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Beware: Children at Play

  • 1989
  • R
  • 1h 34m
IMDb RATING
4.3/10
1.6K
YOUR RATING
Brett Ambler in Beware: Children at Play (1989)
Dark ComedyFolk HorrorComedyCrimeHorrorThriller

A mentally-disturbed teenager kidnaps and brainwashes children into cannibalistic psychopaths - but not when the adults intervene.A mentally-disturbed teenager kidnaps and brainwashes children into cannibalistic psychopaths - but not when the adults intervene.A mentally-disturbed teenager kidnaps and brainwashes children into cannibalistic psychopaths - but not when the adults intervene.

  • Director
    • Mik Cribben
  • Writer
    • Fred Scharkey
  • Stars
    • Michael Robertson
    • Rich Hamilton
    • Robin Lilly
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    4.3/10
    1.6K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Mik Cribben
    • Writer
      • Fred Scharkey
    • Stars
      • Michael Robertson
      • Rich Hamilton
      • Robin Lilly
    • 45User reviews
    • 22Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Videos1

    Beware! Children at Play
    Trailer 1:36
    Beware! Children at Play

    Photos24

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    Top cast82

    Edit
    Michael Robertson
    Michael Robertson
    • John DeWolfe
    Rich Hamilton
    • Sheriff Ross Carr
    Robin Lilly
    • Cleo Carr
    Lori Romero
    • Julia DeWolfe
    • (as Lori Tirgrath)
    Jamie Krause
    • Kara DeWolfe
    Sunshine Barrett
    • Mary Rose Carr
    Mark Diekman
    • Luke Domain
    Mik Cribben
    • Farmer Isac Braun
    Susann Chandler
    • Mrs. Mary Braun
    Herb Klinger
    • Franklin Ludwig
    Lauren Cloud
    • Dale Hawthorn
    Lorna Courtney
    • Amy Carr…
    Danny McClaughlin
    • Grendel…
    Stephanie Jaworski
    • Alice Allegari
    Lee Kayman
    • Josiah Modicah
    Bernard Hocke
    Bernard Hocke
    • Professor Randall
    Eric Tonken
    • Young Glenn Randall
    Rick Bitzelberger
    • Dr. Fish
    • Director
      • Mik Cribben
    • Writer
      • Fred Scharkey
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews45

    4.31.5K
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    Featured reviews

    3Flak_Magnet

    90-seconds of hilarity, 60+ min of tedium

    This movie is a total bait and switch. I went into it having some positive expectations, namely, that I'd see a lot of grade school kids murdering their parents in a series of bloodsoaked rituals. However, this kind of stuff never really happens and it isn't until the FINAL 90-SECONDS that the director pulls out the stops, providing us with a hilariously bad "massacre" scene that had my brother and I rolling. The rest of this movie, however, is entirely forgettable and I can't recommend it. That final 90-seconds is awesome, yes, but you have to sit through a lot of boring crap and listen to a lot of bad writing to get there. If you just have to see the funny clip at the end where the kids all get killed, I'd search the web versus wasting a rental slot. Trust me, this movie sucks. A lot. ---|--- Reviews by Flak Magnet
    nebuchadneza

    watch it stoned.

    When I was still in high school, my friend called me up and told me to rent this movie. I believe his exact words were, "You will want to kill yourself this movie is so bad... but the last five minutes make up for the suckiness of the entire movie up to that point." And he was right.

    The Movie is TERRIBLE. You know those kinds of movies that are so bad that they're good, in a funny kind of way? Well, this one is like that, except it's so bad that it passes right by funny and is almost impossible to get through.

    But then there's the last five minutes. I've never been so happy to see a lot of people die, and I was laughing my ass off the entire time. It should be noted, however, that I had been drinking as a way of coping with the movie thus far, and therefore, it is possible that my impressions of the ending were slightly skewed. But that did not stop me from recommending the movie to all my friends, if only to make them sit through what I had to sit through.

    If you liked "In the woods" or the 1st version of "The hitchhiker's guide" then you should have a ball with this one. However, seeing as how I've never met anyone who actually DID like the 1st version of "the hitchhiker's guide"...
    Dethcharm

    "Tear! Bite! Gulp And Gobble!"...

    BEWARE: CHILDREN AT PLAY opens with a father and his young son on a camping trip in the wilds of New Jersey. Tragically, their bonding is interrupted by cannibalism.

