If you'd like to be surprised by the The Innocents film, I don't recommend you to watch the trailer, because the less you know about this, the better. But even if you do, don't watch the trailer beyond 1:17, because it gives away too much of the plot.
De uskyldige / The Innocents, movie (2021) - Watch the trailer on YouTube
Watch the trailer in German - Watch the trailer in Norwegian
video © Mer Films AS & Zentropa Sweden & Snowglobe & Bufo & Logical Pictures
Article updated: 2022.08.08
The The Innocents (2021) is a contemporary fantasy thriller film. The movie was reviewed by Kadmon.
Product: De uskyldige / The Innocents, movie (2021)
Original title: De uskyldige, English title: The Innocents
Series: -
Setting: contemporary fantasy Earth
Product type: Film, Genre: contemporary fantasy thriller, Style: contemporary fantasy, fantasy, thriller, psychic powers, super-human abilities
Release: Premiere: 2021.06.11 (Cannes Film Festival), Release: 2021.09.03
Reviewer: Kadmon, Type: Male, 40s, Preferences: Immersive, logical story, consistent setting, prefers surprises to spoilers, prefers establishing elements before referencing them
Watched: very recent (2021.12), first time
Rating: Good (2+ out of 3 points), Enjoyment: Good (2+ out of 3 points)
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This is my review of The Innocents, a contemporary fantasy thriller movie from 2021. It's about a family moving to a new place, and their girls finding new friends. The The Innocents film is interesting, I recommend it.
De uskyldige / The Innocents, movie (2021)
image © Mer Films AS & Zentropa Sweden & Snowglobe & Bufo & Logical Pictures
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Review (spoiler-free) - The Innocents, movie (2021)
While checking for the latest releases, I’ve found The Innocents. I didn’t hear anything about it previously. I’ve read the first IMDB review, that happened to recommend it, so I gave this a try without watching the trailer.
The The Innocents movie is about a family moving to a new place, and their girls finding new friends.
The story is very good, there’s build-up for every main event. The story and the pacing is consistent. There’s a character arc for the main protagonist. I didn’t find logical problems.
The cinematography is good. Even though the story is played in one setting, they made it look visually interesting. While I was trying to find good stills to use as illustrations for the article, I’ve noticed how hard was that. Most of the shots work as a sequence, but they are either very close shots, or show the actors from behind, or from a large distance. This all felt natural when watching the movie, so this was interesting for me.
The characters are good, we get to know them enough to understand the story. They are portrayed by the actors perfectly, they were all convincing. As we are talking about child actors, I think they were all doing a great job. The autistic child also acts believably, the actor really catches those little things how autistic children behave.
The music (by Pessi Levanto) is not very noticeable, but it fits the movie.
The Innocents is an interesting contemporary fantasy thriller, I think fans of the genre will enjoy it.
My experience
I was satisfied with The Innocents (2021). As I know some autistic children, it gave an additional layer to the story for me.
Rating: Good (2+ out of 3 points). The Innocents is a well-made film, with great actors.
Enjoyment: Good (2+ out of 3 points). The Innocents is interesting, I liked it.
Rewatchability: Probably high. Although it’s mostly the surprise of the story that makes you feel interested, but I think if you liked the story, you liked it for the characters and themes.
Chance of watching it again: There's a chance. Now that I know the story, there's probably no need to watch it again, but I liked it enough that I might watch it in the right circumstances.
Chance of watching a sequel: High. I'd sure watch it, although this is a self contained story.
De uskyldige / The Innocents, movie (2021)
image © Mer Films AS & Zentropa Sweden & Snowglobe & Bufo & Logical Pictures
Will you enjoy this?
If you like mystery or thriller movies, you might like The Innocents.
If you like contemporary fantasy films, you might be interested in The Innocents movie.
If you hate subtitles, I'm not sure if there's an English dub for The Innocents.
If you prefer visuals over story, you’ll be probably bored by The Innocents.
If you hate violence, there are some scenes in the movie that might be hard to watch.
Watching for plot points
If you are interested in stories about people with super-natural powers, I think it's worth watching the The Innocents movie for the plot points.
Should you watch this on your own screen at home, or is it worth going to the cinema?
The visuals would probably look better if you watch it in cinema, but I think you’ll get the same experience either way.
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De uskyldige / The Innocents, movie (2021)
image © Mer Films AS & Zentropa Sweden & Snowglobe & Bufo & Logical Pictures
Review with spoilers - The Innocents, movie (2021)
I really liked the The Innocents movie.
Cover
The cover of the movie is okay, it doesn't say much, but it doesn't spoil the movie. However, I don’t think it’s giving the right message about the premise of the movie.
The trailer
You probably shouldn't watch the trailer, as it spoils the secrets of the story.
If you prefer spoilers, it's a great trailer for the The Innocents film. If you prefer to avoid spoilers, it will ruin the movie for you.
Promise of the first scene
The little girl pinches the mentally disabled girl. Although I have no clue where will the movie go, I suppose the little girl might be mischievous.
Execution: I wouldn’t have predicted the ending from this first scene. But it does have some basics for the story.
