Children of the Full Moon

Newlyweds Tom and Sarah set off for a small break in the country, their car spins out of control, and they end up seeking help in a nearby House, owned by the strange Mrs Ardoy.

Love it or hate it, Children of The Full Moon is without a doubt one of the more memorable episodes, it is loaded with atmosphere, it's decidedly eerie, but it doesn't take itself too seriously.

The game changer, the element that made this one a little different, for me, was the children, they're all so well presented and innocent looking, they somehow manage to unnerve.

One gripe, it's get another out of control car, it seems almost every other episode features a car that's gone out of control.

The makeup is a little on the raw side, so don't expect any kind of special effects, all I'd say is that the makeup team did a fine job with the resources they had to hand.

Hammer did Cannibalism, voodoo, and possessed children, as well as several other expected themes, it was kind of obvious that there'd be a werewolf theme, but it works well.

Christopher Cazenove and Celia Gregory are very good here, Diana Dors stole the show for me as Mrs Ardoy, what a glorious actress she was.

Thoroughly enjoyable, 8/10.

It was probably watching the Hammer House of Horror TV series as a kid in the 1980's that laid the foundations for my life long love affair for the genre. And this werewolf episode is one of the better ones. Yes, it's predictable and the make up is more old Universal than say The Howling or American Werewolf (which of course were made after this). But it is well acted, atmospheric, creepy and pretty shocking. Having children that are in fact monsters is always going to increase the scare factor. A nice little werewolf tale in well under an hour.

A young newly-wed couple with car trouble wind up at a creepy old house in a forest. It is inhabited by a woman and a large group of odd children. In the night, the couple experience strange dreams of werewolves…

'Children of the Full Moon' is instalment eight in the Hammer House of Horror TV series and is very possibly the scariest episode of them all. For my money it ties alongside 'Rude Awakening' and 'The Silent Scream' as being the best the series has to offer. Like a few other entries did, this one ticks a specific horror box, in this case werewolves. In some respects, this one is closer to the kind of output Hammer feature films tackled, in that it has more of a Gothic horror feel to it. It's the atmosphere that really gives this one plus points. The setting in the woods and the odd inhabitants of the house are really quite effectively sinister. All-in-all, this is a very decent entry in the werewolf sub-genre.

While driving in a lonely road with his wife Sarah (Celia Gregory) for their honeymoon in the cottage of his partner, the just-married lawyer Tom (Christopher Cazenove) has mechanical troubles with his car almost losing control. He parks the car and decides to walk in the woods with Sarah trying to find a telephone. They arrive in an isolated mansion and are welcomed by the bizarre Hungarian owner Mrs. Ardoy (Diana Dors), who lives with two dogs and eight foster children. Sarah and Tom are lodged to spend the night, when weird events happen. On the next morning, Tom is in a hospital recovering from a car wreck with Sarah and concludes that he had dreamed. When they return to their daily life, a pregnant Sarah has an intense sexual appetite and cooks only meat, while Tom is intrigued with his dream.

This episode of "Hammer House of Horror" has a promising premise, but in the end limits to be predictable and flawed. The first scene, with the blonde little girl in the woods with the dogs, discloses the secret of the plot. Tom has an inconsistent behavior, afraid while escaping from the beast, and climbing the window to investigate the surrounding area. Further, he initiates a discussion unarmed about werewolf with an odd woodsman with an ax in his hands. Anyway, this werewolf tale entertains. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "A Casa do Terror 3: Filhos da Lua Cheia" ("The Houses of Terror 3: Sons and Daughters of the Full Moon")

Note: On 04 Aug 2020, I saw this film again.

This is another excellent and well-loved episode of the Hammer series that illuminated our Saturday nights back in the autumn and winter of 1980.

This time, the story revolves around werewolves, and we're given a 'taster' in the pre-credit sequence of what's to come -as we see a young girl in the woods with a bloody mouth - surrounded by dead lambs!

The story then turns to a married couple, Tom & Sarah (ably played by Christopher Cazenove & Celia Gregory), whose car conks out on a remote country lane en route to their holiday cottage in the West Country.

Seeking help, they stumble across a desolate house, and are welcomed in by its owner Mrs Ardoy - excellently played by the wonderful Diana Dors. The house is also full of her family - 8 mysterious young children, whose odd behavior soon alerts the couple that maybe things here aren't quite right. When Tom attempts to retrieve the couple's baggage from their car, he returns terrified - saying he's been attacked by a large & viscous creature in the dark woods. Mrs Ardoy kindly lets the now rather anxious couple stay the night - but could it be their presence there isn't quite as arbitrary as they first thought...

This one plays out beautifully, as we soon realize the couple's benefactor has a bit more in store for them than her home-made red wine and mutton broth. There's a fabulously jumpy moment halfway through - whereby everything unravels for the couple and their fate appears to be sealed. The suspense and tension builds along nicely all the way through, and the viewer can soon sense that maybe things aren't possibly going to end too well for the beleaguered couple.

The house and children are delightfully creepy, and Diana Dors of course steals the show as the mysterious and devious Mrs Ardoy. The whole story is a real treat for Hammer fans who get plenty to howl about!