07-08-14 Little Children (2006)

Seen: August 7th, 2007
Format: DVD
Rating: 8

Little Children is a pretty ephemeral. There's really nothing in this film that you haven't seen somewhere else. While there's a few scenarios that aren't common, they're not exactly so original that we're surprised and delighted by them. If "there's nothing new under the sun" is a fallacy, this film isn't the one that you'd drag out to disprove it.

But this isn't exactly your run of the mill drama; it's much more than the sum of it's parts.

The depth of these characters is pretty amazing. It's also a bit surprising. These characters sneak up on you over the course of the film. They start out simple. Some are simply hollow shells of cliche or stereotypes. As the film progresses, they're gradually filled in, fleshed out and eventually become someone that we understand. We may not like them for various reasons, but they're at least human.

This transformation is brought about by a combination of both writing and acting. The dialogue in the film is very good, but its really not what drives the film. More than anything, we're shown these characters. Sure there's some verbal exposition, but it's more how they react than what they say that shows us who they are.

The range of characters is a bit staggering. It's a complex and even sordid melange. Again, it's not so crazy as to be unbelievable, but crazy enough to be real and disturbing.

So what's it about? It about who we are versus what we want to be. Every character here wishes for something else. Some want to be normal. Some want to undo the past. Some want a different future. Some want to be young again. And all of them seem to want what's best for their children, though that's seldom what they're actually striving for.

Performances are striking across the board. The acting here is transcendent in some instances. The film is fairly simply shot, but strikingly composed. Watch for boundaries which divide characters in the film. The music is simply excellent.

The only thing that I really didn't care for about this film is the degree of narcissism that the characters had. While these are generally fully realized people, their self-absorption is so complete that I had a hard time actually caring about these people. While there are exceptions, they're very few.

Also, Madame Bovary is explicitly referenced here, and there seem to be parallels both blatant and subtle. But the film is much more than an homage. It's an exploration far beyond that realm.

The Good: Story and script

The Bad: Overcompensating

The Ugly: Uncontrollable urges