Genres

Visitors Review

Khrushchev 2012-05-16 16:06:47

Surrealist delight requires patience.

A soulless man named Krank who was long ago created by a brilliant butunstable scientist is struggling to remain alive. His inability todream has made him age at an accelerated pace, and the only way he canhalt this process is by stealing the dreams of children. He is aided inthis endeavour by the other creations of the scientist: six identicalgoofy-looking clones, one midget and wide-faced wife named Mrs Bismuth,and a super-intelligent brain which lives in a fish-tank and sees usingan old-school bendable camera lens. Krank appears successful atstealing children's dreams, but he is not a happy man because all thedreams he captures are nightmares by children who are obviouslytraumatized by the kidnapping process.Meanwhile, Krank's hunting ground, the city of lost children, is atreacherous place; Krank's "cyclops" henchmen are always trying tocapture children for his purposes. We follow the story of a young girlnamed Miette (meaning "crumb" in French) who belongs to a small andresourceful gang of children who are exploited by Siamese witch-liketwin sisters who run a school where the children steal for them. Miettebefriends a simple-talking strongman named Mr. One (Ron Perlman, akaHellboy) who is looking for his kidnapped little brother Denree. As thestory progresses, Miette must escape from the clutches of the evilSiamese twin witches, while also helping One find his long-lost Denree.The movie features terrific acting by all involved. Especiallynoteworthy is the high quality of the child actors. Further, althoughthe dialogue is simplified in the subtitles for the sake of easyreading, it is very imaginative. Of special note is the scene where oneof the clones is describing a dream to Krank. Many dialogue quirks helpto give the movie a unique and memorable feel, such as the writer'sfondness for making insults out of calling others the name of anunfavourable animal. City also features great casting, with every actorhaving a look which suits the character ideally (note the onegluttonous and very cute boy). But perhaps the best aspect of the movieis its cinematography. Every shot is done impeccably, and the look andfeel of the movie is very much in the surrealist vein in which thedirectors intended. Make no mistake, this is a full-fledge darkfairy-tale fantasy movie. Finally, the classical score complements themovie very well.If there is anything that detracts from the movie, it would be the lackof focus. The movie hops from one scene to another without allowingenough development of any particular story thread early on. As such, wedon't get a good grasp of what the story is really about until later inthe movie. For many, this will mean the movie will fail to hold theirinterest early on, and they may be tempted to give up. For those thatdon't give up, however, they will find the story to be quitesatisfying. And for those willing to give the movie a second viewing,they may be able to fill all the story gaps that they missed the firsttime around. Much like most Cohen brothers movies, this is one of thosemovies that improves after the first viewing. Also, much like othermovies that improve after first viewing, this is one of those moviesthat makes the top ten on many film-buff's top movies list.The following movies/stories have major similarities to City: Brazil,for its own lack of focus and its similar retro-futuristic feel (notethe hyper-intelligent brain's look as well as the cyclops'); Dark City,for its similar cinematographic style; Frankenstein, for its "scientistcreates something awful and tragic" theme; and Amelie, for itsimaginative similarities stemming from the director in common. TerryGilliam himself made the following comment on City of Lost Children:"the most astounding visuals of 1995, 1996, and possibly 1982." Genre:Fantasy. Verdict: 8/10.

2012-05-16 07:53:31

This One Makes it to My Hall of Fame

I'm very stingy with my HOF rating only a hand full of films achieve this lofty status. The City of Lost Children is most deserving. The cinematography alone makes this one worth watching, one of the most visually stimulating films ever produced. In the tradition of Brazil and A Clockwork Orange this film excites the imagination and provokes the mind. The plot is inventive and original. A must see for all 'thinking' movie goers.

Hegger 2012-05-05 23:26:05

THE BEST!!!

The most creative, stunning, touching film and its the best of course(Inmyopinion). Well one of the best anyways.

2012-05-05 07:51:54

strange

The costumes, characters and strange sets are wonderful. It's very rich, visually, so if you are an artist you will probably appreciate it. The characters are also interesting and so is the story. It's very inspiring - i loved it.

tasunder 2012-04-29 01:34:00

Good Visuals, Terrible Movie

This movie is grossly overrated by the IMDB group. I will grant that thevisuals are outstanding, among the best I've seen. The problem is that Icould watch this movie muted with a strip of cardboard over the subtitlesand enjoy it as much if not *more*. I guess that would only be true ifI'dread a one paragraph summary of the plot (which could probably be fullywritten in one paragraph), but it still stands to me to show that visualscan't make a movie.Stealing dreams, that's slightly intriguing. That's about it. The restofthe writing was complete drivel. Imaginative, yes, but on par with theAvengers in my vote for "most likely to have been written by a team ofuntrained brain-damaged monkeys".I suppose many people can appreciate a movie for more than plot, but whenaplot stinks to high heaven, I can't stand a movie.This is the type of movie they should show in film school when teachingtwodifferent courses: "How to make a great-looking film" and "How not towritea movie".If you want to see some great visuals and the usual supply of *good*movieswith great visuals have been exhausted, see this one. But play a book ontape at the same time instead of trying to follow the plot; no need tooffend your ears and brain.

