Francois Truffaut was not only a founder of the French New Wave, he was a passionate and keen chronicler of young people, how they grew and evolved and sought purpose in a larger world.
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05/01/09
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The Wild Child (1970)
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Reviews Counted:23
Fresh:23
Rotten:0
Average Rating:8.2/10
Theatrical Release:Nov 7, 2008 Limited
Synopsis: A touching and philosophical film, set in the 18th century and based on the diaries of real-life French doctor Jean Itard. Itard fought authorities for the right to take charge of the social and... [More]
Starring: François Truffaut, Jean-Pierre Cargol, Jean Daste, Paul Ville
Director: François Truffaut
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Reviews for The Wild Child
A fascinating film, with an astonishing performance by young Cargol.
03/13/09
The Wild Child is fascinating not only for its Tarzan-like true-life story, but also for what it says about the process of nurturing and educating children, and the tools we use -- language, discipline, affection -- to do so.
02/19/09
Top CriticTruffaut plays Itard, a representative of the Age of Reason who never questions the benefits of civilization...Truffaut the filmmaker is more suspicious of Itard's motives...
02/13/09
Nearly four decades after its release, The Wild Child remains startling for its humane clarity, for Nestor Almendros's brilliant black-and-white photography, and for the sense that Truffaut is achieving filmmaking mastery on a very small scale.
02/05/09
Top CriticAn enduring film of enchanting and provocative revelation.
01/09/09
Top CriticNearly 40 years after its initial release, Francois Truffaut's The Wild Child (L'Enfant Sauvage) still manages to cast its haunting, poetic spell.
12/18/08
Top CriticTruffaut never upstages the astounding Cargol; both performers underplay in perfect harmony, turning the story into a duet of paternal affection and paradise lost.
11/05/08
Rather than present a clichéd fall from grace, Truffaut elicits ambivalence by closely tracking the Enlightened scientist's optimism; after the fascination, our inchoate sadness seeps in.
11/05/08
Top CriticOffers a reassuring liberal outlook that has the hubris to think that one can cure anyone who is ill with proper education and treatment.
11/03/08
Everybody connected with this unusual, off-beat film made in black-and-white rates kudos.
05/28/08
Top CriticA deeply moving film.
01/26/06
Top CriticNo review available.
11/06/05
No review available.
07/14/05
often overlooked film will stimulate educators and anyone interested in the learning process
04/02/05
It becomes his most thoughtful statement on his favorite subject: The way young people grow up, explore themselves, and attempt to function creatively in the world.
10/23/04
Top CriticNo review available.
01/30/04
Probably the director's most ambitious film, The Wild Child spins a modern myth with resonances...and through it all Truffaut examines the many issues at hand with warmth, concern and wisdom.
07/30/03
Top CriticThe detail of the boy's journey from wild child to surrogate son of the doctor and his housekeeper is authentic and painstaking.
05/24/03
Top CriticThe movie that looks so simple on its surface is dense with such questions, with feelings expressed obliquely, and with moments of tenderness that are as surprising in the film as they are in Itard's formal reports.
05/20/03
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