Comments on: Kids these days

By: Suzi Doll

Suzi Doll — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 01:29:01 +0000

Shirley Temple aside, I am a crankypants when it comes to children on film. Sometimes their performances are created by great editing. Cross-cutting between a good adult actor and the child actor in shot/reverse shot makes the performance of the child seem better. The viewer adds emotional weight to the kid’s shots because of the way one shot is juxtaposed with another. The same trick is used to construct performances for animal “actors” to make them seem like they are feeling an emotion they logically are not, but the juxtaposition of the shot of the dog with one of a kid tugs at our heart. It’s the same principle as the old Kuleshov experiment from the Russian silent era. The manipulative power of editing can never be overestimated.

By: morlockjeff

morlockjeff — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 04:57:17 +0000

This is a wonderful topic and great writing as usual. I guess I have to sign up for Netflix again and catch up on some of these movies I have ignored. Three of the films I’m familiar with and have seen – I particularly love LET THE RIGHT ONE IN and THE ORPHANAGE. I’d add the serious-faced little kid from ARIEL, the sparse Aki Kaurismaki fable in which your heart sails away with the emigrant family at the end, and the tough, Down Under feral kid from THE ROAD WARRIOR.

By: kingrat

kingrat — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 23:08:01 +0000

James Rovello’s performance as Richie, Julianne Moore’s son in THE HOURS (2003) has haunted me ever since I saw that film. A heart-wrenching performance, a world apart from all the smart-aleck sitcom kids.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 17:58:25 +0000

Thanks for the recommendation of Chop Shop, Jerry... that's what these posts do best, bring people out to provide their own recommendations. I'd love to hear more. Both juvenile performances were great in Let the Right One In and I only singled out Lina Leandersson because of her singular character arc, which had to combine knowing and naivete (or at least the illusion of it). That choice certainly wasn't meant to disparage the performance of Kare Hedebrant, whose angry loner had a lot of resonance for me.

By: Jerry Kovar

Jerry Kovar — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 12:43:43 +0000

Kare Hedebrant’s Oskar in “Let the Right One In” should also be signaled out. Two extraordinary performances in a brilliant film.

I’d also like to recommend Alejandro Polanco trying to survive the backstreets of Queens NY in “Chop Shop”. Jerry Kovar