L’enfance nue (Naked Childhood)
Directed by Maurice Pialat
Written by Arlette Langmann and Maurice Pialat
1968/France
IMDb link
First viewing/Criterion Channel
[box] Nobody became an actor because he had a good childhood. – William H. Macy[/box]
Maurice Pialat’s feature film debut is a sensitive study of childhood rebellion.
Ten-year-old Francois is abandoned by his mother to a home for “wayward children.” It’s not clear that his father was ever in the picture. In his confusion and rage, he acts out continually. Subsequently, he is shuttled from one foster care home to another as his new-found families discover they cannot control him. He finds one filled with love and continues to be unable to cope.
I enjoyed this sad and beautiful film. Pialat has a special touch with children reminiscent of Francois Truffaut, who co-produced.
