Synopsis:
After sending their 11-year-old son (Daniel Holzman) to stay with a family friend (William Wellman, Jr.), a man (John Ryan) and his wife (Sharon Farrell) go to the hospital so Farrell can give birth to their second child — but things quickly go awry with Farrell’s unusual mutant infant, who turns out to be murderously self-protective, and kills numerous people while seeking the security of its own home.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Evil Kids
• Horror Films
• Larry Cohen Films
• Living Nightmare
• Mutant Monsters

Response to Peary’s Review:
Peary writes that this “cleverly written and directed” cult film by Larry Cohen is “at once terrifying and repugnant.” He asserts that it “deals with the relevant issue of doctors indiscriminately giving women unsafe drugs, but only so it can use the shameful baby-as-monster premise, which Cohen exploits to the nth degree.” I disagree that Cohen’s conception of a mutant baby on a rampage is “shameful”, given that his film — while silly, sloppy, often too slow, and badly made in some ways (how can the baby kill and wreak havoc so quickly?!) — carries multiple layers of meaning and subtext within its surprisingly complex storyline. Peary concedes that “at least Cohen has us rooting for the baby by [the] film’s end”, which hints at the fact that a form of connection has been made by those closest to the baby — but most definitively not by the host of outside actors who have ulterior motives for wanting the creature destroyed (ranging from covering up inhumane medical practices to wanting to study the infant).

Peary points out that Ryan — a classically trained actor who spent many years of his career on stage — gives a “surprisingly fine performance”; indeed, he elevates the entire script up a notch, particularly during the touching moments near the end of the film. I like how the L.A. River Basin is used as a metaphorical watery womb for Ryan and his baby to bond within and emerge from (albeit to a fatally hostile crowd). Equally sympathetic and nuanced is Farrell as the creature’s mother, who knows something is “not right” but is ignored by the men-in-power around her throughout her pregnancy, during the birth process, and after her baby has gone missing. I agree with Cohen’s choice to not show much of Rick Baker’s mutant baby design, instead hinting at Its demonic appearance through quick flashes without dwelling on It; appropriately enough, It exists primarily in the shadows. (Cohen has cited Val Lewton’s horror films as an influence, and this makes sense.)

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

• John Ryan as Frank Davis
  
• Sharon Farrell as Lenore Davis
  
• Good use of Los Angeles locales (including the L.A. River Basin)
  
• Rick Baker’s special effects and make-up work
  
• Bernard Herrmann’s score

Must See?
Yes, as an unusual cult film.

Categories

• Cult Movie

Links:

• IMDb entry
• TCM Article
• And You Call Yourself a Scientist Review
• Moria Review