Children of the Corn II: The Final Sacrifice

After the horrific events in Gatlin, where a group of children have devoted themselves to a bloodthirsty cult and killed every adult in the process, the misguided children are taken in by the neighboring community of Hemmingford. Coincidentally, journalist John Garrett is driving through town with his 17-year-old son Danny and senses a story. He is assisted by local Red Bear, who provides him with possible clues about the origins of the cult. Meanwhile, the Gatlin kids gather again at night in the cornfield with the manipulative Micah as their new leader. Again they conspire to kill the adults in order to serve an evil demon.

The successful Stephen King film adaptation Children of the Corn was a huge success at the box office and has since spawned a remarkable eight sequels. The first sequel, Children of the Corn II - The Final Sacrifice, drifts into B-movie territory and instead of horror and suspense, we get laughable dialogue, terrible overacting and a flat plot. You don't even know what to focus on. For instance, on the crotchety Mrs. Burke, who warns of the danger early on, but as a seasoned housewife doesn't manage to clean some mold off the wall before moving her entire house. The Free Spirit TV series co-star Paul Scherrer tries to give the sunny boy, while flagship Indian Red Bear gives all sorts of wisdom, which contains little substance. The laughing stock is, of course, Ryan Bollman as Micah, who is always trying to look evil. He is also the only one of the Gatlin kids who wears black clothes instead of a farmer's outfit. For whatever reason. Completely haphazard is the sex scene between John and bed&breakfast owner Angela, who seems to need it so badly that she lets a third-rate hack into her bed. Even though the series went to the wall early on, the shenanigans are at least consistently entertaining if you're aware of what you're getting into.

US version with additional CGI scene

In addition to the familiar international version of the film, director David Price created an extended version for the US market. In the US, the film was distributed by Dimension Films, who gave Price extra money to add another effects scene to the film. When the demon takes possession of Micah in the cornfield, the US version shows another scene in which Micah is pulled into a tunnel, where he disintegrates into his molecules and is reassembled before leaving the tunnel again. This CGI scene has aged poorly. Another change is found at the end of the film when Micah transforms into the demon. The US version also distorts Micah's face here. Furthermore, the US version has a different background music. Arrow Video's UK Blu-ray features both versions of the film plus the workprint, which we analyzed in a separate report.

Runtimes:

International Version: 92:57 min.
US Theatrical Version: 93:31 min.

Comparison between the International Version and the US Theatrical Version.

[00:20:51][00:20:51]

In the US Theatrical Version, Micah is pulled into an endless hole. His body decomposes and is reassembled. Then he is pushed out of the hole again.

US: 34 sec.


[01:25:01][01:25:35]

In the shot where Micah turns into the monster, the US Theatrical Version further distorted his face.

On the left is the International version and next to it on the right is the US Theatrical Version.

No time difference. (12 sec. each)