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Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror

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Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror
Promotional poster
Directed byEthan Wiley
Written byEthan Wiley
Based onChildren of the Corn
by Stephen King
Produced by
  • Jeff Geoffray
  • Walter Josten
Starring
CinematographyDavid Lewis
Edited byPeter Devaney Flanagan
Music byPaul Rabjohns
Production
company
Blue Rider Pictures
Distributed byDimension Home Video (Buena Vista Home Entertainment)
Release date
  • June 21, 1998 (1998-06-21)
Running time
83 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror is a 1998 American supernatural slasher film written and directed by Ethan Wiley. It stars Stacy Galina, Alexis Arquette, Adam Wylie, Eva Mendes, and Ahmet Zappa. It is the fifth installment of the Children of the Corn series. The leader of the cult in this installment, Ezeekial, is possessed by the enigmatic demon, "He Who Walks Behind the Rows".[1] It was released straight-to-video by Dimension Home Video on June 21, 1998.

The film was followed by a sequel, titled Children of the Corn 666: Isaac's Return (1999).

Plot

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A group of teenagers become lost in middle America and arrive in Divinity Falls, where forgotten children have taken on the duty of serving "He Who Walks Behind the Rows". The teenagers have less than a week to get out of the town. However, they find that their car is destroyed, and the children are held accountable. Allison, the leader of the teenagers, overhears that the children are the adopted wards of Luke Enright, a madman who considers himself the savior of the children, and the earthly representative of He Who Walks Behind the Rows. Upon remembering that her brother is also among them, Allison and the rest decide to go to Enright's farm to discover the truth behind the bizarre cult.

Upon arrival, one of the children, Ezekiel, stops the group, informing them they are on private property and must leave. After a debate, Allison is finally allowed to see Luke. He informs her that her brother is there, and agrees to let her see him, only to be rejected by him for leaving him alone with their abusive father. Jacob informs her that he is engaged to be married to a girl named Lily, and also states that she is pregnant with his child. Meanwhile, the rest of Allison's group are kept outside, where the men are intimidated by a physically powerful and exceptionally-tall teen named Jared.

Ezekiel holds a ceremony for the annual sacrifice to He Who Walks Behind the Rows, which involves a child who has reached 18 years of age to leap into a flaming corn silo where the god is supposed to dwell. Jacob is chosen, but he refuses and tells Ezekiel that his religion is false, angering him. Kir, one of the "outsiders", agrees to become a part of the cult after reading a part of their "Bible" earlier. After Jacob attempts to leave, Kir chooses to take the fateful course, and climbs to the silo and leaps to a fiery demise. The rest of the group wishes to leave the town, but Allison refuses to leave without Jacob. They leave her, and she eventually reads a message Jacob left her in his Bible. It translates to "Help", and she realizes he wants to escape. She enlists the help of the sheriff to stop Luke and Ezekiel.

Greg, who has developed a crush on Allison, chooses to go back and help her and the rest decide to go as well. Allison, with the aid of the sheriff and the fire department, attempt to stop the silo and arrest Luke. While trying to extinguish the silo, the flames come alive and kill the two fire fighters, and Luke kills the sheriff and apparently himself after his head splits open and a burst of flame shoots through. Ezekiel reveals that Luke had been dead for years, and he is the children's true leader. After killing two of the deranged kids, Allison meets her friends, and an all-out battle erupts between them and the kids, ending with the deaths of everyone, except Allison. Allison eventually finds her brother, and before dying, he tells her how to stop He Who Walks Behind the Rows. Ezekiel tries to kill Allison, but after a struggle, she sends him falling into the silo to a violent, fiery death. She then dumps fertilizer into the silo, blowing it up and killing He Who Walks Behind the Rows.

Allison then goes to Lily's house. Lily's parents tell Allison that Lily isn't ready to raise a baby because she is a baby herself. Lily tells Allison that it's for the best that she adopts her baby. As the film ends, the baby is seen being comforted by song, as the green-orange light of the silo fire is shown burning in his eyes.

Cast

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Production

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The film began development under the title Fields of Screams, but according to director and writer Ethan Wiley, Miramax wanted to change the title to avoid brand confusion with Dimension Films's Scream series.[2] As the prior Children of the Corn films didn't have much continuity and only the loosest of connections to each other, Wiley described the process of going back to the original short story and combining it with Wiley's fascination with cults and how they function and operate, as he felt that was an area not necessarily explored by prior entries.[2]

Principal photography took place in July 1997, in Oxnard and Camarillo, California.[2]

Release

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Home media

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The film, like its last two predecessors, did not receive a theatrical release but instead went straight-to-video on June 21, 1998, in VHS and DVD formats.

The film debuted on the Blu-ray format for the first time on May 15, 2011, via Echo Bridge Entertainment. It was included in a double feature with its sequel Children of the Corn 666: Isaac's Return (1999), also making its Blu-ray debut.[3]

Reception

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Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror holds a 14% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on seven reviews.[4]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Browning, Mark (2011). Stephen King on the Small Screen. Intellect Books. pp. 71–3. ISBN 978-1-841-50412-4.
  2. ^ a b c Beeler, Michael (August 1998). "Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror". Cinefantastique. p. 30. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
  3. ^ "Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror / Children of the Corn 666: Isaac's Return Blu-ray (Miramax Double Feature)".
  4. ^ "Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror - Rotten Tomatoes". Rotten Tomatoes. October 9, 2001.
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