User reviews

This is not a super super film, but it stays with you, which was sort of the point - especially if you saw it at the time it was released, before the onslaught of "dark" teen movies over the decade following. This was the granddaddy of the genre and remains one of the darkest and grittiest of them all, in both subject and style. Perhaps in part because the subjects were an urban group of kids, rather than the angsty suburban set we've grown accustomed to seeing, there is a rare and truthful ferocity to the characterizations. The emotive mechanism isn't their redemption as mere children, but their total fallibility as young adults. Though obviously this represents a small sample of teenagers in the united states, it will make you think twice about how much earlier we seem to lose our childhood these days. Great ensemble cast with very believable performances. Its attempt to approximate the reality of a documentary is a unique success. In addition to stong dialogue and direction, credit should be given to the cast for that; obviously, chloe sevigny was a standout here. A really important subject for its time and a very credible portrayal.

This film struck me in the heart, it made me feel terrible after seeing it and any movie that can have a impact on me like that, I congragulate. The film is almost like a documentary of a group of kids in NYC. It probably isn't completely realistic but its believable. It is a frightening wake up call to America.

If you want to be moved watch this film. The acting is great for a group of rag-tag kids, they make the story really believable and passionate. I do believe that Larry Clark has a strage obsession with teenage nudity, in every film I've seen of his there has been tons of teenagers having sex, sometimes it spoils the film.

Overall the film is powerful and moving, watch it.

Telly is one of a large group of young friends who live for sex, drugs and pleasure with little thought of responsibility or morality. Telly in particular loves sex with girls even younger than him, and they all have to be virgins to please him. However one girl who has only had sex with Telly finds herself testing positive for HIV. She sets out to find him before he can spread the disease any further. I saw this when it came out as it entered the UK in a rage of tabloid anger and middleclass `we'll all be killed in our beds' style furore. Back then I was maybe more giving or maybe more determined to appreciate it simply because I thought the papers had overreacted. I still think the tabloids kicked up a storm for nothing but now I see past the worthy face the film has on and see it in a different light.

The film is worthy, no doubt, those individuals who live like this do exist and are a real problem to themselves and others, however the film tries really hard to shock us. Nobody in this film is `normal' or in anyway considerate – they all only care about themselves, they are all open to rape a girl who says no, or beat someone to near death for bumping into them. This leads us to think that everyone is like this and to all be shocked. Yes – some (many?) young people like sex and drugs but how many live like this?

But the film wants to over-blow things simply because the shock value adds value to the subject. So we have rape, beatings, AIDS being spread, children barely 10 smoking weed etc and the film has a mix of shock but also a sort of sensationalisation about it – like Clarke is rubbing his hands behind the camera ad directing, saying `worse, worse, more, more etc'. This only stops for the final shot and line where the film condemns this but up till then you'd be forgiven for not seeing the judgement.

The cats are most unlikely versions of Kevin Smith's Jay but without the crude wit or charm – they make Jay look like a man about town. I know that's there characters but some of them just deliver crude skater stereotypes. I know they're all first time actors but still – several have done better since. Fitzpatrick is OK but his character is one-dimensional and we never get to see him have deeper stuff to deal with. Pierce is again a cartoon but at least appears to have something else behind his eyes – shame he's dead now. Sevigny is good as is Dawson but that's mainly because they do have something of value to say. The rest are just all there to `shock' us – `oh, look' says Larry Clark `they're doing drugs, there's girls kissing girls, there's fights and shocking sex – isn't it all lovely and terrible!!!?'.

Overall it's worth a watch maybe once simply because this is a lost world that I'll hopefully never see. But don't get sucked in by the film pretending to be important or smart – it's neither simply because it only wants to shock us and it revels in every disgusting or shocking frame.