Plot summary / Synopsis
There’s a family moving to a new home. There’s a father, mother, a mentally disabled autistic girl (Alva Brynsmo Ramstad as Anna), and a little girl (Rakel Lenora Fløttum as Ida). The little girl seems to enjoy deliberately hurting others, her sister and animals alike.
The little girl is left to play alone in the area, as her parents are busy settling in. He meets a boy (Sam Ashraf as Ben), who shows him his hiding place, and shows off his telekinetic abilities.
There’s another, dark haired little girl (Mina Yasmin Bremseth Asheim as Aisha), who seems to feel the pain of the autistic girl, when the little girl puts glass shards in her shoes.
The dark haired girl misses her cat, so she goes to find it. While searching, she puts her hand on the same doorknob the autistic girl has her hands on, on the other side.
When the little girl is supposed to take care of the autistic girl, she leaves her alone, so she can go to play with her new friend. The dark haired girl sits there, to provide company for the autistic girl.
The little girl and the boy find the cat of the dark haired girl, and they drop it down from a tall building. The cat is injured but survives, so the boy kills it. The little girl doesn’t like this, so she goes back, but she can’t find her sister. When she finds her, the autistic sister is playing with the dark haired girl. The little girl tries to take her home, but the sister refuses, so the dark haired girl leads her back.
The next day, the little girl takes her sister directly to the dark haired girl to play. As she wanders, the boy finds her sister and the dark haired girl. By the time she gets back to them, the sister is able to move objects with her mind. When they get back home, the sister cannot do it, so the little girl realises that it was the power in their group that made her abilities work.
She collects them, and the boy is able to move a lot bigger thing then he is usually able to. The dark haired girl confesses that she can’t move objects, but that she can communicate with the sister telepathically, and she can feel the thoughts of the boy a little bit. They start to play with sending thoughts to the others from a distance. There’s a disagreement, and they start to fight, which leads to the boy and the autistic sister starting a mental fight, that shatters nearby objects. A splinter hurts the autistic girl, but this leads to her saying some words.
The little girl is accused by their mother that the sister was injured because of her. The girl tries to make the sister talk, but she is unable to.
Their powers get stronger. We see that the autistic girl is able to move objects on her own. The boy starts to hurl things over her mother. The dark haired girl has a vision that her mother is bleeding from her head, even though she is not. We see that it’s actually the boy’s mother, who lays unconscious, bleeding from her head. Then the boy also pours boiling water on her. She begs him to help her, but he lets her die.
When the autistic sister plays with the dark haired girl, the mother finally hears her talking.
The boy is able to take over the mind of his neighbour, and uses his body to take revenge on a boy who was rude to him, probably killing the boy.
The boy tells the little girl that she is able to control others. The girl asks him to do it with her, so he complies. They then go to the playground, where the boy is able to break the leg of a kid from the distance.
The dark haired girl arrives to stop him, but he starts to suffocate her with his mind. Then the autistic girl arrives, scaring the boy away.
The dark haired girl senses that the boy will send people after them, so they should stop him. The boy gets inside the head of the dark haired girl’s mother, and gets to manifest her fears to make her attack her own daughter, killing her.
The little girl lures the boy to a bridge where she pushes him off, but the fall doesn’t kill him. The boy gets into the head of the girl, and makes she see snakes around herself. He gets her to go on a busy road, but at the last moment, some pain distracts her, allowing her to jump away from the car, so it only grazes her, leading to a broken leg.
The autistic girl prepares to fight the boy, so the little girl breaks the casting on her leg (probably with her own powers?), and limps to her side. They kill him with their minds.
Without the additional help of the other two, the autistic girl turns back into her former self. The little girl probably appreciates her more.
The setting
The story is set in contemporary fantasy Earth.
In this world, there are people with super-natural powers.
De uskyldige / The Innocents, movie (2021)
image © Mer Films AS & Zentropa Sweden & Snowglobe & Bufo & Logical Pictures
The psychic powers
The closer they are together, the more powerful their powers work. If they are too far away from each other, their powers might not even work.
They all have some abilities, but not all of them have the same ones:
- Moving objects
- Seeing visions of events where someone is hurt
- Shattering objects
- Sending messages to others
- Getting messages from others
- Controlling the bodies of people
- Manifesting fears of people
The message of the story
I'm not sure there's one. “Children can be creepy”?
The structure of the story
The scenes of the The Innocents film are played in sequence, following the same storyline.
There is no single viewpoint character.
It has the usual arc of the dramatic structure - introduction, action, resolution.
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Things I liked
- The acting of Anna is outstanding.
- I liked how they played with the visuals to make a block of flats look interesting.
- Also, the use of block of flats as the setting was an interesting choice. I've seen plenty of made for children movies set in a similar setting, and The Innocents was an eery change to those.
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How does it compare to the other works of the creators?
I haven’t seen any other works of the writer / director (Eskil Vogt), but now I’m interested in them.
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De uskyldige / The Innocents, movie (2021)
image © Mer Films AS & Zentropa Sweden & Snowglobe & Bufo & Logical Pictures
Analysis of the story - The Innocents, movie (2021)
I liked the story, I didn't find problems that would have prevented me from enjoying The Innocents.
