The Godsend (1980)

Good concept, poorly executed.

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Yes, absolutely, there is fun to be had, as well as many, many things to go boom, all amid an atmospheric urban jungle.

This bleak, nihilistic film is obviously inspired heavily by THE OMEN - and yet remains a far more horrifying picture. This is due to the fact that the victims in this film are all innocent children who get savagely killed, deaths which will upset even the hardest viewer. While it's not a particularly well-made picture in any respect (i.e. the low budget is quite often apparent), the film achieves what it sets out to do, to horrify the viewer, and thus it gets my thumbs up.The lack of big-name stars helps to add to the realism in THE GODSEND. The central characters are played by unknowns, and the only familiar face will be Angela Pleasence in a cameo. Pleasence plays an exceedingly creepy woman who acts as a catalyst for the murders, and is the most disturbing thing in this film. Stoddard and Hayman are very good as the anxious parents, who eventually split up under the pressure; Stoddard is a likable central figure, while Hayman excels as the woman who suffers a nervous breakdown through circumstances she just can't comprehend.The murders are kept off screen (apart from a nasty moment where a child is thrown from a window), leaving our imaginations to play a big part. Each breaks down the parent's mental state further. The little blonde girl is very good in it, too. THE GODSEND is a little-seen, little-heard of film, but for viewers who like to be creeped out (and not through gallons of gore, either), then it deserves some tracking down.

Reading its premise it reminded me immediately of an old favorite of mine "The Bad Seed" and to a minor extent "Bloody Birthday". These movies all have one thing in common, all of them are a devilish child (in Bloody Birthday it's even 3 kids)lacking some kind of conscience and who get a thrill out of killing people. They even get away with those crimes in the beginning, fooling people who are wondering how that could have happened. At some point someone close to them gets suspicious. The motives however are in each case different. Rhoda from The Bad Seed was pretty materialistic. If she thought she deserved or wanted something (being it a prize, an object) she just took it and resorted to killing the person trying to deny it to her. The 3 kids from Bloody Birthday really didn't have a clear motive they just seemed to do it because they could even though people trying to stand in their way were more likely to be victimized. And last but not least there is Godsend Bonnie with angelic blonde hair and face, born from a mysterious woman who disappeared the next morning after giving birth in a home of a household of a couple with 4 children. The couple decides to raise Bonnie as one of their own. Bonnie is still only a baby when she commits her first murder. She doesn't kill for fun nor for material things, but weird enough for love. She wants the love of her parents for her alone. And she tries to get rid of those who she has to share the attention with, being her stepbrothers and sister. The good thing is all her killings are clever and mysterious since all but the last happen of screen. Of course with each loss the parents gets more and more depressed, the mother the most. The father on the other hand tries to find out how it happened and gets really suspicious of Bonnie when a third kid dies. The mother refuses to think bad of her little angel and more and more conflicts happen between the parents something Bonnie handily takes advantage of. The ending is quite open which might be cliché for these type of movies but I like it. Trying to break such a circle won't make it stop as there is a big chance such a circle can begin out of nothing somewhere else again. No matter how much we try there will always be evil to deal with.

British Horror rocks, and that's all there is to it. British Horror certainly isn't the goriest I've come across. Maybe not the most action-packed, or the scariest, but at least some would agree that there is just something about British Horror.The Godsend is as shamefully underrated as anything I've seen from over there. This movie may be no Psychomania, and it sure ain't the masterpiece Vampyres is, but this is a good movie, nonetheless. A chillin' little British family (with far too many kids) comes across a stranded pregnant woman, who, you can tell is no good.. The unsuspecting couple lets their creepy, new friend stay over for a while, or at least long enough for her the have the kid and fly the coop before anyone notices. A problem easily solved, right? Wrong, the wife figures they don't have enough kids, already, oh, what's one more? At this point, any sensible B-Horror fan might wonder why the less-emotional man of the family doesn't just step in and at least suggest they give the little girl up for adoption, considering the other countless mouths to feed.. But if it had gone down like that, who would kill all their real kids? Not much of a Horror movie there. I take it, the pregnant woman from earlier, makes a habit of dropping off her demonic (?) offspring into the laps of unsuspecting families, although, hopefully, not all her victims are stupid enough to keep the kid. Could be wrong, but I don't think this is available on DVD yet, oh well, an old Vestron tape is good enough for me. Apparently, some compare The Godsend to The Omen. In my opinion, it's more like The Bad Seed, which, just so you know, is far superior to both The Godsend and The Omen. If you don't expect an action-packed, thrill-ride, or any type of a masterpiece, and are in the mood for some low-key, retro Horror, that doesn't require your absolute, undivided attention, you just might not hate The Godsend. Recommended to fans of British Horror, and especially killer kid flicks. 7/10

I saw this movie about 3 years after it came out, and actually enjoyed it. It moves a bit slow for American viewers, and yes, it is terrifying, especially if you have children. The next few months of my life were made frightening by my 4 year old (at the time). It seems her dad let her watch the movie and she followed me around the house saying "mummy? mummy? I love you, mummy..." in the exact tone and accent as the evil child character. So, if you're into twisted, suspense, and totally scary, this movie is for you. If your into action (ex. XXX), this one is too slow for you. Just don't let the kids watch it. Oh, yeah...it's NOT a happy ending.