Larry Clark has broken the boundaries with this film. Not only is it one of the realist depictions of our nation's youth, but it also brings the fear of the AIDS virus closer to home. This is not a piece of fictitious work, this is brutal honesty in its rawest form. While many will knock this film because of the pornographic nature, I saw past that and witnessed the birth of the next plague. Writer Harmony Korine has taken the world of our children and transferred it to the big screen. I never once saw this as a shock film or disgusting, I saw honesty and truth behind every scene. This is really what is happening in our backyards. Kids are not as young as they used to be, and are growing up in a world with more possibilities and distractions than ever before. This is the modern world, and these are the newest leaders.

While this is not what happens with all of our youth, it does paint a beautiful picture of just a handful. This is not just a story about NYC, it is a message for every city. This is happening all over this country. In the wealthy, poor, and everything in-between, our children are experimenting without any form of education or realization of their actions.

This is not a film that will leave a very good taste in your mouth, but then again it isn't supposed to. This is better and more honest than any reality program out there and it will scare the daylights out of you. This is our world, we must change it.

Grade: ***** out of *****

This movie is completely flat. The characters have no depth, and leave you without the slightest concern for their melodramatic, seemingly rehearsed "tragedy." It ends up being a movie about stupid kids acting stupidly - nothing more. Never a deep moment, never a provoking thought - simply empty, overrated, and perhaps laughable.

Kids is one of the best movies I've ever seen. It's funny, horrific, but realistic.

Despite the cast having no previous acting experience, the performances are all wonderful, especially Justin Pierce's (as Casper). The realistic story line, the classic dialogue, and the horrific finale are the film's best features.

What bothers me is that many people discredit the film. Saying that the movie is exploitation, or something even more ridiculous. I think that people are unable to except the fact that Kids is accurate. Not all teenagers behave like Telly or Casper, but you'd be lying if you said that teenagers don't talk like that.

Kids is not exploitation, but rather a brutally honest piece of social commentary. Kids is a deterrent for high risk sexual behavior. The film is also a wake up call for insensitive parents who take no responsibility for their children.

Therefore, Kids is a truthful portrayal of urban life. it is not exploitation.

All I heard about in my sophomore year at high school was Harmony Karin's movie "Kids". I kept hearing that it was "realistic" "disturbing" and many other adjectives often used to describe good independent films. Finally, as a college senior, I had a chance to watch it. The urge to shut it off as soon as it began was overwhelming. I watched it through though, in the same fascination that one watches a nine car pileup. Just when you think it can't get worse, it does.

The only reason Kids was thought of as Disturbing was because adults do not like admitting that their children have sex. There is nothing enlightening and no important message told in this movie. The characters are unlikable. They have no traits that are sympathetic or that would allow a viewer to associate with them.

Dialogue, which I had been told is realistic, is just teenagers sitting around saying "f**k" at the end of every other sentence. Add in the fact that the lines are poorly delivered and you have the sensation of watching a sixth grade play on acid.

As for the plot... well... there is none. It can be argued that this was supposed to be an ethnographic piece showing the lives of kids. However, in my opinion, there is a clear attempt at a standard narrative plot. It's put together as a series of random scenes that have nothing to do with each other. Making this horrible ride of a movie bumpy. In the end Kids can be summed up with one word. "Bad"

Disturbing, even all these years later. Taking us back in time to some all too relatable scenarios, fears and peer pressures, catapulting in the ultimate horror story, Kids was real life for too many. This movie stays with you long after the credits roll, so be prepared to think it over. A lot.

A low-budget independent film that shows us one day in the life of a group of New York teenagers, a life that comes down to skate, parties, alcohol, drugs and ultimately sex. I grew up in the nineties and I recognized a lot from my own puberty and surroundings, but however crazy we were, this is really extremely extreme. And yet, as much as this seems exaggerated to most of us, even to those who have really gone through all sorts of things in life, for some children this is a harsh reality. It's not a masterpiece of cinema, but it's a film that should be seen for a better understanding of the world we live in.

7/10

A very, hard hitting film to come to reality with but this is how the world really works. Sick, but true. Very well done. Hormones are raging in teenagers, and this film shows it perfectly. Nurture your kid and keep them close, but let them live.

If you are a parent, this film might strike home, but in reality this is what we all go through to become the adults that we are. We can either let it ruin us, or look it in the face and laugh.

