Product Details

• Actors: Deborah Kerr, Peter Wyngarde, Megs Jenkins, Michael Redgrave, Martin Stephens
• Directors: Jack Clayton
• Writers: Henry James, John Mortimer, Truman Capote, William Archibald
• Producers: Jack Clayton, Albert Fennell
• Format: Widescreen, Anamorphic, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo), Spanish (Dolby Digital 1.0)
• Subtitles: English, Spanish
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: Unrated
• Studio: 20th Century Fox
• DVD Release Date: September 6, 2005
• Run Time: 100 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (160 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0009X75EC
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #13,076 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "The Innocents" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Studio: Tcfhe Release Date: 09/09/2008

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

79 of 85 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Classic, Inspired and Terrifying, January 29, 2002

By 

Mad Dog (Canada) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Innocents [VHS] (VHS Tape)

There have been several adaptations of The Turn Of The Screw, but none as effective as this 1961 gem. Working on the axiom that less-is-more, Clayton shows remarkable and deliberate restraint, and it pays off.

Kerr plays governess to two children one of which may or may not be the victim of possession. Anything more would be giving it away.

Certainly in the top ten list of Horror/Ghost story films of all time, The Innocents compares favorably with "The Haunting" (the original '63 version). Kerr's spectral visions are as solid as the furniture -- they're just harder to find, and lot scarier; the film is an example of how little one needs to resort to SPFX when one knows how to make drama.

On the down side the original was photographed in lush monochrome cinemascope, and the only version released to date (that I'm aware of) is pan-an-scan, so you're missing about 40% of the image.

Still, even in this limited form, "The Innocents" is as scary as anything that's come out of Hollywood inthe last twenty years (er, I mean deliberately scarey -- the remake of The Haunting was scarey for all the wrong reasons).

Please let there be a DVD soon!

109 of 124 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An example of what truly gifted child actors are capable of, March 6, 2003

By 

Schuyler V. Johnson (Lake Worth, FL USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Innocents [VHS] (VHS Tape)

I saw this when it first came out, and the performances by the children, Miles and Flora, show acting skills far beyond their years. Calling Ms. Kerr, the governess, "Miss Giddons dear" and faintly mocking tones, they dominate the movie; their haunting and possession by the dead servants, Quint and Miss Jessel, are something to see. One of the scenes that scared me the most was the one where Flora is dancing, in the little stone gazebo, to the haunting music box theme, by the lake, and the dead Miss Jessel appearing, watching her from the middle of the lake, seemingly suspended on some water plants, looking sad in her black mourning dress. Flora seems to be dancing for her, and the effect is chilling. The entire movie has a neverending undercurrent of terror, albeit quiet terror, and you never know, literally, what is around the next corner of the vast house. Quint appears to Miss Giddons, outside a window, during a game of hide and go seek, and Miss Jessel glides eerily by a hallway, in her requisite black mourning dress. The housekeeper, Mrs. Gross, stands by the children and refuses to believe they are anything less than "innocent", while Miss Giddons adopts a more pragmatic (and accurate) view of how damaged and under the influence of these two entities the two children really are. Miss Giddons has a dramatic showdown with Flora, by forcing her to acknowledge the existence of Miss Jessel in the scene by the lake, and afterwards the traumatized Flora is taken away by the housekeeper and Miss Giddons is left alone in the house with Miles. The final scene was, and is, still shocking even by today's standards, as Miss Giddons kisses the dead child, Miles, on the mouth, with disturbing passion, but the scene fits perfectly into the story and underscores the complicated and turbulent relationship Miss Giddons has with the children, expecially young Miles. Filmed on one of those incredibly sumptuous estates that are so plentiful in England, the cinematography is superb, and this really should be viewed on DVD, with the sharpness and clarity of the original.

25 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best horror film ever made...Deborah Kerr is superb., June 25, 2003

By 

Robert J. Willert (LOS ANGELES, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Innocents [VHS] (VHS Tape)

There have been some great horror films in the 20th century. Hitchcock was responsible for probably a half dozen himself. The more recent "The Others" comes to mind, and "The Sixth Sense". But nothing compares to Henry James' tale of horror in Turn of the Screw, aptly named THE INNOCENTS for film. Deborah Kerr is perfectly cast as the governess of two children who seem to be possessed by two tragic ghostly figures that only the governess can see. Creepy, haunting, a movie you probably don't want to watch alone, though I have. Great cast. Director Jack Clayton has the perfect touch. Though I am giving the film itself 5 stars, I wouldn't give the VHS version a high mark at all. The audience is forced to watch this magnificent film in the dreadful 'full screen' mode. All we see are mouths and noses at times. If the studio doesn't want to release the film on DVD, at least bring out a special 'wide screen' VHS version so we can see the movie as it should be seen. Or, better yet, release THE INNOCENTS on DVD. It deserves as much attention as most classics.