2012-04-28 14:37:12

Stunning, blackly comic fantasy noir with extra darkly funny bits

Perhaps even darker than Delicatessen, though with arguably less gore, Cityof the Lost Children is in a class of its own in the gorgeous, hideousvisuals oozing across the screen. The fantasy style that made Deli such adelight is turned up to the max, the whole movie shot through with amazinglyintricate weirdness that makes you really believe it was filmed in thesweaty imagination of a visionary lunatic. The story, simple and yetconvoluted as befits a fantasy fairy tale, follows the fantastic,stone-faced Ron Perlman through the clammy greens and sticky browns of anightmare world, inhabited by a delightful collection of freaks andevildoers, trying to save the angelic child from the crazed Emilfork and hisCity of Lost Children, hampered at every turn by the gang of street urchinsand their wicked siamese Fagins. This is just an excuse for the visualexuberance, the fabulous sets and storming camera work that make every frameof this film a must-see. The chain-of-random-events scene is sheer genius ona par with some of the set-ups in Delicatessen, and the tame mosquito isunbelievable. The children are indeed cherubic and perform well, Pinon issuperbly rubber-faced in his multiple roles, and moments of hilarity,suspense and sentiment are well balanced, making this a superb film, aworthy successor to the magnificent Delicatessen and deserving of everyaward in the book. If you don't know French just soak in the voices(whatever you do don't see a dubbed version), let the Pinon's manicsqueaking and just about everyone else's sombre rumbling wash over you,floating you away, like the visuals do, into a wonderful, superbly realisedworld of madness, tragedy and joy. Joy.

2012-04-22 15:18:33

Stimulating

Buyer beware, this film is not for the light hearted not the dim witted. Darkness wrought, this film mixes a delightful solution of French noir with the apokoliptic feel of The Crow:City of Angels.

jcdavis 2012-04-22 03:01:52

Excellent, bizarre film

Have you ever had a dream and didn't really know if it was a bad dream or agood dream? This movie was like that. Strange, dreamlike, sweet, sinister.Ifirst saw it last year and I have now seen it 6 times at least. Its greatfor people who like to call people funny names in French (Legume!). Thesetswere beautiful. The movie was complex and I kept seeing little things thatIhad missed on previous viewings. See it!

2012-04-21 18:49:47

Who will take your dreams away?

This review is from: The City of Lost Children (DVD) THE CITY OF LOST CHILDREN is a fantastic film from visionary directors Caro and Jeunet. Later Jeunet would helm ALIEN RESURRECTION, and they created the fantastic DELICATESSEN. But here is one of their most beloved creations in all its glory! The story centers around a mythical town where small children are being kidnapped by a gang of strange cyclops men with electronic eyes. They are taken to an evil scientist named Krank who is trying to mine their dreams so he can have emotions that make him happy. A small orphan and a circus strongman team up to find the children, and one overly hungry one in particular. Along the way their adventures are painted in big splashy set pieces populated with oddball characters that loom larger than life. The DVD gives you incredible choices! See it in widescreen, dubbed or French, or listen to the revealing commentary with American star Ron Perlman and Jeunet. Fans of BRAZIL and DARK CITY will be delighted. And David Lynch fans may recognize the moody score from Angelo Badalementi. Fashionistas can revel in the incredible costumes from Gaultier!

thebunnycrusher 2012-04-21 12:23:23

One Of A Kind

Truly one of the most bizarre and interesting movies I've ever seen.Everything was perfect. From the strange characters to the weird sets, itall fit together quite well. The children were all perfectly cast and RonPerlman did an excellent job with the French accent.

