[MetalMilitia]

While I agree that the "creepy evil kid" is becoming a pretty lame cliché I suspect that's more down to lazy, unimaginative film making that an inherent lameness of kids in horror films. The same goes for gore - it's not that it can't still be shocking, it's just that films like SAW have been too stupid to utilise it correctly.

A year ago I don't think I could've justified this opinion but when The Orphange came out it showed that creepy-ghost-kids are indeed still scary and that gore, if used correctly, can still be shocking; case in point, the old lady getting her face ruined by a bus.