Celia: Child of Terror

Celia is a spirited 9 year old girl with a vivid imagination. Reeling from the death of her beloved grandmother, she seeks out the company of her new neighbours, The Tanners - a warm and loving family harbouring a secret. Set in an Australian suburb in the late 1950's, the film tackles the prevailing social issues of the time including the "red scare" and the "rabbit pestilence", drawing a parallel between the two. The film is essentially a drama, but with an added element of dark fantasy (which, although an interesting idea, is used inconsistently and often feels out of place). But as a coming of age story, Celia is a triumph - an honest and unvarnished exploration of the trials and tribulations of childhood, featuring an astonishing performance by Rebecca Smart in the titular role.

Girl has visions of monsters after her grandma dies, and tho they're not real, she reacts to one of these episodes in violent manner, having endured the loss of her friends, pets, and trust in her father.. communist propaganda makes it seems as if all they want is peace, and everyone else is out to get them.. during the film, analogy to Australian rabbit crisis of the 1950's.. so it's pretty involved, but the punchline is that this makes her into a bad seed, environment over genetics.. great acting, good subplots and characterization, and turmoil galore.. is this a horror film? Psychologically so, because Celia becomes the thing she claims to have hated.

A very strange film that has been included in the, All the Haunts be Ours, compendium of 'folk horror' which is really what this is. There is and plenty that looks like a children film but it clearly is not that right and even at the early there are moments of 'horror'. I understand that in the video store people wanted to make clear that 'children' should not be allowed and then if as people are hope it will be gore and sex and maybe vampires, there is another problem. So lets just face this that children are in the film and realise that they do not always see the way we always do. The child, Celia is most imaginative and can influence other children and this can make it difficult for them. The film also has the killing rabbits, the communists, cruel parents and police men and school teachers who can be even more so.