L'Enfant

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L'Enfant

R

2005

1h 35m

Drama

Crime

Romance

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

84%

Tomatometer

113 Reviews

72%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

After giving birth, teenage Sonia (Déborah François) returns home to find that her boyfriend, irresponsible petty criminal Bruno (Jérémie Segard), has sublet their apartment. Sonia tracks Bruno down on the street, and after the couple spends the night together, they decide to start a new life with the baby. But the next morning, Bruno sells their child for cash, sending Sonia into shock. Shaken by her decision to press charges against him, Bruno sets out to retrieve the baby.

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Critics Consensus

The Dardennes continue to excel at presenting works of rigorous naturalism, with detached observations of authentic characters that nevertheless resonate with complex moral issues.

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Adam Nayman

The Ringer

Apr 6, 2020

L'Enfant deals in matters of (organized) crime and punishment without compromising its emotional acuity or spiritual purity.

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Victoria Segal

New Statesman

Sep 26, 2017

L'Enfant shows a world that remains under the radar for most people, yet proves that growing up - however long it takes - is anything but child's play.

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David Ansen

Newsweek

Nov 1, 2007

Unfolding in real time on the scruffy working-class streets of industrial Belgium, this harrowingly intense odyssey charts Bruno's desperate search for redemption.

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Farah Cheded

A Good Movie To Watch

Aug 25, 2023

The Dardenne brothers’ restraint and resolute refusal to moralize about their easily condemnable protagonist open [The Child] up to being a compelling reflective exercise on the limits of redemption.

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David Walsh

World Socialist Web Site

Feb 14, 2021

Their depiction of the bleak conditions provides them a certain credibility, but then the filmmakers largely turn their backs on the implications of those conditions.

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Richard Propes

TheIndependentCritic.com

Sep 13, 2020

3.5/4.0

Further cements the reputation of the Dardennes as innovative and essential filmmakers.

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Scott R

@ScottR May 24, 2026

NYT 1000 films. A realist drama about a young couple trying to make ends meet but living from small transaction to transaction. Then it escalates with their new son. It kept my interest, but was frustrating at the same time. Really not much happened in the movie. RUS.

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Stephen C

@bob25009 Jul 22, 2025

Success in 1 hour and 35 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Rated R for Brief Language!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! In Canadian French and American English audio versions with American English subtitles!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Happy 20th anniversary!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Jerod S

@jeroduptown Sep 29, 2023

The French answer to why you grow up and get married before having kids and why committed relationships are important for society.

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Leaburn O

@RT35452347 Nov 6, 2022

A grimey story of one man's emotionless descent into immorality. Well captured and feels real. A modern French classic.

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dave s

@RT68722908 Aug 4, 2022

It's evident early on that L'Enfant is a film from the Dardenne brothers, from both a style and theme perspective. Sonia (Deborah Francois), a young woman with a newborn, is in love with Bruno (Jeremie Renier), an incompetent petty thief and man-child with no moral compass. When he takes things a step or two too far and sells the baby behind Sonia's back, things take an understandably bad turn in their relationship. It's a story about survival and, ultimately, some form of redemption as the young couple try to come to terms with the course of events. The film loses some steam over the second half as the focus is primarily on the repugnant Bruno as opposed to the more intriguing Sonia, but it remains fairly compelling viewing from the always interesting Dardennes.

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nefasto r

@Nefasto Feb 3, 2019

Another stroke of ultra-realism from the Dardenne brothers, another powerful tale, another very good film. "Take responsibility of your actions": this seem to be the invisible line connecting all of their works, and all the one I saw deserve to be watched.

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Jean-Pierre Dardenne

Director

Luc Dardenne

Director

Jérémie Renier

Bruno

Déborah François

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Jérémie Segard

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Synopsis

After giving birth, teenage Sonia (Déborah François) returns home to find that her boyfriend, irresponsible petty criminal Bruno (Jérémie Segard), has sublet their apartment. Sonia tracks Bruno down on the street, and after the couple spends the night together, they decide to start a new life with the baby. But the next morning, Bruno sells their child for cash, sending Sonia into shock. Shaken by her decision to press charges against him, Bruno sets out to retrieve the baby.

Director: Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne
Producer: Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne, Denis Freyd
Screenwriter: Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne
Production Co: Les Films du Fleuve
Rating: R (Brief Language)
Genre: Drama, Crime, Romance
Original Language: Canadian French
Rerelease Date (Theaters): Mar 24, 2006
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 1, 2012
Runtime: 1h 35m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital

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