2012-04-15 09:12:57

another french masterpiece

This film is barly a science fiction film, it's more of a hodge podge of fantasy, old monster movies and fairy tales with many dream and surreal sequances.. City of Lost Children is more like the Wizard of Oz than like the Matrix, but is still dipped in enough science fiction jucies to suit my tastes. The plot revolves around a mad scientist, Krank (Daniel Emilfork), who lives off the coast of a surreal Dickensian French city in an old oil rig. Krank does not have the ability to dream, and as a result he is prematurely old. In order to supplement his dream deficit, Krank kidnaps young children in order to study and extract their dreams. Unfortunately for Krank this is a self-fulfilling curse, as the experience of being kidnapped is so traumatic that the children have only nightmares.In pursuit of this scheme, Krank employs a sinister cult of blind men called "Cyclops" to perform the kidnappings. In return for giving up their sight, the cult's neophytes are given a mechanical "third eye" and a device which makes their hearing unnaturally sensitive. This augmentation is as much a curse as it is a boon; at one point the audience may witness the discomfort of one Cyclops listening to Denree chomp his food.It is revealed that Krank is an artificially created man with superior intelligence. He was created by an inventor who also created six clones, a wife for himself (who later betrayed him), and a migraine-ridden brain in a jar named Irvin for him to interact with. Irvin's voice is supplied by Jean-Louis Trintignant; the Inventor and his clones are all played by Dominique Pinon.The events of the film open with a sideshow strongman named One (Ron Perlman of hellboy fame) witnessing an orphan he cares for, named Denree (Joseph Lucien), being kidnapped by Krank's Cyclops. It later turns out that Denree is a special child, one able to provide Krank with the ability to overcome his condition (due to the fact that Denree has no sense of fear). One sets out to find and rescue his "little brother", with help of a nine-year-old street urchin girl named Miette (Judith Vittet) who holds the screen like no other child actress that I've seen.Also in the film are a pair of Siamese twins known as "The Octopus". They run a thieves' guild in which they train and force orphans (one of whom is Miette) to steal for them. Due to unforseen circumstances, One gets caught up in a the theft of a large safe (which only he can carry). The end result of which is the orphans' failure to completely empty the safe. Annoyed with this failure and Miette's subsequent decision to run off with One (Miette is their best thief) the Octopus seeks to destroy them. To this end they attempt to secure help from their former sideshow employer, whose trained fleas can inject poison into a person's scalp, inducing the victim to commit acts of violence when the flea-master plays his barrel organ and his scenes are the best in the movie. Directed by the french duo of Jeunet & Caro who also did the yummy canniable flick "Delicatessen" (Jeunet later did Alien Reserection and the french film "Amelie") The story telling is wonderful the direction is flawless and the special effects are some of the best you could ever see in the mid 90's cinima. I don't know any one who has seen this film that doen't love it on some level. Yes, there are some confussing elements to it and takes some weird turns but this movie with all it's layers forces the movie goer to fill in the blanks and think outside the box to fully understand the complexites of this film...I've seen it a dozen times and I'm almost there!

Abadeo 2012-04-14 22:37:09

This movie is visually surreal

I disagree with the person who commented that this movie is notsurreal. The movie is visually surreal in many places, but I offerjust one example. Whenever the surface of water appears in thefilm, it has a quality that I've never seen in water. Somehow, it'sbeen excited so there are thousands of tiny wavelets all ofapproximately the same size. (It reminds me of an odd paintingthat I saw in the Getty museum in LA.) If you look at the surface ofthe ocean or a lake, it's usually a continuum of wave sizes. Alsothere doesn't appear to be any direction of motion in the waves asthere would be if they are being driving by the wind. Finally, thesurface of the water is highly reflective and yet the source of thelight reflected from the surface cannot be discerned--the scenesare so dark. It is obvious that the director intended the water tohave this surreal appearance. The director is genius. It is theattention to such small details that makes this film awesome.Excellence is in the details.

70mm MAN 2012-04-13 22:39:52

A Mesmerizing Vision, Stunning

This film is a fantastic trip to a different world. The sets are absolutetlystunning. From the first frame of film we are catapulted into a superblypresented vision of an incredible mind. Very few movies contain such power.Comparative examples would be movies such as "Metropolis", Dark City, andperhaps the "Cirque Du Soleil" genre.The role casting was incredible with some of the most amazing shots ofchildren possibly ever shot on film. The futuristic 'devices' used in themovie are fresh both in concept and simplicity.This film looks stunning and perfect on the new HD Televisions especiallywhen viewed progressively!I place this movie on my top shelf as one of the best visonary experiencingI have ever seen. Kudos to all involved in the production of the movie fromit's screenplay to the last clip of film to be edited. And the score isequally great. I hope someday the edited out scene of capturing a child'stear is put back in, perhaps on a new DVD release!And I certainly would liketo see a sequel.

2012-04-13 13:51:03

STUNNING!

