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The City of Lost Children

Play trailer Poster for The City of Lost Children R Released Dec 15, 1995 1h 51m Fantasy Play Trailer Watchlist
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80% Tomatometer 61 Reviews 90% Popcornmeter 50,000+ Ratings
Old and decrepit Krank (Daniel Emilfork) has lost his capacity for dreaming and is attempting to fight death by stealing the dreams of children. Krank's cadre of cloned henchmen (Dominique Pinon) snatch 5-year-old Denree (Joseph Lucien) to subject him to the horrific dream-retrieval process. The boy's father, One (Ron Perlman), the hulking strongman of a traveling circus, and his precocious 9-year-old friend, Miette (Judith Vittet), join forces to defeat Krank's minions and save Denree.
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The City of Lost Children

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Critics Consensus

Not all of its many intriguing ideas are developed, but The City of Lost Children is an engrossing, disturbing, profoundly memorable experience.

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Critics Reviews

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Michael Sragow The New Yorker Jeunet and Caro have distinctive signatures like nobody else's. Nov 20, 2013 Full Review Jeff Shannon Seattle Times On visual terms alone, The City of Lost Children is something of a masterpiece, using state-of-the-art physical, optical and digital special effects to stretch cinematic boundaries. Rated: 3/4 Nov 20, 2013 Full Review Steven Rea Philadelphia Inquirer Essentially, The City of Lost Children is a macabre fairy tale, and while its tentacled comic-book plot and freak-show cast narrow its appeal -- this isn't a work of any allegorical depth -- Caro and Jeunet have pulled off a cinematic delight. Rated: 3.5/4 Nov 20, 2013 Full Review Stephen A. Russell Orion's Shoulder (Substack) As twisted a tale as you’ll encounter, right down to Ron Perlman performing in French phonetically, it’s a cornerstone of my youthful cinematic awakening. Mar 6, 2025 Full Review Rich Cross Starburst An extraordinary and twisted fairytale... Rated: 5/5 May 19, 2023 Full Review Matt Brunson Film Frenzy Best described as a hybrid of Terry Gilliam and the Coens, with dashes of Jules Verne, Charles Dickens, and Rube Goldberg added to the mix. Rated: 3.5/4 Dec 5, 2022 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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John G I need add only this to all the other approving comments: an essential feature of the film is the beautiful music by Angelo Badalamenti. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/06/25 Full Review Craig S Great cinematography, great sound, great story and concepts, funny and some really fine acting & script writing…. It has a bit of everything Rated 5 out of 5 stars 12/12/24 Full Review John S I'm truly unique and amazing movie, very stylized with a interesting European vibe Rated 5 out of 5 stars 10/25/24 Full Review Terry D I streamed "The City of Lost Children" on Tubi recently, and even if I normally do not watch many subtitled films, I found this French film to be unlike anything I've ever seen or experienced before. I highly recommend this movie, it's one of those movies that you will never forget watching, and the images will stay in your head for a very long time. A beautiful, beautiful, movie that I rate 10 out of 10. I encourage you to read all of the reviews. here and on IMDB.com. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 06/01/24 Full Review Benjamin S This movie is like one of those strange dream that lingers with you all day after waking up. It is a crazy theatre piece with zanny characters, a mystery plot and an uncanny atmosphere which create a dream-like style à la David Lynch. So, it is indeed not for everybody. But if you like the strangeness, dream-likeness of certain movies, go for it ! Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/01/24 Full Review Courtney K Ron Perlman pops up in the STRANGEST places sometimes! what a random filmography he has. anyway; this movie was wild - what an opening scene; loved it. it's an interesting concept - Ron feels a little out of place for me, but overall i quite enjoyed it. dreams fascinate me & this weird, surreal, steampunk take on the subject was, maybe a little over the top, but cool. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 05/21/23 Full Review Read all reviews
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Cast & Crew

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Marc Caro

Director

Jean-Pierre Jeunet

Director

Ron Perlman

One

Daniel Emilfork

Krank

Judith Vittet

Miette

Dominique Pinon

le scaphandrier
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The City of Lost Children

The City of Lost Children (1995) The City of Lost Children (1995) The City of Lost Children (1995) The City of Lost Children (1995) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Old and decrepit Krank (Daniel Emilfork) has lost his capacity for dreaming and is attempting to fight death by stealing the dreams of children. Krank's cadre of cloned henchmen (Dominique Pinon) snatch 5-year-old Denree (Joseph Lucien) to subject him to the horrific dream-retrieval process. The boy's father, One (Ron Perlman), the hulking strongman of a traveling circus, and his precocious 9-year-old friend, Miette (Judith Vittet), join forces to defeat Krank's minions and save Denree.
Director
Marc Caro, Jean-Pierre Jeunet
Producer
Félicie Dutertre
Screenwriter
Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Marc Caro, Gilles Adrien, Guillaume Laurant
Distributor
Sony Pictures Classics
Rating
R
Genre
Fantasy
Original Language
French (France)
Release Date (Theaters)
Dec 15, 1995, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Jan 28, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA)
$1.9M
Runtime
1h 51m
Sound Mix
Surround
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