City of Lost Children

Released 1995
Stars Daniel Emilfork, Ron Perlman, Judith Vittet, Dominique Pinon, Jean-Claude Dreyfus, Mireille Mousse, Jean-Louis Trintignant (voice)
Directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Marc Caro

The City of Lost Children relates dreams to creativity, youth, and wonder. The capacity to escape the rational world through imagination fuels not only the desire to continue living, but the need to make something out of one's life. In this film, we are introduced the brilliant-yet-warped mad scientist Krank, who is aging prematurely because he cannot dream. In an effort to stay alive, he has begun capturing children to steal their dreams. One of the toddlers abducted by Krank is little Denree, the brother of a simpleminded circus strongman named One. One is joined in his search for his brother by Miette, the nine-year old, wise-beyond-her-years leader of an orphan gang. Together, One and Miette seek to penetrate Krank's fortress; elude his six cloned henchmen (all played by Dominque Pinon), the deadly Miss Bismuth, Irvin the talking brain, and the scientist himself; and rescue Denree. It proves to be a difficult task.

While much of The City of Lost Children is surreal and strange, the film's emotional center -- the relationship between One and Miette -- is nurtured with care and genuine feeling. Miette sees in One and Denree the chance for the family she has never known, although there are times when her intentions towards the older, child-like man seem more romantic than sisterly.

The City of Lost Children won't be to everyone's taste. In fact, even though I thoroughly enjoyed Jeunet and Caro's previous film, it took a while for me to warm up to this effort. The first forty-five minutes are poorly-paced and it's easy to get lost down one of the script's many dark, maze-like alleyways. The film tends to lurch along in fits and starts until Miette becomes established as a central character. From that point on, improvement is immediate and consistent. For those who enjoy the offbeat, The City of Lost Children is worth taking the time and effort to find.

Summary by James Berardinelli