Little Children

Little Children was one of ten or so films that generated a fair share of Oscar-Buzz in 2006, garnering itself three Academy Award nominations, along with several other Golden Globe and S.A.G. nominations. Of all the Oscar-buzzing films that year, Little Children is probably the most American and traditionally Oscar-worthy in terms of how it has presented itself. Like all ‘good’ Oscar-baiting films, it ticks off it’s various requirements… based on a well-received work of literature (check), featuring Oscar-friendly talent (Kate Winslet and Jennifer Connelly, check), shows the disaffection that has poisoned American suburbia and the American dream (check)…

I’m sorry to be overly cynical (not really), but as much as some parts of this film moved and impressed me, there were too many stretches where I found myself thinking, ‘Man, I’ve seen this before.’ I think this movie would’ve really benefited from a stronger focus on the aspects that made it original, rather than the bored and trapped suburban housewife routine that it wheedles through with Kate Winslet. I guess I should go back and start this review at the beginning before I get into my opinion too much…

The Little Children that the title refers can be interpreted to be a reference to the adult characters as much as it might be in reference to their offspring. Sarah Pierce (Winslet, nominated for Best Actress) is the aforementioned bored housewife… she can’t face up to the responsibilities that being a mother has given her, and she dreams of a less monotonous existence. Likewise, Brad (Patrick Wilson), is a stay-at-home dad who can’t bring himself to commit enough to being a lawyer to even pass the bar exam. Instead of studying at the library, he sits outside a skate park and watches the skateboarders, wishing he was young again (and without responsibility). It’s the stories of these two characters that forms the crux of the story. The subplots (and the more interesting parts of the film) concern Ronnie (Jackie Earle Haley, nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar), a recently released sex offender whose existence forms the focal point for the entire neighbourhood’s outrage, and Larry (Noah Emmerich), a disgraced ex-cop with anger issues who seeks to bully Ronnie at every opportunity.

Like I said earlier, it’s these subplots which kept me watching. Ronnie’s story had a depth to it that got barely scratched, and it could’ve made for a more daring and original film had he been focused on more. Instead we get the main plot… the adulterous love affair, the lost opportunities, blah blah blah. Winslet and Wilson are good, but it’s nothing we haven’t seen before. Jackie Earle Haley and Noah Emmerich provide exciting but less-prominent performances, and it was their final scenes in the film that had me crying – not the Winslet-Wilson ending.

The film also has a kind of uneven tone… it was occasionally blackly comic and had a kind of hokey old narration reminiscent of one of those old stop-motion Christmas or Easter specials. I think the film would’ve benefited from running with this more quirky and entertaining approach rather than the lengthy lapses into more straight-forward drama. The themes of responsibility, the future, growing up and abandoning unrealistic dreams wouldn’t have felt so bitter, uninteresting and unbearable either, had the film taken a less orthodox approach (or at least struck a less uneven balance between it’s mesh of tones). Maybe then it might’ve felt more like the melancholy suburban fairytale it should’ve been. It’s not a bad film, there are some quite brilliant scenes (the scene of mass hysteria at the pool comes to mind), I just found it a little lacking and unworthy of all the attention it has gotten.

TRIVIA: Jackie Earle Haley hadn't acted for television or film for about 13 years. His role in Little Children (and subsequent Oscar-nomination) rejuvenated his career completely.

DIRECTOR: Todd Field
WRITER/SOURCE: Written by Todd Field and Tony Perotta, based on the book by Tony Perotta
KEY ACTORS: Kate Winslet, Patrick Wilson, Jackie Earle Haley, Noah Emmerich, Jennifer Connelly, Jane Adams

RELATED TEXTS
- The novel Little Children, on which the film is based.
- Kate Winslet would go on to make Revolutionary Road, another film based on a book about suburban marriage and it's decay.
- The conception and tone of this film owes a lot to American Beauty. Also see Happiness.

AWARDS:
Nominated for three Oscars - Best Actress (Kate Winslet), Best Supporting Actor (Jackie Earle Haley) and Best Adapted Screenplay (Todd Feild and Tony Perotta).
Winslet and Earle Haley both recieved nominations for Golden Globes and a whole slew of other awards, with Earle Haley winning about 6 awards all up for his role.
Patrick Wilson was also nominated by a Best Actor award at two other American film awards ceremonies.