This film maybe wasn’t my cup of tea. I found parts of it incredibly sincere and I value sincerity very highly in children’s media. But its virtues, for me, come when the film touches on peer pressure, running and falling (literally!), neglect, and yearning. Those are the things that make up good representational children’s media to me. Kids problems are still problems and even (especially) kids need escapism. We discussed the shifting definitions of childhood in class but I think some of those virtues I mentioned above can be seen in every iteration of a “child.”
Parts of the movie seemed really tapped in and to be a truly affectionate tribute to childhood, but most of it felt more like an experiment of nostalgia for the filmmaker rather than an example of “good” children’s media. I guess I just think it was a little more self serving than the director would care to admit.
The film reminds me of Loren Bouchard and Brendon Small’s Adult Swim show, Home Movies (1999-2004). The show is centered around an 8 year old named Brendon and his friends who make movies in their spare time. The kids deal with a lot of very realistic problems including divorce, under-employed parents, etc. The show is animated using macromedia flash animation which really emphasizes the homemade, backyard aesthetic.
Brendon’s films offer the trio an entertaining and creative escape and sometimes seem like a metaphor for needing to escape. The children in Son of Rambow are also finding liberation from their grim circumstances by making art. From a formalist standpoint mixing in the DIY shots of their home movie maybe shows the audience, more specifically the child audience that making media is accessible for all kids. Anyone, even you, can make movies.
I think most children think cinematically because their imaginations are so powerful at this age. Personally, the whole movie could’ve just been the kid’s remake and I think it would’ve been just as powerful. I love the DV tape look. People assume that a homemade aesthetic will make a lesser art because of production value; “It’s funny because it’s so bad!” which I don’t agree with that at all. It proves resourcefulness and sincerity. Their home movie isn’t just cute, it’s crucial! Children are resourceful and creative and have so many limitations but push themselves to make things they like and enjoy anyway. Being a kid is hard! Kids in the film (and out) face trials just like adults do but don’t necessarily have the resources or the “freedom” to really solve those problems like grown ups can. A lot of the time, kids just have to suck it up and deal.
Two moments of the film were particularly touching to me. Kids have social hierarchies. The reveal of Didier’s normal life (as seen on the bus back to France) was heartbreaking. Oh! What it’s like to be a king! That was the best manifestation of the Henry Jenkins quote we discussed in class. Childhood itself is a “transitional (and fragile) moment in our life cycle”. Always changing who we are. Being malleable and protean and ductile.
The second moment for me was the final line of the film spoken by Poulter, “This has been my best day of all time” which could only be sincerely stated by a child their age. I think sincerity is one of the greatest virtues of children’s media.
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