The City of Lost Children (La Cité des Enfants Perdus) (1997)

Featured Audience Ratings

• John M

  
  This was a strange one but it had Ron Perlman in it and thats an automatic two stars!! A very strange little film that took me a while to get figured out but once i got in I was able to enjoy the very unique vision of this French film.

• EightThirty .

  
  02/01/2011 (DVD) A very strange but interesting watch. The performances are outstanding by both adults and children and what a weirdly but fantastic world. It was like a silver-screen flick with updated visual effects which made this film feel unusual and different. Wow. The… More
  02/01/2011 (DVD) A very strange but interesting watch. The performances are outstanding by both adults and children and what a weirdly but fantastic world. It was like a silver-screen flick with updated visual effects which made this film feel unusual and different. Wow. The setting is art, I mean the ideas and the artistry compliments the story giving it depth and darkness. What had me drawn was the background, it was very darkly, futuristic for its time and Gothic yet the people were from the 1950's so it seemed, very cool indeed. It's probably not everyone's cup of tea but it's definitely the type of tea that has an unusual blend that one learns to enjoy. The special effects were not overly done but it just had the right amount for taste and the clones just look so real, like they were real individuals rather than camera tricks, just so cool. It's definitely a strange one in my opinion but no doubt a watchable feature. I did notice that "Hell Boy" speaks in tongues? Did not know that.

• Dead A

  
  This was strange. It's sort of like a fairy tale. The story sounded really good. But I felt okay (and sometimes bored) while watching this.

• Lewis C

  
  "We're really starting to get attached." Some parts of The City of Lost Children worked better for me than others, but it's undeniable that it's a wildly creative and inventive movie from beginning to end. The overall look of the film is unique, you never… More
  "We're really starting to get attached." Some parts of The City of Lost Children worked better for me than others, but it's undeniable that it's a wildly creative and inventive movie from beginning to end. The overall look of the film is unique, you never quite can guess what weird quirk the story or characters are going to show you next, and you can just tell that a lot of imagination and passion went into this. That fact helped make up for the times when I lost interest in the story a bit. Visually, it's excellent. Artistically, there are a lot of great ideas, they just don't all come together well. I don't want to spoil the plot, but it involves missing children, a scientist who can't dream, a army of blind (well, not quite) men, a kind-hearted strongman, orphans, and a hateful set of Siamese twins. Mostly though, it's about the desire for family. The relationship between the two main characters, Miette and One, is quite touching, but there's also humor and action to be found. As I said, this movie is kind of all over the place, and some aspects work better than others. Still, I'd recommend it be seen just because of how genuinely different it is. Take a dark adult fairy tale/fantasy movie like Pan's Labyrinth (though, not as good) and add in a bleak dsytopian setting and some sci-fi, and you've got a good idea of what The City of Lost Children is like. If that sounds interesting to you, you owe it to yourself to give it a try, despite its flaws.

• Anthony L

  
  Jenet & Caro are masters of cinema, this is a great follow up to their superb Delicatessen. A stunning film with some great characters and beautiful sets.

• Kytyrah K

  
  A breath of fresh air. Yes, it is a foreign film, yes there are subtitles, deal with it. This movie has the most uniqe, three-dimensional, loveable and hateable characters I've ever seen. First of all, the concept is amazingly original and outlandish-but it reaches deep down… More
  A breath of fresh air. Yes, it is a foreign film, yes there are subtitles, deal with it. This movie has the most uniqe, three-dimensional, loveable and hateable characters I've ever seen. First of all, the concept is amazingly original and outlandish-but it reaches deep down into you and pulls at your emotions. The cinematography is not high-budget but still a stunning feat. The style is perfection captured on film. The cast is beyond perfect. The depth of the world this movie takes place in is immediately evident. The villians (if they can be called that) are fully realized and readily recognizeable. The heroes are unlikely yet somehow fit in perfectly. This film defies a genre. It is at once a dark comedy, a unique horror, an emotional drama, and a deeply-believable Sci-Fi. The setting is dark yet somehow not hopeless-there are gleams of strength and quick flashes or personal strength in the Main characters. You simply know without knowing that they can and will turn things around. I can't say enough about this film, I'm still in awe. My god, i must go watch it again-just another proving that Hollywood is the past and Foreign Film the future.

