The Selfish Giant

A very human story with some gripping moments of comedy and tragedy. Acting, direction, cinematography, script - all brilliant. An unforgettable film.

I recommend this fascinating interview with director, Clio Barnard, in the Guardian: Clio Barnard: why I'm drawn to outsiders – interview





Feedback score was 82%:

A	Heartbreaking
A	Hard to watch but wonderful performances.
A	Very painful to watch. Quite harrowing.
A	Brilliant. Very moving. Beautifully acted.
A
A	Powerful stuff.
A
A
A	The chairs are very comfy!
A	Shocking but amazing acting. The producer/director must have been incredibly inspiring to get the range of emotions from such young people.
A
A	Masterful storytelling.
B	Powerful, heartbreaking film. Beyond my expectations. Wonderful use of sound and dialogue.
B	An insight into other people's lives.
B	Very well acted, accurate portrayal of life in the most deprived council estates, but too depressing for me. So little hope.
B	Insight into another world.
B	An insight into deprived lives.
B
B	Very thought provoking.
B
B	Excellent child actors.
B	Extremely sad, depressing film.
B	Comic, tragic, moving. Good photography & good use of silence.
B	Lovely photography. Very moving story. Boys acted well.
B	Well acted, powerful film.
B	Grim realism. Sound needs turning up.
B	GOODNESS WHAT A GRAPHIC REPRESENTATION OF HOW THE OTHER HALF LIVES. TWO MORE AMAZING YOUNG PERFORMERS. SORRY TO SAY COULD HAVE DONE WITH SUBTITLES!!
B	Superb acting.
B	Interesting story well acted by the 2 leads. Rather harsh life for those people.
B	Brilliant acting. Didn't enjoy it.
B
C	Powerful, interesting, worth seeing.
C	The ending seemed somewhat incomplete & maybe a bit fantastical.
C	Too quiet.
C	Good gritty Yorkshire acting. Not one for pleasure but realistic and educational
C	Good film but too bleak for me.
C
D	Very harrowing view of society
U	I understand the strengths of the film including wonderful performances. However, I didn't enjoy any aspect of it. Impossible to score

On-line:

IMDB rating 7.4 out of 10:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2304426/

Rotten Tomatoes. Audience rating 81%
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_selfish_giant_2013/

An interesting review by Peter Bradshaw in The Guardian (5 stars): “The Selfish Giant has Ken Loach's Kes in its DNA”
http://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/oct/24/the-selfish-giant-review

Robbie Collin in the Telegraph (5 stars)“So hauntingly perfect is Barnard’s film, and so skin-pricklingly alive does it make you feel to watch it, that at first you can hardly believe the sum of what you have seen: the astonishingly strong performances from her two young, untutored leads; Barnard’s layered script; Mike Eley’s snow-crisp cinematography that makes the streets of Bradford shine.”
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/10063353/Cannes-2013-The-Selfish-Giant-review.html

Clio Barnard interview in the Guardian:
http://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/oct/12/clio-barnard-selfish-giant-interview