A day in the life of a group of teens as they travel around New York City skating, drinking, smoking and deflowering virgins.A day in the life of a group of teens as they travel around New York City skating, drinking, smoking and deflowering virgins.A day in the life of a group of teens as they travel around New York City skating, drinking, smoking and deflowering virgins.
- Awards
- 1 win & 5 nominations total
Chloë Sevigny
- Jennie
- (as Chloe Sevigny)
Johnathan Staci Kim
- Korean Guy
- (as Johnathan S. Kim)
Luis Núñez
- Luis
- (as Luis Nunez)
Featured reviews
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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 ...
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 ...
10Badfish
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.
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.
Did you know
- TriviaJustin Pierce broke his wrist in a fight with a club bouncer during production. He could not get a cast put on until after filming. During the night pool scene, he holds his broken wrist above his head to limit the pain.
- GoofsWhen Jennie and Ruby are talking while waiting in the clinic for their test results, Ruby's lips do not match the audio in one of the shots.
- Crazy creditsAt the end of the credits it says: "The book 'KIDS' is available from Grove Press and contains photographs from the film, production stills and the original screenplay." and "A portion of the proceeds from this film will be donated to teen crisis organizations."
- Alternate versionsFor the UK cinema version 59 secs was cut by the BBFC to remove shots of young Nick's chest being kissed by an equally young girl and images of a sleeping child during the scene where Casper rapes Jennie, as this footage contravenes the Protection Of Children Act. In August '99 the British Board of Film Classification awarded the film an 18 certificate for video distribution, but with 51 seconds of cuts. The same footage was removed and the scenes re-edited to avoid shots of the child, and this same version was later issued on DVD. The Hungarian DVD also has this version.
- SoundtracksPow
Written by Adam Horovitz, Adam Yauch, Mike D (as Michael Diamond) and Money Mark (as Mark Nishita)
Performed by Beastie Boys (as The Beastie Boys)
Courtesy of Capitol Records
Under License from CEMA Special Markets
Published by PolyGram International Publishing, Inc. and Brooklyn Dust Music
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Languages
- Also known as
- Kids, vidas perdidas
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $1,500,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $7,412,216
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $85,709
- Jul 23, 1995
- Gross worldwide
- $7,412,216
- Runtime
- 1h 31m(91 min)
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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