Child of God (film)

Child of God

Theatrical release poster
Directed by James Franco
Produced by
  • Caroline Aragon
  • Vince Jolivette
  • Miles Levy
Screenplay by
  • James Franco
  • Vince Jolivette
Based on Child of God 
by Cormac McCarthy
Starring
Music by Aaron Embry
Cinematography Christina Voros
Edited by Curtiss Clayton
Production
company
  • RabbitBandini Productions
  • Made In Film-Land
Distributed by Spotlight Pictures
Release dates
  • August 31, 2013 (2013-08-31) (Venice)
Running time
104 minutes
Country United States
Language English

Child of God is a 2013 American crime drama film co-written and directed by James Franco, and starring Scott Haze, based on the novel of the same name by Cormac McCarthy. It was selected to be screened in the official competition at the 70th Venice International Film Festival and was an official selection of the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival.[1][2][3] The film made its United States premiere at the 51st New York Film Festival and then was screened at the 2013 Austin Film Festival.[4][5]

Plot

Set in mountainous Sevier County, Tennessee, in the 1950s, Child of God tells the story of Lester Ballard. Ballard is a dispossessed, violent man whom the narrator describes as "a child of God much like yourself perhaps." Ballard's life is a disastrous attempt to exist outside the social order. Successively deprived of parents and homes, and with few other ties, Ballard descends literally and figuratively to the level of a cave dweller, as he falls deeper into crime and degradation.

Cast

Production

On September 14, James Franco announced at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival that he was set to direct an adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's third novel Child of God.[6]

In January 2012, it was announced that Scott Haze had signed on to play Lester Ballard, the film's protagonist. It was also announced that Tim Blake Nelson and Jim Parrack had signed on to play Sheriff Fate and Deputy Cotton, respectively.[7] Production on the film began on January 31, 2012, in West Virginia.[7]

Reception

The film received mixed to negative reviews, holding a rating of 38% on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. The critical consensus states: "An obviously reverent adaptation that fails to make a case for the source material being turned into a movie, Child of God finds director James Franco outmatched by Cormac McCarthy's novel."[8]

References

  1. "Venezia 70". labiennale. Retrieved 2013-07-26.
  2. "Venice film festival 2013: the full line-up". The Guardian (London). 2013-07-25. Retrieved 2013-07-26.
  3. First Pictures from James Franco's Cormac McCarthy Adaptation 'Child of God'. Rope of Silicon
  4. "The 2013 Austin Film Festival Announces 20th Anniversary Film Lineup" (Press release). Austin Film Festival. 17 September 2013. Retrieved 2013-11-30.
  5. Cox, Gordon (19 August 2013). "New York Film Festival Unveils Lineup". Variety. Retrieved 2013-11-30.
  6. Dew, Blake (15 September 2011). "James Franco To Direct Cormac McCarthy's Child Of God". We Got This Covered. Retrieved 2013-11-30.
  7. 1 2 Dew, Blake (25 January 2012). "James Franco's Child Of God Begins Filming Next Week". We Got This Covered. Retrieved 2013-11-30.
  8. http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/child_of_god_2013/

External links

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