Little Children (2006)
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An unhappy housewife finds herself entangled in a complicated affair with a married neighbor in a suburban setting.
The story
Sarah Pierce is an unhappy housewife living in suburban Boston with her husband, Richard, and their daughter, Lucy. Their marriage begins to crumble after Sarah discovers Richard's addiction to Internet pornography. Her life takes a turn when she meets Brad Adamson, a married man who is also struggling with his domestic life. The two begin a flirtation that starts with a daring kiss in a park. They eventually begin meeting at a local public pool under the guise of play dates for their children, leading to a growing intimacy that threatens their respective domestic lives and relationships.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Sarah Pierce lives in suburban Boston with her husband Richard and daughter Lucy. Their marriage deteriorates after Sarah discovers Richard's addiction to pornography. She meets Brad Adamson, a married man with a son, and the two begin a clandestine affair, initially meeting at a public pool. Amidst their affair, a local sex offender named Ronnie J. McGorvey is caught at the pool. Meanwhile, Brad's wife, Kathy, becomes suspicious of his behavior and invites Sarah's family over. A local man named Larry Hedges, obsessed with Ronnie, causes a tragedy that leads to the death of Ronnie's mother. On the night Sarah and Brad plan to run away together, a series of accidents occurs: Brad is injured in a fall, and Sarah finds her daughter Lucy alone in a park where she encounters the distraught Ronnie. The film concludes with a chaotic sequence where Larry finds Ronnie dying after he has self-mutilated, while Kathy arrives at the hospital to find Brad.
- First release year
- 2006
- Runtime (minutes)
- 136
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Todd Field
- Writers
- Todd Field · screenplay; Tom Perrotta · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Kate Winslet · Sarah Pierce; Jennifer Connelly; Patrick Wilson · Brad Adamson; Jackie Earle Haley; Noah Emmerich; Gregg Edelman; Phyllis Somerville
- Genres
- satirical melodrama; psychological drama; romantic drama
- Themes
- adultery; suburban life; parenting; addiction
- Tone and mood
- unflinching; humane
- Premise and plot tags
- suburban drama; affair; psychological drama
- Source material / true-story basis
- 2004 novel by Tom Perrotta
- Reception
- The film was well-received and favorably reviewed by critics.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 81% · scale: percentage · review count: 159; Metacritic · score: 75 · scale: 100 · review count: 34
- Awards and nominations
- Academy Award · Best Actress · nomination; Academy Award · Best Supporting Actor · nomination; Academy Award · Best Adapted Screenplay · nomination
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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