critics consensus

Jackanory-esque voiceover from Winslet lends a syrupy tone to this mawkish and slow, but beautifully shot, human/beastie buddy movie. Read critic reviews

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The Fox and the Child Photos

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Movie Info

The story of a 10-year-old girl and a mountain fox who form a magical bond while traveling through the wilderness. Set against an array of stunning French and Italian backdrops, this tale follows the unlikely duo as they get lost in caves, encounter a fleet-footed lynx, an eagle, slippery frogs, and a pack of mean-looking wolves, while all the time the seasons change.

Rating:

G
Genre:

kids and family, drama
Original Language:

French (France)
Director:

Luc Jacquet
Producer:

Yves Darondeau, Christophe Lioud, Emmanuel Priou
Writer:

Luc Jacquet, Eric Rognard, Luc Jacquet, Eric Rognard
Release Date (Streaming):

Jun 2, 2009
Runtime:

1h 36m
Production Co:

Bonne Pioche Télévision

Cast & Crew

Bertille Noël-Bruneau
L'enfant

Isabelle Carré
Narrator, L'enfant adulte

Thomas Laliberté
Le petit garçon

Luc Jacquet
Director

Luc Jacquet
Screenwriter

Eric Rognard
Screenwriter

Show all Cast & Crew

Critic Reviews for The Fox and the Child

All Critics (30) | Top Critics (12) | Fresh (15) | Rotten (15)

The result is Nature seen through the eyes of a solitary and fanciful child with Jacquet intensifying the theatricality of it all by playing around with scale, amplifying every sound and raising the wildlife count.

July 17, 2009 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…

Sandra Hall
Sydney Morning Herald
The Fox and the Child is more than a wildlife documentary. It invites us to contemplate alternative worlds of sensation and experience, to enter the consciousness of other species, to explore our contacts with them.

July 17, 2009 | Rating: 3.5/5 | Full Review…

Evan Williams
The Australian
There's plenty of scope for sentimental tears, but I hope most children will go away with something punchier - a longing to observe the natural world in this much detail, and a new respect for the difference between owning something, and loving it.

July 10, 2009 | Full Review…

Ruth Hessey
MovieTime, ABC Radio National
It's very beautiful, but it's so contrived.

July 8, 2009 | Rating: 2.5/5 | Full Review…

David Stratton
At the Movies (Australia)
Children will undoubtedly adore the film, and the local tourist board will probably have to take its phones off the hook.

August 8, 2008 | Rating: 3/5

Derek Malcolm
London Evening Standard
Kate Winslet does a syrupy voice-over to this bedtime story, but given what we know of foxes, it's a tough one to swallow.

August 8, 2008 | Rating: 2/5 | Full Review…

Anthony Quinn
Independent (UK)
The photography is stunning, and the essential sweetness of the story should ensure that younger audiences at least are riveted.

March 30, 2020 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…

David Aldridge
Radio Times
Sure, it's important to teach children the difference between wild and tame animals, but is this a lesson that modern suburban children, who barely see a squirrel, should learn like this?

February 10, 2019 | Full Review…

Sarah Manvel
Cinemattraction
A gentle, rambling adventure in the wild.

January 3, 2011 | Rating: 3.5/5 | Full Review…

Don Groves
sbs.com.au
Falls shy of being either a captivating tale for kids or an enlightening documentary for adults.

July 30, 2009 | Rating: 3/5

Anders Wotzke
Moviedex
Luc Jacquet doesn't do great narration, but he does animals really well.

July 8, 2009 | Rating: 3.5/5 | Full Review…

Margaret Pomeranz
At the Movies (Australia)
A strange mix of doco/fairy tale, this film does have beautiful cinematography but is let down by inconsistencies in tone.

July 7, 2009 | Full Review…

Amy Wheeler
FILMINK (Australia)

View All Critic Reviews (30)

Audience Reviews for The Fox and the Child

Dec 27, 2010

His previous film "March of The Penguins" was an impressive nature programme, on a par with David Attenborough. This time director Luc Jacquet attempts more of the same but combines the nature side with a fictional fairy-tale narrative. It tells the very basic story of a little girl living ruraly who befriends a fox. At first, the relationship between them is obviously strained but they grow to trust one another and strike up a real heartfelt affinity. Jacquet's follow-up to his very successful first outing definitely has similair visual splendor and some very impressive interactive footage of the little girl and the fox. However, the story is whimsical and the little girl becomes quite frustrating in her stupidity in attempting to domesticate the wild animal. Kate Winslet's VoiceOver is a tad on the twee side also and becomes too sugary sweet. The visuals are excellent though, with some stunning cinematography and beautiful landscapes and even if its not an entirely successful amalgamation, it's still a fine attempt at one. Childish but charming.

Mark W Super Reviewer
Jan 26, 2010

The little girl in this movie was an adorable red-haired pixie who I fell in love with at once. She was almost as fun to watch as the foxes and beautiful European landscapes. It was an adventure to follow the vixen and her pups wherever they went. I was enjoying the movie until the last portion. It was so real that I set out to find out if any animals were harmed during the making of the film. It was disturbingly convincing even though the credits assure me the foxes are safe. After I find out the fox isn't really dead in the end, I'm still left with a nasty aftertaste in my mouth. The moral at the end is bleak and abrupt.

Dannielle A Super Reviewer
Jan 02, 2010

Christ I dont know where to begin? This very beautiful tale of a girl becoming friend with a Fox and tries to make it a Home Pet is very adventurous. Not only Kids will adore this Movie but it will even steal Adults hearts. It is Magical without any animations or any special stuff. The Narration made it even more beautifull. For one and a half hour you ll completely forget the world around you, if you love the Nature and the Adventure Movies! Plot: A young girl of about 10 years lives in a farm house in the jurassic mountains in eastern France. One day in autumn, when she walks to school through the forest, she observes a hunting fox. Of course, the fox escapes, but the girl yearns for meeting the animal again. She spends most of her free time in the forests trying to find the fox during the following months. But she never meets the fox again before winter comes. During the winter, she follows fox's traces far across the fields. Suddenly she is alarmed by the howling of wolves near of her, she runs away panically, falls and hurts her ankle. The ankle heals very slowly, so that she has to stay at home during the winter reading book about animals of the forrest and foxes. When spring arrives, the girl is looking for fox kennels and waits for a fox. The fox has got young ones and moves kennel because of her observations; therefore the girl decides to observe the fox from a longer distance. She finds the fox again and tries to get the animal accustomed to her. She feeds it with meat. Later she can even touch the fox and is led to the new kennel. Finally she wants to keep the fox the animal as a tame pet in her house, but the fox refuses to do so and escapes by jumping through the closed window breaking the glass. The fox is hurt badly, but survives and the girl learn that she cannot keep wild animals as pets at home.

Wahida K Super Reviewer
Aug 12, 2009

i didnt like march of the penguins which was directed or produced by the same person although interesting it just wasnt as good as i thought it might be and this is te same altough i love the relatioship and the scenery and the fantastic photography it just isnt my type of movie with nly winslet narrating and all scenes are a child a fox and a wood messing about although cute sweet and aww factor it just wasnt my type of movie and just bored me! If you like those type of movies then you'l love this !

Film C Super Reviewer