Little Children

Todd Field reminds us in his movie that although children are typically authentic and genuine, they often grow into adults who aren't. We humans are odd in that we like to project proper normalcy, but we tend to live with secrets.

Secrets of desire and of need. And secret fantasies about being something other than what we are.

We can pretend to be like we think everyone else is for short amounts of time each day, but once we close the door behind us after a hard days work, the strange comes out.

Little Children is a fascinating look into the lives of several people who live in an upper middle class neighborhood. Each lives his or her public life in a way they think others expect, only to engage privately in activities considered dysfunctional. Most of it involves lust, but there's always an underlying obsessive need to feel different that's common for each character in the story.

Kate Winslet and Patrick Wilson are Sarah and Brad, two lonely thirty-somethings married to other people who find temporary comfort with each other. Larry, played by Noah Emmerich, lives a life that is falling apart day-by-day, causing him to search frantically for something that makes him feel useful, and manly. Jackie Earle Haley (you remember him from The Bad News Bears) is Ronnie, a sex offender who can't seem to overcome his obsession.

Each desperately attempts to appear normal, and each can for short periods of time. Ultimately, though, it takes some pretty dramatic events to make each reach a moment of clarity and find their authentic selves again.

Little Children is a well done movie. It feels creepy, even during times it's not, and the acting is terrific. It's a three star flick you gotta see.