The young actors give fantastic performances across the board. I did chuckle at the review that mentioned the boy who got his ear bitten off reacting like "oh I have no ear now" because that is spot on, BUT, the young actor showed plenty of range apart from that, so in this case I'll happily accept the explanation that "some kids respond to trauma by showing no emotion" which is a very overused excuse in other programmes/ films but valid here.
The sexualisation really is too much - I can see it working in a novel and I have no problem with kids having a sexuality but I'm fairly sure you can express that on camera without slow-panning across actual pubescent children arses and what my Mum would call "cossie lines" Phrases like "the male lens" can often be hard to define but I would point to this as a modern example - young girl is punished and humiliated in her family home? Got to pan down to that bright blue arse, so we can all feel her anger and defiance and also pre-pubescent thigh gap.
Bums aside, the main actress is exceptionally good but I think she has got some recognition already so I want to highlight how much I enjoyed young Anna's understated performance (just checked and both her and baby Astor's credits list just one name? But it would be very unusual not to substitute a pair of twins and baby Astor's face screams "twins" to me. I could be wrong though)
Anyway I thought young Anna was played very well. I could feel the frustration coming off her at how perceived injustice was considered brattiness, and in the scene where her dad dies she barely moves but her eyes are acting more than a lot of adult actors.
I gave this 8/10 because the young actors deserve a 10 and the music is gorgeous, but at least one adult on set is enjoying it for the wrong reasons.
The sexualisation really is too much - I can see it working in a novel and I have no problem with kids having a sexuality but I'm fairly sure you can express that on camera without slow-panning across actual pubescent children arses and what my Mum would call "cossie lines" Phrases like "the male lens" can often be hard to define but I would point to this as a modern example - young girl is punished and humiliated in her family home? Got to pan down to that bright blue arse, so we can all feel her anger and defiance and also pre-pubescent thigh gap.
Bums aside, the main actress is exceptionally good but I think she has got some recognition already so I want to highlight how much I enjoyed young Anna's understated performance (just checked and both her and baby Astor's credits list just one name? But it would be very unusual not to substitute a pair of twins and baby Astor's face screams "twins" to me. I could be wrong though)
Anyway I thought young Anna was played very well. I could feel the frustration coming off her at how perceived injustice was considered brattiness, and in the scene where her dad dies she barely moves but her eyes are acting more than a lot of adult actors.
I gave this 8/10 because the young actors deserve a 10 and the music is gorgeous, but at least one adult on set is enjoying it for the wrong reasons.