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      The Child I Never Was

      Released Oct 8, 2004 1h 26m Crime Drama List
      78% Tomatometer 9 Reviews 77% Audience Score 500+ Ratings Following his capture, a butcher's assistant (Tobias Schenke) describes how he stalked and killed four boys between 1962 and 1966. Read More Read Less

      Critics Reviews

      View All (9) Critics Reviews
      Jan Stuart Newsday It's a surprisingly artful and discrete film. Rated: 3/4 Oct 8, 2004 Full Review Ned Martel New York Times In the end Mr. Pieck and his intrepid lead actor piece together a constructive look at a lonely boy's damaged logic and its hideous results. Rated: 3/5 Oct 8, 2004 Full Review Akiva Gottlieb Village Voice While the serial-killer sob story subgenre rarely yields a nuanced product, Kai S. Pieck's debut feature finds a plaintive, compelling route to the pathology of 1960s German child-killer Jrgen Bartsch. Oct 6, 2004 Full Review Film Threat Rated: 4.5/5 Dec 6, 2005 Full Review David Noh Film Journal International This deeply creepy fictionalized effort is anything but an entertainment, nor can it be considered art. Oct 19, 2004 Full Review Ken Fox TV Guide By the film's end we feel neither sympathy nor, oddly, total disgust for this most loathsome of killers. We simply begin to understand, and perhaps that's achievement enough. Rated: 3/5 Oct 8, 2004 Full Review Read all reviews

      Audience Reviews

      View All (10) audience reviews
      Audience Member As far as serial killer movies go, this one was pleasantly restrained and thoughtful. It was, however, rather slight and could have benefited from exploring other characters psyches and subplots along with Jurgen's. The psychology was rather pat and I felt that they were trying too hard to understand what can never be understood. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/15/23 Full Review Audience Member (****): Thumbs Up An extremely dark serial killer film that is easily one of the best I've ever seen. Well-acted and directed. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/18/23 Full Review Audience Member There is this urging in me that says that this is a movie with flaws, but yet, I cannot identify them, I feel as it is, the powerful moments and the reverb that ensues is way more endearing and heartfelt than the bizarre and monotonous style of the title-cards and the interrogation. I feel that as it gets to the end, the catharsis is, for me, stunning, where nothing is clear as it is just difficult to fathom the events here. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Some movies are impossible to write a review for. How can you objectively review a movie that includes child-killing, dismemberment, violence against underage people and sexual perversion (and I'm <i>not</i> talking about the homosexuality, but rather about the necrophilia and nigh-cannibalism). The answer is: you can't. Jurgen Bartsch is a monster fraught with apathy, and all attempts made in this movie to offer him a human side failed on me. The movie is smart as it combines voice-over narration, staged police interrogation, personal letters and action. Tobias Schenke is simply phenomenal in his role. This movie stirs you - undoubtedly. It's not a particularly good movie, but for someone interested in heinous crimes (for there is a twisted human proclivity for that as well in all of us), this is the movie to watch. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/03/23 Full Review Audience Member jurgen, jurgen... quien haya visto, posea, o sepa como dar con el documental , Nachruf auf eine Bestie , un puntualisimo se agradecera Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/22/23 Full Review Audience Member Ummmm very interesting if this truly wuz the one from Germany, very slow, not much graphics but if ur lookin for a twisted dude this is one to watch. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/13/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

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      The Child I Never Was

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      Movie Info

      Synopsis Following his capture, a butcher's assistant (Tobias Schenke) describes how he stalked and killed four boys between 1962 and 1966.
      Director
      Kai S. Pieck
      Distributor
      Strand Releasing
      Production Co
      Westdeutscher Rundfunk, MTM West Television & Film GmbH
      Genre
      Crime, Drama
      Original Language
      German
      Release Date (Theaters)
      Oct 8, 2004, Original
      Runtime
      1h 26m