    Ten years later, a family is visiting a friend whose daughter has vanished, unaware that a dozen children have recently gone missing. This is all happening near the very woods where a feral teenager resides. Where have all the children gone, and who is committing the blood-splashing murders in the area? Is a local religious cult involved?

    Cheap, and clumsier than a three-legged hippopotamus, B:CAP plods along, trying to be terrifying, betrayed at every turn by static filming, robotic "acting", and dismal dialogue. The "grandpa's-playing-with-the-synthesizer-again" musical score doesn't help. At all.

    As for the "creepy" kids, they're hysterical! It's as though they were gathered together moments before filming, told what their lines and actions were to be, then told to "act". The result is a glorious mess! Watching them kill someone, is like watching ants crawling on a discarded candy wrapper. Of course, these tots are no worse than their adult counterparts, who recite lines that appear foreign to them!

    Alas, this could have been an uber-schlock masterwork, if not for the terminal dullness factor. This is basically a nap, interrupted by a few gore scenes.

    Beware, indeed!...
    JadedAngel00

    I don't know what ya'll are talking about, but I hated this movie!

    Me and my 15-year-old cousin recently watched this movie. Lately we'd been really into horror/slasher films. We rented some movies and saved this video until last. (We had read the warning label on the front and got really excited.) We should of known by the first 20 minutes of the film that it was going to be boring. Sure, we are just 2 teenagers, right? Well we still think that this movie isn't recomended for ANY age. It was awful! I'd give it * out of *****
    5ericdetrick2002

    What the hell else did you expect- it's Troma.

    After reading some of the outraged viewer comments I decided to write give my 1 cent. I am a 31 year old b-horror movie obsessed freak that still lives with his parents- so maybe that explains my taste in absolute trash. Over the years I have obtained a collection of dvds, videos, and laserdiscs that puts most video stores to shame (of course that is not saying much these days with Blockbuster and Hollywood video stores horrible horror section). Since I couldn't rent this at the time I bought this, I purchased this after seeing some clips of children being shot in really unrealistic fashion I couldn't resist.

    The key is this- very campy. All you "Grudge-Ring-I know What You Did Last Summer with Van Helsing" fans will probably not "get it". What is there to get, you may ask? It's just funny, funny that a movie was put together professionally, shot on 35 mm film, that has scenes where children get shot on screen and they actually use squibs (some of you know what squibs are). Yes, you can see the kids breathing, strings connected arrows, and blood tubes, etc. But that's why I bought it.

    So, the film as a whole is not that entertaining, but the death sequences are worth it for you fans of the bottom of the barrel films. Have fun. I'm going to go back to my room before my mom asks me to take the trash out.

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    Related interests

    Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Sian Clifford in Fleabag (2016)
    Dark Comedy
    Florence Pugh in Midsommar (2019)
    Folk Horror
    Will Ferrell in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004)
    Comedy
    James Gandolfini, Edie Falco, Sharon Angela, Max Casella, Dan Grimaldi, Joe Perrino, Donna Pescow, Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Tony Sirico, and Michael Drayer in The Sopranos (1999)
    Crime
    Mia Farrow in Rosemary's Baby (1968)
    Horror
    Cho Yeo-jeong in Parasite (2019)
    Thriller

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The director of the film stars as Farmer Isac Braun.
    • Goofs
      At the end of the movie when the kids are getting killed a man shoots an arrow at a boy. You can see the guiding wire that the arrow is attached to.
    • Quotes

      John DeWolfe: You forgive grumpy old Daddy Bear, honey?

      Kara DeWolfe: You'll buy me a Barbie doll?

      John DeWolfe: Barbie's not a doll, Barbie is an addiction! You know what Barbie leads to? Barbie hats, Barbie dresses, Barbie houses, oh, Barbie Kotex! Once Barbie gets you, you're gone!

    • Crazy credits
      Top-billed actor Michael Robertson is billed as 'Michael Robinson' in the opening credits.
    • Alternate versions
      An unrated video release was made which features brutal and graphic murders of small children not seen in the R Rated version.
    • Connections
      Featured in Drive In (2000)

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    FAQ16

    • How long is Beware: Children at Play?Powered by Alexa
    • What are the differences between the R-Rated and Unrated Version?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • November 24, 1989 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Official site
      • Troma
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Goblins
    • Filming locations
      • New York City, New York, USA
    • Production company
      • Troma Entertainment
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 34m(94 min)
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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