The Innocents (1961)

Synopsis:

In Victorian England, a governess (Deborah Kerr, Black Narcissus) finds a job tutoring two orphans (Pamela Franklin, The Nanny, and Martin Stephens, Village of the Damned) at a huge mansion in the English countryside. As she deals with her new responsibilities, the governess may or may not be experiencing encounters with supernatural forces.

Reaction & Thoughts:

“Admit it! She’s there! You know you can see her!”

Based on Henry James’s 1898 novella The Turn of the Screw, Jack Clayton’s (Room at the Top and The Great Gatsby) phantasmagoric The Innocents is one of the most unnerving exercises in Gothic horror ever. There are no jump scares, no violence of any kind, and yet I was at the edge of my seat for the entire duration of the film.

Clayton chooses to suggest rather than to show things, allowing the viewer’s own imagination to fill in the gaps. The British filmmaker assumes that the audience is smart, thus doesn’t play all his cards at once. You really have to pay attention to pick up little crumbs of information that are dropped throughout the movie.

Most notably, there is an element of ambivalence in the story that Clayton utilizes brilliantly. What’s really happening here? Are we witnessing paranormal activity, or are we watching the mental deterioration of an individual? You are never sure what to believe. At the end of The Innocents, you are still not quite sure what to think. It’s very stimulating to sit through a movie that never hand-feeds you any answers.

Furthermore, Clayton makes the astute decision of placing the entire movie on star Deborah Kerr’s shoulders, and the strategy really works. Kerr’s superb performance (one of her best) is the most important ingredient in the movie. We see things from her point of view, so we experience Kerr’s fears and worries, regardless of the fact that she could be completely mistaken about her interpretation of many situations.

 Child actors Pamela Franklin and Martin Stephens are great as well. Child actors often come across as a bit rehearsed, but not these kids — these talented moppets keep up with Kerr’s stellar work. Sir Michael Redgrave (Dead of Night) has a great cameo as the children’s wealthy uncle. The cast also includes Clytie Jessop (Torture Garden), Peter Wyngarde (Flash Gordon), and Megs Jenkins (Oliver!) as Mrs. Grose.

Finally, I can’t finish without mentioning the splendid work by award-winning cinematographer Freddie Francis (The Elephant Man). Shot in glorious CinemaScope, The Innocents looks terrific! Francis designed a series of camera lens specially for the movie. There is a particularly stunning sequence with actor Kerr walking around the dark mansion holding a candelabra — the sequence will leave you breathless.

Conclusions & Final Thoughts:

Even after more than five decades, The Innocents remains the film that all other ghost stories will be measured against; a textbook film lesson in how to tell this kind of story effectively — this film is an absolute must for horror film lovers and serious students of the power of cinema. The Innocents truly deserves to be rediscovered by a new generation of moviegoers. B&W, 100 minutes, Not Rated.

Trailer: