When adults are cast in child roles, the future of child cinema?

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Rich_Visiting
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When adults are cast in child roles, the future of child cinema?

Post by Rich_Visiting »   0 likes

Decided to have a look around at some of the old websites that are still active to see the current trends with child movies. It's unbelievable, on a website for child films (international film festival releases non-US) I would say that at least 50% have adults cast as children. That is, in the forward to the film they say something like "young girl" but the girl is clearly like 18 years old. This was generally a US trend, I think, to avoid confusing the male audience with a child cast who exhibits some form of identity. It's easier to think, oh she's just a child rather than consider someone with similar emotions to an adult.

The others that say "little girl" really mean it and they are like around 7 years old (or younger). Here, they are depicted as "cheeky" and "cute" and are girls are generally chosen that have typical non-emotive child-like features, curly hair, glasses, ginger. The outfits are usually boy-like in nature.

The outfits and depiction of girls is really important to understand, consider Hermione Granger in Harry Potter for an example. See how they gave her baggy clothing and made her hair kind of outward and geekyish in the first few movies, then as she gets older the hair becomes slicker and the clothing becomes tighter (or lower cut). I find this really interesting (if annoying). Why was this done? Clearing it's not representative of children in real life that age, but seems a common trend throughout US movies.

Casting 8 to 13 year olds has always been difficult especially in more serious films with meaningful content, it seems that age range is now restricted to some circus act with no plot and "sassy" girls with attitude (of course entirely politically correct; multi-ethnic and overwhelmingly more of the girls are stronger than boys type empowerment storyline). I didn't come back to complain lol but I thought this may be an interesting talking point.

The worrisome aspect is that, what would be considered 2nd World countries, now seem to have adopted US style ideologies and children simply aren't portrayed in a realistic light. It seems the film producers today are airing on the side of caution and just casting stereotypical roles for children that will appeal to both adults and children. Then, the intent of the story is not to identify and enjoy the character of the film but a lesson political correctness.

I probably missed some good movies in my absence that probably go against the above, or is my initial feeling on this correct? Anyone else notice this?
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Sully23
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Re: When adults are cast in child roles, the future of child cinema?

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I remember a case of a film by Nicolas Cage in the one actress playing his daughter was 22 years old but making the daughter is 14, the question is; There was no casting or an actress found the role for the role of daughter, or I guess the director also considered it best not to give that role to a teenage girl.

Another one that caught my attention was the brother of Hannah Montana, Jason earles at 28, playing a teenager of 16 (I was not sure I was finishing high school) and I never realized because he was short and the hairstyle made him look like a teenager and can The same thing happened with the previous case of Cage's daughter.
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Rich_Visiting
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Re: When adults are cast in child roles, the future of child cinema?

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Sully23 wrote:I remember a case of a film by Nicolas Cage in the one actress playing his daughter was 22 years old but making the daughter is 14, the question is; There was no casting or an actress found the role for the role of daughter, or I guess the director also considered it best not to give that role to a teenage girl.

Another one that caught my attention was the brother of Hannah Montana, Jason earles at 28, playing a teenager of 16 (I was not sure I was finishing high school) and I never realized because he was short and the hairstyle made him look like a teenager and can The same thing happened with the previous case of Cage's daughter.

Hmm at first I thought it may be Dominique Swain :heart in Face Off (1997) but she was 17 at the time of filming, great movie btw 8-) But I agree and it seems to happen more and more these days. I've heard several arguments that it is easier to work with adults rather than young girls / teenagers, perhaps also the work regulations are difficult to deal with(?). But other than that it just seems strange and I'm suprised more people don't question it :naughty
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Re: When adults are cast in child roles, the future of child cinema?

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Rich_Visiting wrote: quote]
Hmm at first I thought it may be Dominique Swain :heart in Face Off (1997) but she was 17 at the time of filming, great movie btw 8-) But I agree and it seems to happen more and more these days. I've heard several arguments that it is easier to work with adults rather than young girls / teenagers, perhaps also the work regulations are difficult to deal with(?). But other than that it just seems strange and I'm suprised more people don't question it :naughty
Hahahahaha Dominique Swain first thought of Lolita and it is true that according to the book the girl is 12y but in the film they increased to 14 and see if that film was made in Italy would be a successor to Eva ionesco or another 'L'inmoralita'.

Going back to Dominique Face off is not so because I would easily mention Jonh Travolta, he both shares the lead until you even know who the 'hero' is.

That Cage movie that I'm referring to is not the name it might be National Treasure but I do not think it's a movie between 1996 and 2000 and the plot I only remember was not a Thriller.
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Re: When adults are cast in child roles, the future of child cinema?

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There is a German film is apparently adolescent and the name I have translated but it is more comfortable to have the original title but it was the year 2000 in it narrates 1 boy and his sister have 'relacion' (it is an incest but I'm not sure if they were brothers or putative but it seemed a summer love and also incest scares me) that movie incredibly does not appear in RFF because the girl is adult (I think the 25 made the role) and although there are no 'amorous' scenes just leave that it seems that if they had something she had to do some topless, my conclusion to the director maybe seemed appropriate to find adult actors played as teenagers.

This theme does not mean it is being applied because if they had to make a remake of Houndog just to name that there are more films, it would be a small girl because if it were an adult the essence would not be the same and the movie would be a fiasco, if it would be Maladolescenza would not surprise me since it would be a juvenile triangle to not be so controversial.

And as I myself said the casting in which a director looks for children actors if it would be for children there is a role for the age of 10 would look for one of 9 or 12 but more adult that does not hit, but often either because none fit or because it was a little bit older but the audition happened are decisions of the director
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Re: When adults are cast in child roles, the future of child cinema?

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"When adults are cast in child roles, the future of child cinema ?"

It's not new, it may be started with the film Lolita, a total failure imho. But in the modern US movies industry, not sure there is a trend to replace kids, even in stories where there is a special relationship between an adult and a child: Lamb, 12 and Holding, Tideland,… amazing films if you consider the global hysteria.
Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. Lo-lee-ta.
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Re: When adults are cast in child roles, the future of child cinema?

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Adults in child roles... it may have something to do with laws that regulate working conditions
But what about the midgets on those roles? How common is that?
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Re: When adults are cast in child roles, the future of child cinema?

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Sully23 wrote:
Rich_Visiting wrote: quote]
Hmm at first I thought it may be Dominique Swain :heart in Face Off (1997) but she was 17 at the time of filming, great movie btw 8-) But I agree and it seems to happen more and more these days. I've heard several arguments that it is easier to work with adults rather than young girls / teenagers, perhaps also the work regulations are difficult to deal with(?). But other than that it just seems strange and I'm suprised more people don't question it :naughty
...That Cage movie that I'm referring to is not the name it might be National Treasure but I do not think it's a movie between 1996 and 2000 and the plot I only remember was not a Thriller.
The original movie Sully was referring to, I'm pretty sure, was Matchstick Men where Nicholas Cage was a con artist with a 14 year old daughter played by Alison Lohman who was roughly 22/23 at the time of filming..

kev.
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Re: When adults are cast in child roles, the future of child cinema?

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kev wrote:The original movie Sully was referring to, I'm pretty sure, was Matchstick Men where Nicholas Cage was a con artist with a 14 year old daughter played by Alison Lohman who was roughly 22/23 at the time of filming..

.
That is should be the movie as I said the daughter of 14 played by a twenty years old actress would not surprise me either because the casting there was no girl teenager will win the role or because there are issues that seem to be not for a girl young but in the end that will be a discussion will not end
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Re: When adults are cast in child roles, the future of child cinema?

Post by Rich_Visiting »   0 likes

Tiny Blondie wrote:"When adults are cast in child roles, the future of child cinema ?"

It's not new, it may be started with the film Lolita, a total failure imho. But in the modern US movies industry, not sure there is a trend to replace kids, even in stories where there is a special relationship between an adult and a child: Lamb, 12 and Holding, Tideland,… amazing films if you consider the global hysteria.
Fairly new for non-US films, they are now following a US based theme unfortunately
kev wrote:
Sully23 wrote:
Rich_Visiting wrote: quote]
Hmm at first I thought it may be Dominique Swain :heart in Face Off (1997) but she was 17 at the time of filming, great movie btw 8-) But I agree and it seems to happen more and more these days. I've heard several arguments that it is easier to work with adults rather than young girls / teenagers, perhaps also the work regulations are difficult to deal with(?). But other than that it just seems strange and I'm suprised more people don't question it :naughty
...That Cage movie that I'm referring to is not the name it might be National Treasure but I do not think it's a movie between 1996 and 2000 and the plot I only remember was not a Thriller.
The original movie Sully was referring to, I'm pretty sure, was Matchstick Men where Nicholas Cage was a con artist with a 14 year old daughter played by Alison Lohman who was roughly 22/23 at the time of filming..

kev.
Ahhh of course cheers kev !
ferdi111 wrote:Adults in child roles... it may have something to do with laws that regulate working conditions
But what about the midgets on those roles? How common is that?
lmao good point!
Sully23 wrote:
Rich_Visiting wrote: quote]
Hmm at first I thought it may be Dominique Swain :heart in Face Off (1997) but she was 17 at the time of filming, great movie btw 8-) But I agree and it seems to happen more and more these days. I've heard several arguments that it is easier to work with adults rather than young girls / teenagers, perhaps also the work regulations are difficult to deal with(?). But other than that it just seems strange and I'm suprised more people don't question it :naughty
Hahahahaha Dominique Swain first thought of Lolita and it is true that according to the book the girl is 12y but in the film they increased to 14 and see if that film was made in Italy would be a successor to Eva ionesco or another 'L'inmoralita'.
I hope one day that the film is made that is more true to Nabokov's work !!
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