Sarah (Kate Winslet) sets the scene as a suburban mother who refuses to join the other moms as they natter and chatter endlessly while their children play. She pretends to be an anthropologist as she watches them. It’s deep into the suburbs and she is not in her element.
Sarah holds a masters degree but she now feels stuck in her home caring for little Lucy, and enduring her husbands online infidelities. She loves her child, but the story line boldly announces that she is bored with the drudgery of motherhood.
There is so much more going on inside, especially compared to these park moms. One day the Prom King (Patrick Wilson) wanders into the park with his little boy. He’s a househusband who was a high school heartthrob who the moms fantasize about collectively, and probably individually.
Sarah sees a chance for some fun and introduces herself to him, asking him to play along and kiss her. The three harpies are shocked to the core, as they pack up their kids and flee the park.
Meanwhile, the town is abuzz and on point with the news that a local pedophile (Jackie Earle Haley in a bravura performance) is returning to his mother’s home from prison.
One blistering summer day he takes a dip in the public pool, watching the children underwater and the way its shot, we aren’t sure if he is on the hunt or just swimming. He’s recognized and the pool immediately clears. It’ a surreal scene as the swimmers line the pool and gawk at him, still underwater and unaware.
The police come and throw him out as he pleads ‘I just wanted to cool down’. An ex-cop, who killed a young man in a mall rage, is obsessed with the pedophile and hounds him and his aging mother mercilessly.
Meanwhile, The Prom King is unhappy in his marriage because his wife hates his failure; he’s trying to pass the law bar exams, but hasn’t cracked a book in three months, choosing to watch skateboarders instead. He’s an unrepentant Peter Pan.
And that’s what Sarah likes about him. Soon, they embark on an affair. One interesting night, Sarah, The Prom King and their spouses get together for dinner, it’s excruciating to watch.
This film written and directed by Todd Field is a masterpiece anthology similar to ‘Crash’ in that it centers on one thing, radiating out to destroy peoples lives - the return of the pedophile.
The film is sensationally bold – the mother can’t tolerate her children, the pedophile becomes a deeply sympathetic character, his mother loves him with intelligence, pity and concern, a vigilante manages to carry out his plans despite the fact that everyone knows he’s about to blow open.
It’s a heart breaking study of damage done by infidelity, how it can turn worlds upside down.
You think you can’t take the pain any longer and it gets worse. It’s profoundly, exquisitely raw. The script is dense and brilliant, bringing together disparate elements with ease and wit.
‘Little Children’ sharp and rewarding.
MPAA: Rated R for strong sexuality and nudity, language and some disturbing content.
Your Talkback on this Story