[Patrick Sun]

I had been looking forward to Todd Fields' "Little Children" and had to venture into town to see it as it was only playing on one screen in this town.

The direction by Fields is very good, the performances (Kate Winslet, Patrick Wilson, Jennifer Connelly) are almost pitch-perfect in this tale of suburbia and the coy hook-up of a stay-at-home mom, Sarah (Winslet), and stay-at-home dad, Brad (Wilson). There are 2 other subplots, one deals with the presence of a convicted exposer/flasher (to little kids) named Ronnie. I did a double-take when I realized it was Jackie Earle Haley, best known as Kelly in the original "Bad News Bears" all those years ago. The other deals with Larry, a former cop who is hellbent on driving Ronnie out of the neighborhood with flyers and drive-by honkings.

There are a few somewhat disturbing sequences juxtaposed with light-hearted frivolity, to the point where I couldn't help but laugh at times. The downfall of the film for me is that the film's screenplay has too high a sense of the ironic by the time it concludes, and for me, it just never quite congeals into a truly satisfying look into the intermingling of these characters' lives in suburbia.

I give it 3 stars or a grade of B.

[Henry Gale]

Finally got to see this last night in Austin.
Before this, director Todd Field was best known for In The Bedroom (2001). That film, and this one, have rightly received many nominations and awards. I think cinematographer Antonio Calvache deserves some as well.
There were certainly some cringe inducing scenes in a movie dealing, in part, with a character registered as a sex offender. There were also some laugh out loud moments including a nod to Jaws at a public pool.
If you recall the dinner date in Happiness (1998) with Philip Seymore Hoffman, Jane Adams as "Sheila" gets to revisit that character here on a disastrous date with the neighborhood flasher.
Jennifer Connally looked fantastic.

[Chuck Mayer]

Excellent film. Incredible performances from Wilson and especially Winslet. It's almost taken for granted how good she is.

The film very quietly developed a strong sense of dread, expertly building up towards the finale. But none of it was left field, none of it rang false.

Moments of humor were sprinkled throughout, to nice effect. It's an mature, adult movie, about adults who've yet to fully mature (in different ways).

One of the better films of 2006.

9/10,
Chuck

[Brett_M]

My most eagerly awaited rental of the year. It did not disappoint. Loved the dark comedy and the tonal shifts throughout. Great performances and great direction.

Recommended.

Worth a blind buy if you like the actors (especially Kate Winslet, who's brilliant here, as usual) or Todd Field's previous film In the Bedroom.

[Cameron Yee]

Sense of dread was right.

Spoiler:

I was expecting the massive train wreck (mostly based on that awesome trailer that strangely didn't even get placed on the DVD), so the relief that it didn't go there was huge. Ultimately I appreciated the positive message about second chances and the ability for people to wise up if given the opportunity.

Here's hoping there's some kind of special edition in the future.

And having the guy who does most of the voice overs for Frontline was darkly absurd in its own way.

[JohnRice]

Those who liked this might want to see We Don't Live Here Anymore. Darker, meaner and not as good, but in the same neighborhood. Incidentally it is based on a story by the same author as Field's last film, In the Bedroom. Little Children could easily have been based on something by the same author, but wasn't.

[Michael Reuben]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnRice

Those who liked this might want to see We Don't Live Here Anymore.

I reviewed that film when it played in theaters, and while it's not as visually arresting as Little Children, the acting is every bit as good, and the film has the same vicious sting.

As Entertainment Weekly noted, the trailer for Little Children was a mini-masterpiece that conveyed an accurate sense of the film without giving too much away. The fact that it isn't included on the DVD is a real shame.

M.

[Holadem]

Quote:

Those who liked this might want to see We Don't Live Here Anymore. Darker, meaner and not as good, but in the same neighborhood.

The dynamics are different in WDLHA in that everyone there is soaking in the very same cesspool of misery (as in, together). In that way WDLHA is a 4-way play reminiscent of a darker and more depressing version of Closer methinks. But eh, it's adultery .

--
H

[JohnRice]

The trailer for Little Children is indeed quite good. I thought the trailer for In the Bedroom was also excellent, and neither is included on their discs.

Just to continue the aside about We Don't Live Here Anymore, I didn't mean to imply they are the same story, and I'm pretty sure I didn't say they were. I said they were in the same neighborhood and could quite easily be from the same author, but aren't. WDLHA is definitely "Louder" and more charged than Little Children, but the dynamics and situations are quite similar, from a character study perspective. Also, I am rarely a fan of "over the top" acting, but Laura Dern absolutely nailed the portrayal of a woman who is on the brink of losing her mind.

I just think they make interesting companion pieces, much in the same way I think Fiddler on the Roof and Doctor Zhivago do.

[Kevin Grey]

I'll definitely have to look into We Don't Live Here Anymore then. I thought Little Children was absolutely fantastic.