• Randy T

  
  Twisted genius! Sorta' like <i>Road Warrior</i> meets <i>Willy Wonka</i>.

• Greg S

  
  A mad genius is stealing the dreams of children in a fairy tale city; dim strongman Ron Perlman teams up with a streetwise urchin to get his kidnapped "little brother" back from the fiend. A triumph of the imagination: an amazingly detailed, weird, yet cohesive universe,… More
  A mad genius is stealing the dreams of children in a fairy tale city; dim strongman Ron Perlman teams up with a streetwise urchin to get his kidnapped "little brother" back from the fiend. A triumph of the imagination: an amazingly detailed, weird, yet cohesive universe, with two knockout scenes--the opening dream, and the "butterfly effect" sequence where a girl's depairing teardop turns into her unlikely salvation--that rival anything ever seen in visionary film.

• Kylie B

  
  It's very inventive, yes. Most unusual. But as with Delicatessen, I just didn't like it. There's nothing about the film itself that I can pinpoint as to making me feel that way. The acting's good, the plot is interesting and different and the visuals are beautiful.… More
  It's very inventive, yes. Most unusual. But as with Delicatessen, I just didn't like it. There's nothing about the film itself that I can pinpoint as to making me feel that way. The acting's good, the plot is interesting and different and the visuals are beautiful. I just couldn't engage with it.

• Mark H

  
  Brilliant loooking movie is a marvel of set design, but the story is full of artificial characters that don't involve.

• Curtis L

  
  Love those Frenchies. The guys who made Delicatessen first made this great visual feast. This kind of film is totally my style, fun to watch full of great stuff like mind control fleas and midgets spitting up blood.

• Lady D

  
  Oh how I hate these type of Sci-fi films. The synopsis sounded promising yet it reminded me of a cross between Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Brazil. I did however make it to the end (but that was a real challenge for me).

• Robert C

  
  Visually there is nothing like this. It's a modern day fairytale that would make the brothers Grimm proud. It's a delight to watch. Jeunet at his finest.

• Saskia D

  
  Really liked this one, the mood, the setting, the lighting, the colours: it's complete. It sort of reminds me of a Roald Dahl children's story. I highly recommend this one.

• _kelly .

  
  One of the best films of all time, and also a science fiction flick!

• Julie B

  
  Beautiful, odd and touching.

• Aaron N

  
  Once upon a time there was an inventor so gifted that he could create life. A truly remarkable man. Since he had no wife or children he decided to create them in his laboratory. He started with wife and fas into the most beautiful princess in the world. Alas, a wicked genetic fairy… More
  Once upon a time there was an inventor so gifted that he could create life. A truly remarkable man. Since he had no wife or children he decided to create them in his laboratory. He started with wife and fas into the most beautiful princess in the world. Alas, a wicked genetic fairy cast a spell on the inventor so much so that the princess was only knee height or less. He then cloned six children in his own image, faithful, hardworking. They were so alike no one could tell them apart. But fate tricked him again, giving them all sleeping sickness. Craving someone to talk to he grew in a fish-tank a poor migraine-ridden brain. And then at last he created his masterpiece more intelligent then the most intelligent man on Earth. But alas the inventor made a serious mistake. While his creation was intelligent he never ever had a dream. You can't image how quickly he grew old, because he was so unhappy. Then the poor masterpiece became so crazed he believed a single tear drop could save him. And after committing many cruel deeds he died, never knowing what it was to dream. Now here is a movie that is filled with enough characters, sets, creatures, and sub plots to make a number of movies. This is a trippy, sci-fi/fantasy French film that is as ingenious as it is entertaining. Once you get past the first few minutes, you get into the movie more and more, and really see what's happening. Ron Perlman stars as a sideshow strong man, who's brother is kidnapped by some cycloptic henchmen. How a mid 40s Jewish, American actor who doesn't speak French, but does so flawlessly for this movie, is another movie all together. Perlman then sets out to find his brother, eventually befriending a young orphan girl named Miette. Meanwhile, the people behind the kidnapping, use these kids to extract dreams, because they cannot do so themselves. That is actually the least strange way to describe that aspect of the story. The movie may be rated R for some "gruesome images," but the tone is fairly light=hearted, especially when dealing with the relationship between Perlman and Miette. Co-directors Jean-Pierre Jeunet, of Amelie, and Marc Caro have made a fabulous looking movie, that combines all sorts of special effects into a story that is so nice and different. It easily fits into the familiarity of films like Dark City, 12 Monkeys, Metropolis, Blade Runner, and Pan's Labyrinth in terms of being a unique fantasy experience. Miette: What are you doing? One: Radiator.

