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Every day, all summer long, the stay-at-home moms in a small suburban Massachusetts community bring their kids to the neighborhood park. The kids play together and have their snack at the exact same time every day, and the moms sit together and gossip. Sarah Pierce (Kate Winslet) is the one mom who just doesn’t fit in. She isn’t nearly as fashion-conscious or gossipy or meticulously organized as the other moms. And though she loves her daughter dearly, the whole stay-at-home mom thing just isn’t really for her—and she spends her whole day looking forward to the time when her husband, Richard (Gregg Edelman) comes home from work, so she can go for a walk with one of her neighbors.
One day, however, Sarah meets Brad Adamson (Patrick Wilson), and everything changes. Brad, who was previously known to the moms at the park as The Prom King, is the mysterious and handsome dad whom they admired from afar. But he and Sarah, the two outcasts, quickly strike up a friendship after an awkward first meeting—though their friendship isn’t entirely just platonic. As Sarah tries to find something to make her feel like more than a mom again—and as Brad tries to find something that makes him happy—the two find each other.
At the same time, the community is in an uproar over the recent release of Ronald James McGorvey (Jackie Earle Haley), after serving time for indecent exposure to children. McGorvey’s return to the neighborhood worries parents—and it becomes the obsession of unemployed cop, Larry (Noah Emmerich).
But Little Children isn’t a movie about child molesters. It’s about parents and children. It’s about trying to do what’s right and trying to do what feels right. And it’s about weaknesses and mistakes and second chances. The characters come to life on screen—and if they’re not people you immediately recognize from your own acquaintances, they’re people you’ll grow to understand, or at least feel for. They have (sometimes dangerous) flaws that they just can’t seem to change. They struggle with their weaknesses. They make mistakes. And writer/director Todd Field doesn’t villainize them or romanticize them. He just tells their story. Kate Winslet gives a spectacular performance, as does Jackie Earle Haley (whom you might remember from the ‘70s Bad News Bears movies)—and both are definitely deserving of the awards and nominations they’ve received for their roles.
The story is far from the heavy tale I’d expected (though the end is still pretty heavy—not to mention a bit disturbing), and there’s even a touch of humor from time to time to keep things light. The believable suburban story has a bit of an American Beauty feel to it—though I’d even go so far as to say that I found Little Children to be more interesting and more moving than its Oscar-winning predecessor.
Little Children is a film that takes a while to digest. It’s not an especially upbeat film, nor is it always easy to watch—but it’s a compelling film with a powerful conclusion.