I seen this movie when I went on vacation in Montreal on a french channel and watched it from beginning to end and was instatntly in the hunt to get a copy for my library. The effects in this film are very very good but the story has a weak grip to the viewer and should have offered a bit of more emotional weight. Still if you have a chance to see this film I suggest you do!

2012-04-12 21:42:14

Swiss Army Knife of Movies

Sci-Fi, action, adventure, horror, suspense, comedy, drama & fairy tale...who knew one movie could encompass so much, and do it so easily?I have to say this is my favorite movie of all time. It's perfect in every way. Even the french dialogue just melts away while you're engrossed in watching the film. For me, what put it over the top, among so many other great things, was quite simply the girl. She pours out every scene like I thought only adults could do.To recap, since I don't need to actually EXPLAIN the movie :), before this movie, I'd never seen a foreign film...that was years ago, and MANY foreign films later, and it's still the BEST movie, foreign or otherwise, that I've ever seen as a single piece of cinema (that rules out the LOTR trilogy)

2012-04-12 13:03:44

Hard to find movie found @ Amazon!

City of Lost Children is a great movie that is hard to find due to it being a foreign movie. Thanks to it being available on Amazon @ a good price, I now own the movie.

DisgorgedMenstrualSludge 2012-04-05 09:00:21

Stylish, mesmerizing, and unbelievably strange!

This movie reminded me a lot of Alex Proyas' "Dark City" and FrankHerbert's "Dune"; being one completely bizarre and complex story, bothvisually and psychologically. "City of Lost Children" is a french cultfavorite involving a futuristic society in which kids - preferably ages5 and younger - are kidnapped by a family of clones, freaks, and abrain to be used for dream harvesting... One clone was conceived withan inability to dream, which causes him extreme unhappiness and rapidaging. When the kids are hooked up to some apparatus in their oil rigdomain, it transfer's their dreams to him, presumably reducing theaging process. When one particular child is taken, the non-biologicalbig brother - the strong-man in a sideshow carnival act - enlists thehelp of a gang of young pick-pockets to help him find his brother. Acrazy adventure ensues, including the appearance of some evil,conjoined, twin old ladies who share a leg, a man who uses trainedfleas to take people down, and some deranged Santa Clauses... I reallyliked this flick, just due to the insane concept and the amazinglywhacked out settings. The style and cinematography are excellent, thesepia tone is perfectly utilized and contrasts well with the story andimagery, and the actors are all cast well - including Ron Pearlman, theonly American involved in the movie, whose Simeon brow never ceases toentertain me! Good to see the guy in a movie where he isn't playing amonkey/caveman or a wise-cracking, demon superhero... Daniel Emilforksteals the show, however, as the menacing villain Krank, whose ugly mugperforms one strangely hypnotic and haunting musical number at onepoint... That'll lurk in MY dreams for some time! If you likesci-fi/fantasy-horror flicks than I suggest you DON'T pass up "City ofLost Children".

Joel Turpin 2012-04-04 21:34:40

This movie will dazzle you.

I love this movie! I saw a preview for it on Monty Python and the HolyGrail, of all places, and was intrigued enough to order the DVD. Greatcall. This movie captures the imagination with its completely originalstoryline and incredible visuals. I swear they had to have built an entirecity just for this movie. I don't know how they accomplished it on thetypical budget for a European film.The plot? I don't think I could describe it. Not doing any justice, atleast. A big part of the fun is untangling the many unusual characters andfiguring out how they relate to one another.My favorite subtle trick of the movie? The casting: A horde of perfectlygorgeous children contrasted against the ugliest bunch of adults one couldhope to find (Notable exception - the hot French lady in the bar). Thismovie encourages repeat viewings, as each will lead to a betterunderstanding of the complex, odd world that has been created.9 out of 10.

2012-04-04 06:35:22

A dream...

The movie is presented in such a way that you feel as though you are watching a dream. A twisted dream about emotions amplified to the point of waking you up. But, you don't, you simply fall in love with the camera angles and the characters. The movie is engrossing to say the least and the actors are well bred. The story is pure fantasy and fun. I love the over exaggerated instruments. They add a gothic flavour to the theme. Rest assure that if you like The Crow or anything Tim Burton creates like Sleepy Hollow, you will cherish this film as a classic.

m 2012-04-03 15:00:51

masterpiece

There are few details that would actually need to be corrected in this movieand even so, it might endanger its unique feeling.I once met JC Dreyfus in Paris and we spoke about it.he told me he was unhappy that most peopl focussed on the special effectsrather than the tale in itself.I would have agreed with him if I had known somebody who had actuallyfocussed on such effects which was not the case.