• Craig S

  
  <b><u>Directed by:</u> Jean-Pierre Jeunet.</b> <b><u>Starring:</u> Ron Perlman, Joseph Lucien, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Daniel Emifork, Mirelle Mosse.</b> Jean-Pierre Jeunet, a man of unique vision and storytelling, he is like the Grimm… More
  <b><u>Directed by:</u> Jean-Pierre Jeunet.</b> <b><u>Starring:</u> Ron Perlman, Joseph Lucien, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Daniel Emifork, Mirelle Mosse.</b> Jean-Pierre Jeunet, a man of unique vision and storytelling, he is like the Grimm Brothers in the way of creating and telling 'fairy tale like' stories. Jean-Pierre Jeunet's more recent films Amelie and A Very Long Engagement are his most accomplished, The City of Lost Children is one of his first and although his vision is unique and the movie flows with original ideas, his storytelling isn't quite there and it seems like a case of style over substance. But his vision helps, he has created a fairytale world with wonderful ideas, although no real coherent storytelling, he shows visual flair with thick and gloomy cinematography and amazing set designs. A great start for an amazing filmmaker who only improves, his vision is certainly there, with great ideas, amazing cinematography and set design, the storytelling is a little on the weak side and it ends up a bit of style of substance.

• Lafe F

  
  Warped film directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet. The characters and settings are bent out of shape with weird off-kilter angles, lighting and direction. Many of the actors in the movie were abnormal in some way. It's truly a different world, which creeped me a bit. A big brain in the… More
  Warped film directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet. The characters and settings are bent out of shape with weird off-kilter angles, lighting and direction. Many of the actors in the movie were abnormal in some way. It's truly a different world, which creeped me a bit. A big brain in the city is kidnapping children for their dreams. Ron Perlman's kid is stolen, so he goes on a rescue mission, aided by a little female waif named Miette. They run into some freaky characters along the way. The opening sequence with the evil old Santas abducting the little baby was somewhat disturbing. I would not want to ever visit such a place. The movie was a skewed piece of art, typical of Jeunet's work.

• Drew S

  
  Lacks substance, but it hardly matters; this is a feast for your inner child. Like all of Jeunet's films, The City of Lost Children is crammed to bursting point with creative ideas, exciting characters and beautiful locales. It also features Dominique Pinon, who is awesome as… More
  Lacks substance, but it hardly matters; this is a feast for your inner child. Like all of Jeunet's films, The City of Lost Children is crammed to bursting point with creative ideas, exciting characters and beautiful locales. It also features Dominique Pinon, who is awesome as always. That dude has the coolest face in the world. The film is full of perfect, honest sentimentality and platonic love. In focusing on something as pure as the dreams of children, it itself becomes a pure picture. This is not art for the sake of being art, but something created that is so profound and honest that it becomes art all its own. Highly recommended.

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