Killer film.

7/10.

A group kids in NYC run wild in a world without adult supervision. Telly (Leo Fitzpatrick) loves to deflower virgins. One of the girls he deflowered in the past is Jennie (Chloë Sevigny). She and her friend Ruby (Rosario Dawson) go to do a STD check. Ruby is clean but Jennie tests positive for HIV despite having had sex with only Telly.

I remember this was edgy at the time. It still is seeing this after 20 years. It has the documentary feel and mostly unknown amateur actors which only adds to its realism. Both Leo Fitzpatrick and Chloë Sevigny are amazing. I do forget that this is also Rosario Dawson's debut. Some of the other kids also put out raw performances. Harmony Korine's script has a real authenticity to it.

It might seem dated when watched almost 20 years after it came out, but it was showing a side of Kids that many movies were ignoring. There is the problem with identification (even more if you're not in the target group) and of course religious people or people with a threshold when it comes to sexuality and teenagers will have more than a few issues too (smoking and other drugs included).

But it is very well played, no matter what your opinion on the matter is. The end might either be exactly what you expected and somewhat rounds a very open story up pretty tightly. It may be hailed as one of the first roles of Rosario Dawson, but don't just watch it because of that, it's the others who shine in this. Kids these/those days ...

An excellent account on youth. Maybe it's the extreme end of youth, with sex and drugs, but an accurate account of those types. This film isn't trying to label all kids like these ones but label kids like these ones as kids like these ones, no sugar coating it. It's disturbing, it's full on and it's as raw as possible without making it a snuff children's film. Truly an excellent piece by Larry Clarke, finally someone who is not afraid to do what he wants and does what he pleases.

Gritty and raw, there is no escaping the grasp of Kids. A not-so-thoughtful nod to the children of the world, but a realistic one of the hoodlums of society.

Kids..the kind of movie you see once. I cannot understate the directorial achievement here, the gritty nature and natural feel to the whole world he created, combined with the writing. I never ever doubted any of the characters once for who they were, and after reading some trivia, and it's casting basically being street kids, it makes sense.

Kids is a incredibly uncomfortable movie, and probably even more so these days. It takes on all the raw subjects of teenagers and the particular subset of teenagers that only think about sex, drugs and body count. It goes beyond being teenagers, to being straight up degenerates. The movie clearly voices that as well when we get a scene towards the end outside of the apartment, a glimpse into the future so to say. But yeah, a movie with capital R subject matter and it does not shy away, it is blunt, it is rough, it's deeply uncomfortable. Contrasts presented make the scenes even stronger.

Without a doubt this movie is also controversial, it could never be made today, and that's not put lightly. The closest we could get to this type of movie is the recent How To Have Sex film, and that is a lot more subtle in it's execution but has a stronger focus on the emotional impact on the characters. Whilst here the movie is talking a lot more to the viewer, and waiting for you to respond.

That said, directing was unique, messy, but very intentional, you could almost smell the movie at times as gross as that sounds. Acting was fantastic, music was good, pacing was surprisingly good. Story was simply crazy, but engaging enough to keep the pace with the underlying "hunt" the girl has and the unavoidable hurt that is to come. And then even makes it worse. It's something else..

Not a movie I'll ever rewatch. Also I wouldn't even begin to imagine seeing this in a movie theater in 1995, wow.

There are two highly, and deservedly, controversial movies dealing with the issues of drug and alcohol abuse, underage sex, lack of control, and the preteen and teenage minority of urban America. One of them is "Kids" and the other is "Bully." The former is a haunting work of art; the latter is a clunk of garbage. Both were directed by the same man, Larry Clark. I saw "Bully" first about a year ago and I was blown out of my mind by how offensive and atrociously cruel that movie was and how it redeemed itself in no way. I initially condemned Mr. Clark as a director and vowed never to see another movie of his again.

Then I happened to see the Siskel & Ebert review for his first movie "Kids" and after much deliberation, decided to give this controversial filmmaker a second chance. I am so glad that I did.

