EDITOR’S NOTE: Children of the Damned was on the CBS Late Movie on March 6 and October 4, 1972 and September 3, 1973.

Directed by Anton Leader and written by John Briley (Ghandhi, Pope Joan), Children of the Damned features six children from six countries, all born under miraculous circumstances. These children, with their extraordinary abilities, come to be seen as the next stage in human evolution, a theme that the film explores in depth.

British psychologist Tom Lewellin (Ian Hendry) and geneticist David Neville (Alan Badel) start by studying Paul (Clive Powell), a London-born young boy whose mother hates him. He joins the others who quickly escape and hide in an abandoned church.

Paul, Nina, Rashid, Mi Ling, Aga Nagolo, and Mark, the six children, are not just a threat to the governments of the world, but also symbols of resilience. Despite the world’s rejection, they continue to fight back when attacked, showing a strength that is both inspiring and unsettling.

The idea that these are all the children of aliens is abandoned, however, as this movie is just about the kids and not where they came from. I personally prefer the much darker first film, which delves more into the children’s origins and the implications of their abilities. However, this sequel still maintains a bleak tone as the group realizes that they have arrived at a time when humans are not yet ready to deal with evolution or have their better future selves walk among them.