Little Children is one of those films that is good, but probably should have been better. The film follows a small group of suburbanites looking for love and happiness in their dreary existence. Nothing new is really explored here, but the characters are interesting and the acting is worth mentioning. Not a must see by any means, but odds are it’s as good, if not better, as what is playing next door.
Little Children
3 & 1/2 Stars
Todd Field‘s film follows a group of suburbanites, each with desires and needs that aren’t being fulfilled, in need of something more. The film is an ensemble piece about a group of people, all fragile and broken in some way, all searching, and yearning, to be loved.
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Sarah (Kate Winslet) married to man (Gregg Edelman) who largely ignores her, who prefers to fantasize and masturbate to an Internet porn model, as she struggles to deal with raising her young daughter (Sadie Goldstein) and living in suburbia, which she views disdainfully as something akin to prison.
Brad (Patrick Wilson) is a stay-at-home dad of a young son (Ty Simpkins), unable to pass the state bar to get his license to practice law. His wife (Jennifer Connolly) slowly, and possibly without meaning to, is chipping away at his self-esteem and self-worth.
The two discover each other on a local playground where a friendship develops, but a yearning for more is obvious.
Ronald (Jackie Earle Haley) is a sex offender living in the neighborhood with his mother (Phyllis Sommerville). The other suburbanites are less than thrilled with the situation.
Larry (Noah Emmerich) is a former cop with his own family woes and dark past, and an obsession with removing Ronald from the neighborhood and making it safe for the children
These stories converge together with moderate success. Think Crash, but just white people in suburbia. I could have done without the Ronald storyline which only exists on the periphery for the main characters, but is explored in his own story (though, not well) at the cost of the film. Despite getting his own subplot and a decent amount of screentime, we never really learn about Ronald. Is he evil? Is he simply disturbed? Is he sorry for what he has done? The narrator gives us clues into the other characters thoughts and lives but is oddly absent in Ronald’s case.
The film was adapted from the Tom Perrotta novel, and includes an omniscient narrator who is not present in the story. This is a problem. The narrator comes and goes and gives us insight to most, but not all of the characters, and often disappears for long stretches of time. It also gives us insight to the thoughts and feelings of the characters, which the script itself doesn’t allow the actors to adequately portray. I’m not sure, but I would venture to guess that reading the novel would be preferable to seeing the film.
The themes here aren’t exactly new to fans of American Beauty and The Ice Storm (both better films) and the like. Still the mood and performances of the piece are worth acknowledging, and the film, even if it does derail itself at times, provides an interesting world to spend a couple of hours.