In many respects, "Kids" and "Bully" are much the same movie. They're both frighteningly brutal, appalling in their explicit content and vulgar dialogue, and they expose the nasty undercurrents in the younger generations of today, especially in urban cities where parental control (or control of any kind) seems all but present. So why is "Kids" a great movie and "Bully" an awful one? Because while "Bully" only pretended to have a purpose, "Kids" *has* a purpose and it never once dumbs down on that. It's a sick and disgusting picture, but it's also somewhat of a wake-up call. And I can fairly say now that as a reviewer and film-goer, I can forgive Mr. Clark.

"Kids" is set in the drug-riddled streets of New York. We see very little of parents, or adults for that matter, and focus on a group of rambunctious, vulgarity-spitting, lecherous teenagers who are devoted to getting drunk, abusing drugs, and giving away their virginity. The most sickening of them is Telly (Leo Fitzpatrick). Not because he can charm young girls enough to seduce them into deflowering them, but because he's simultaneously signing their death warrants with the HIV virus. One of his victims (Chloe Sevigny) discovers she has AIDS because of her one-night stand with him and as she slowly suffers, searches the city to confront him. Meanwhile, Telly is trying to seduce his next victim while he and a group of other nasty individuals roam unsupervised through a place as horrific as any drug underworld. More shocking is that this is just a day in the life for them.

Even more shocking is the daunting realization that this is one hundred percent accurate and we must commend Mr. Clark and screenwriter Harmony Korine, the latter in particular. His screenplay is the core of why this picture is so powerful. He writes his dialogue without any apparent flow or structure, as if the behavior of his characters are not even up to him. The actions of the characters are unpredictable, as they would be. I also really commend him for his choice to not close up with an obligating-style ending, but to choose a really haunting, crusher of one instead. And Mr. Clark shoots his film in a strong, visual-focused documentary approach with long takes from his camera swinging back and forth between the gossiping teenagers. He also pays good attention to their surroundings, showing the conditions and lack of concern from their peers and elders that resulted in their being this way. Because he has a screenplay that is focused and sharp ("Bully" did not) his movie has a purpose and even his seemingly pornographic shots have a purpose as well.

The content is oftentimes appalling, but it also has a purpose. This time I must appreciate Mr. Clark's boldness and reluctance to be contrived. Whereas I got the sense he was indulging the drug use and sex in "Bully," here he clearly defines his intentions of turning our stomachs. These particular kids are scum and they are a product of their scummy environment. He wants to show us that. So the scenes of underage sex are jaw-dropping. They do not turn on the audience; they appall. Furthermore, he does not flood the screen with images of naked teenage bodies and relies on our imagination at crucial moments to exploit the real horror. He balances the explicit and implicit with professional craftsmanship.

"Kids" is a very tough movie to watch and tough to enjoy, but I must confess that it is, to my mind, a truly great film. As I sat there watching it, I was appalled and disgusting and flabbergasted, but at the same time, I was drawn in. Mr. Clark's brilliant portrait of the bad side of humanity in our younger generation grips you by the throat and he never lets go. Not once. He's also got some very strong performances from his cast which include Leo Fitzpatrick, a very young Rosario Dawson, Chloe Sevingy, and the late Justin Pierce whose brilliant performance reminds me so much of the scumbags that I had the displeasure to know in my adolescent years. I personally managed to avoid their paths of life and now looking at "Kids," I am even more thankful that I did.

I watched this film out of intrigue as i had heard a lot about it. Its shot in a documentary style and this does give it a realistic feel. However the film does lack a story and there is only one sympathetic character in the film which is Jenny, who has contracted HIV from Telly(who only sleeps with virgins). Underage sex, drugs and in one scene mindless violence all play are part in these young people lives. The film works as a wake up call and offers an insight into a world which parents fear there children will tred. Perhaps the most shocking is these kids have no regrets and no conscience about what they are doing. The film might of worked if it were a genuine documentary but as a film it lacks heart, energy and real substance despite some good performances. You get a sense this film had to be made but you also feel it could of been done better.