I went to see the Kid with a Bike knowing just the basic story, and that it was a film by the famous Dardenne brothers. I haven't seen any of their other work, like La Promesse or L'Infant, but I was hoping to get an idea of their style from this film. The film's narrative starts out very strong, almost relentless: 10-year-old Cyril Catoul has been abandoned by his dad, and he wants him back.
Cyril will do anything to find his dad, running away from his state-run orphanage, lie, fight, anything, despite mounting evidence that his father wants nothing to do with him. He meets Samantha, a hairdresser who agrees to take him in on weekends while he searches for his dad.
The directors do a good job of showing Cyril's disintegration as he realizes his dad wants no part of him, but this all happens within the first half of the film. I found the latter half where Cyril is seduced into a local gang and then commits a crime to be less engaging, and the ending, though hopeful, seems a bit off. Also, I wish the film had spent more time on why Samantha wants so badly to help Cyril. There's very little background given on her character. All throughout though,
Thomas Doret does excellent work as Cyril, but I'd say this is definitely more of a rental, not worth the price of theater admission unless you're a real Dardenne aficionado.
Cyril will do anything to find his dad, running away from his state-run orphanage, lie, fight, anything, despite mounting evidence that his father wants nothing to do with him. He meets Samantha, a hairdresser who agrees to take him in on weekends while he searches for his dad.
The directors do a good job of showing Cyril's disintegration as he realizes his dad wants no part of him, but this all happens within the first half of the film. I found the latter half where Cyril is seduced into a local gang and then commits a crime to be less engaging, and the ending, though hopeful, seems a bit off. Also, I wish the film had spent more time on why Samantha wants so badly to help Cyril. There's very little background given on her character. All throughout though,
Thomas Doret does excellent work as Cyril, but I'd say this is definitely more of a rental, not worth the price of theater admission unless you're a real Dardenne aficionado.