. Meanwhile, rebellious teen Casey (Hannah Tointon) is a step ahead and tries to warn of the threat at hand. Borrowing liberally from classic evil-children horrors, the gruesome deaths are inventive, but this is more about killer set-pieces than a satisfying story. A respectable genre outing.