Problematic elements
Unanswered questions
- Were those kids, who show up on the balconies in the end, also potential users of these powers?
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Possibilities of improvement
How it could have been better?
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Behind the scenes
Thoughts about the reviews of others
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De uskyldige / The Innocents, movie (2021)
image © Mer Films AS & Zentropa Sweden & Snowglobe & Bufo & Logical Pictures
Uses for the film - The Innocents, movie (2021)
Plot
- There are kids with super-natural powers.
- The people with super-natural powers are more powerful when they are closer to each other. Separated, they might not even able to use their powers.
- A family moves to a new place, and their kids need to find new friends.
Scenes
- The mental fight scenes look good.
Designs
Scenario ideas - Role-playing game scenario ideas
Scenario ideas - Wargame scenario ideas
Proximity magic: All of the sides have a magic-user for free. They hate each other, and their goal is to kill the other magic user. Their abilities are random, and the strength of their powers depend on their proximity to each other. If they are on the same playing area, each additional proximity magic user give them +1 strength. If they are within the range of sight, they give +2, and if they are in the same area, they give +3. The magic-users need to be able to freely spend an action to use their magic. If they are occupied in a close combat, they can’t use their powers.
Backstabbing: This is played with an allied force. It can be used with two allied players against a system controlled opponent, or against a larger force of a third player. One of the allies, the backstabber secretly want to kill the leader of the other allied force. If they directly attack their ally, from then on, their former ally acts as an enemy. The backstabber wins if they complete the objective of their force, and also get the leader of the allied force killed.
Mind controller: This unit is able to take over the control of models. The closer the target model is, the easier it is to take control of it. If it’s in base contact, it’s +3, if it’s in the same area, it’s +2, if it’s in a nearby area, it’s +1. The mind controller needs visual contact to take over. After it’s controlled, the model doesn’t need to take morale tests, as it’s not afraid of anything. At the end of each turn, the mind controller has to test to maintain control. Roll a d6 for each controlled model, add their distance modifier, and -1 for each controlled model beyond the first. On a roll of 4-6, the model gets free. If the mind controller controls a model, it get -1 for every other action, until they break their control. Each additional model gives them a -1, and also a -1 to the test for maintaining control. If the controlled model gets hit, they have to roll an additional test to maintain control.
Miniatures - 1/50-1/60 (28-32mm scale)
Kids: Small-sized modern human children.
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Similar stories - The Innocents, movie (2021)
Movies
Chronicle (2012): A couple of kids gain super-natural powers. One of them uses the power for bad things, so he gets stopped by the others. The Innocents have a very similar concept, but a better story, better script, and better actors.
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Frequently asked questions - The Innocents, movie (2021)
Will the The Innocents movie be available with English audio dub?
Currently (in 2021.12.31), as far as I know, The Innocents is not available with English audio dub, just English subtitles.
Is the The Innocents film based on a book or comics?
No, The Innocents is not based on either books or comics.
Is the The Innocents film a remake or reboot?
No, the The Innocents film is neither a remake nor a reboot.
How does The Innocents end?
In the end The Innocents (2021), the autistic girl prepares to fight the boy, so the little girl breaks the casting on her leg (probably with her own powers?), and limps to her side. They kill him with their minds. Without the additional help of the other two, the autistic girl turns back into her former self. The little girl probably appreciates her more.
Can kids watch The Innocents?
Due to the mature content, I wouldn't recommend The Innocents (2021) for kids.
Is The Innocents a horror movie?
That depends on your definition of horror. I consider The Innocents (2021) a fantasy thriller, but it uses many horror tropes.
Is there a post credit scene in The Innocents? Does The Innocents have end credit scenes?
No, there's no post credit scene in The Innocents.
Where can I see The Innocents? Where can I watch The Innocents online? Is The Innocents available on Netflix? Is The Innocents on Amazon?
As of 2022.10.17, The Innocents is available on Amazon Prime Video, Microsoft Movies.
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Resources - The Innocents, movie (2021)
Official
Bufo: The Innocents: Official article.
Mer Film: The Innocents: Official article.
Snowglobe: The Innocents: Official article.
Information
IMDB: De uskyldige / The Innocents (2021): Database article.
WikiPedia: The Innocents (2021 film): Database article.
Letterboxd: The Innocents 2021: Database article.
Rotten Tomatoes: The Innocents 2021: Database article.
Creation
: Concept art article.¤
Reviews with no spoilers - The Innocents film (2021)
: Review video about the The Innocents film with no spoilers.¤
Reviews with spoilers - The Innocents film (2021)
: Review article of the The Innocents movie, with spoilers. Includes a very detailed plot summary.¤
Analysis - The Innocents movie (2021)
: Analysis video, explaining the finale of The Innocents.¤
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Buying the product - The Innocents, movie (2021)
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Have you seen the The Innocents film? How do you like the movie? Would you recommend it to others? Do you know reviews or resources you'd like to add? What further thoughts do you have about it? Tell your opinion in the comments!
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