Little Children

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Little Children

79% Liked It
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Little Children

Kate Winslet, Jennifer Connelly, Patrick Wilson, Jackie Earle Haley, Noah Emmerich, Phyllis Somerville

Little Children centers on a group of young marrieds, whose lives intersect on the playgrounds, town pools and streets of their small community in surprising and potentially dangerous ways.

Id: 9434325

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Recent Reviews

Little Children Recent Reviews
  • lewiskendell
    November 17, 2009
    lewiskendell
    I have a hard time reviewing movies like Little Children. The difficulty isn't in deciding whether I like it, it's having to explain how the things about it that I liked are hard to extract from the things I didn't like. The pros and cons are just mixed up together.

    I loved and...( read more) didn't like how the movie made me empathize with characters that I should not have supported and the decisions that they made. I loved how uncomfortable it made me feel about certain things, like how we treat those among us who are undesirable, and how cruel we can be when we fear someone. I loved how I slowly built up sympathy for a character, and then that emotion was deftly twisted into revulsion, and finally pity. I loved how it made me wonder at how loneliness and distance can creep between a husband and wife, without them realizing it until the damage is done. This isn't a feel good movie by any means, but neither is it really depressing. It's a mixture of the good and the bad things in life.

    It's always nice to get more from a movie than you expected. I was expecting to see a simple drama about the suburban family, starring my favorite actress. Instead, I found a story with all the richness of a good novel. It was even narrated, which contributed even more to the novel-like experience. If you have the patience to slowly build toward the pay-off of a well told story, and an affinity for characters that struggle with very human flaws, then Little Children is a movie that you must see.
  • RiderOfTheStorms
    August 3, 2009
    RiderOfTheStorms
    this movie is kinda fucked up but it really draws you in. you catch yourself in the mood for a slow film i recommend this one. Its actually one of the best films i ever seen
  • Passenger1986
    May 1, 2009
    Passenger1986
    I love it when I put on a film expecting a good time passer and I find out it's so much more. Little Children is one of the best surprises.

    The best way to describe this story is that it's a look at a community and the way they live their life, with situations changing due to th...( read more)e release of a sex offender into said community.

    To anyone who has seen this film and wonders why the children the title speaks of seem to be props and not characters in their right, I propose this theory: having not read the book, I can only go by what the film offers. Perhaps the little children of the title are the main and supporting characters. We have Sarah Pierce (Kate Winslet, who just goes from strength to strength, and makes us forget about that movie with the sinking boat which was overrated), a housewife frustrated with her husband and who has little love for her own child; Brad Adamson (Patrick Wilson, who I really have to keep looking for updates on whatever he's working on as he has a presence that enhances a film), a househusband who can't find the motivation to take the bar exam again, preferring to watch skateboarders and find comfort in the arms of Sarah (more on that later); Larry Hedges (Noah Emmerich, who is arguably the antagonist of this film), a disgraced former cop who bullies the sex offender (Jackie Earle Haley, who is DAMN good in this role), who's just trying to live his life (again, we'll come back to him)

    Along with the supporting women who play the mothers of the children seen in the playground/pool scenes, most of the main characters seem to regress to child-like ideas in order to keep themselves going. Some have ideas of running away with their lovers, some bully and harass citizens and others act like hypocrites and suggest their way of life is better.
    Of course, I could just be over-analyzing and it's about the sex offender and the concerns over the children. Or both.

    Normally, I am against the idea of people cheating on their loved ones. You can use any excuse you want, be it not being treated right or that your spouse is cheating on you and you're getting revenge, I don't care. You want to sleep with someone else, date someone else, you end things with the person you're seeing. This is perhaps the only film in which I actually sympathize with those doing the cheating (though this is not without precedent. BJ Hunnicutt had a one night stand on M*A*S*H but he felt terrible about it and never strayed again. Not making excuses, not defending him, but it's hard to hate BJ. It's like hating puppies, it's unthinkable)
    Sarah and Brad are yearning for more out of their lives, they want to be with people who devote their time to each other. They have a connection, and their kids get along. So it seems like a match. But as we all know, things aren't always so smooth in the world of passion.
    Patrick and Kate really have great chemistry together and I'd love to see them reunite for a future project.

    Now let's talk about Jackie Earle Haley's character, Ronald McGorvey. Treated as the town pariah, he is oddly enough, one of the few people who's actually trying to better himself. Like I said before, no defense here, but he just wants to be left alone and wants to reintegrate back into society.
    He's moved back in with his mother, and tries hard not to succumb to temptation. What he does towards the end I will not spoil, but it's ironic to me that the one person trying to change for the better is the one vilified as the monster. Jackie Earle Haley did magnificent in this role, and hopefully now that he and Patrick have been in Watchmen, his profile will improve

    If there is one thing I have to put down, it's the narration. It's not bad, but I have to wonder why it's needed as the narrator seemingly has nothing to do with the story and seems to be Mr. Exposition for the thoughts and feelings of our characters. Yes, they aren't entirely obvious from the body language but why is a stranger telling us what they're thinking?

    Rarely if ever do I see people talking about this film. It's been overlooked and that's just wrong. I hope more people see it, I found it quite powerful.
  • MovieGeek13
    March 19, 2009
    MovieGeek13
    Todd Field delivers a detailed study of adult suburban life, but only occasionally rises the material to greatness. There are too many moments that scream "do-you-get-the-symbolism?" But apart from that, a very good adaptation and great performances by Kate Winslet and Jackie E...( read more)arle Haley.
  • pier007
    January 27, 2009
    pier007
    Sensationalism and pseudo indie feel helps to sell movies despite a rather inane content, but it doesn't really do anything to me.
    The narration causes fatigue and doesn't really contribute to anything important, aside from very brief keen examinations.
    Jackie Earle Haley's chara...( read more)cter should have been explored deeper. He and his mother (Phyllis Sommerville) play the most interesting parts of the whole.
  • kmansell1
    December 1, 2009
    kmansell1
    whilst this movie seems to move along slow you seem to float along with it. the casting is amazing but what i liked was the narrator. but rather than just being a voice over it was like somebody was reading what we were seeing so adding to the scene. it worked really well. the st...( read more)ory deals with not very nice topics i.e adultery and paedophiles but it went beyond them to see what was really going on. very interesting
  • blackeyedsurfer
    November 11, 2009
    blackeyedsurfer
    Genius. Funny, dramatic, sexy, tons of tension! Amazing acting all around, great writing. Kate Winslet must get an Oscar nomination for this. *edit* She did! And she would have won if it weren't for Helen Mirren's mimickry of the Queen. :P
  • davyTi
    November 7, 2009
    davyTi
    One of my favourite movies ever!! Reminds me of happiness, maybe because of the scene with Jane Adams. This movie has it all, great storyline(s), good camerawork, good acting. The characters are well crafted, only I wanted to see more of jane. I can recommend it to everyone who w...( read more)ants to see a serious movie.
  • tcguazon
    October 29, 2009
    tcguazon
    watch dis movie its a good one.
  • imagination22
    October 23, 2009
    imagination22
    Wasn't expecting anything but was a nice surprise. Jackie Earle Haley is brilliant, he really improved the narrative.
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