MovieChat Forums > Little Children (2007) Discussion > Narraration in movies needs to be banned

Narraration in movies needs to be banned

posted 13 years ago by falser
48 replies | jump to latest

Narration is horrendous, and wreaks of extremely poor film-making. God help any producer or director involved in movies that rely on this tactless crutch.

[–] whitespirit26 13 years ago

Tactless my foot. I loved it, and many films have used it even better.

[–] cancerian74 13 years ago

I agree with you falser. The narration got on my nerves - otherwise I really enjoyed the movie. :)

[–] k00ldude 13 years ago

I thought the narration added to the tone of the film, gave insight to deeper thoughts characters had, and allowed the viewer to maintain some distance from the characters.

Most movies don't want distance. They want the viewer to engage with the film from the main characters point of view. The point of this movie is to show why we shouldn't judge somebody negatively from a distance, because as this film shows, everybody has a reason or a past history for who they are.

I'm not sure if I wrote that clearly...
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[–] jawsfan007 13 years ago

i loved the narration

[–] ally_peters 13 years ago

I liked the narration too. One of the things I think lack in movies is not having a clue what the characters are thinking, unlike in the book, so the narration helped me understand what was going on in these character's heads.

[–] fiatlux-1 12 years ago

I thought the narration added to the tone of the film, gave insight to deeper thoughts characters had, and allowed the viewer to maintain some distance from the characters.

I agree completely. The narration was perfect for this movie. The characters would actually have been more difficult to understand without some narration.

"I'd say this cloud is Cumulo Nimbus."
"Didn't he discover America?"
"Penfold, shush."

[–] SamoanJoes 11 years ago

I agree. It did add a tone to the film. It made the film seem darker and more mysterious.

[–] kcuber 13 years ago

I love narration in films....this, Shawshank, Gump. Jesse James to name a few.

I hope the Pacific is as blue as it has been in my dreams. I hope. - Red

[–] supercalafragulistic 13 years ago

The narrator in this film has one of the most remarkable voice in the world. You're completely wrong and it adds to the film. The Wonder Years would have never been a success without narration.

[–] DaWeirdo 13 years ago

The narration in this film was unexpected, quirky, and unique.

[–] ng_480 13 years ago

Narration, if used correctly, can be great for movies that need them.

I see no need to ban it because 'you' say so.

And you didn't direct/produce the movie. Don't try to decide what other directors/producers want in their movies. It insults their intelligence not to mention the intelligence of those of us that watch the movie, including myself.

[–] tforster42 13 years ago

The narrator's voice sounded exactly like the man who narrates "FrontLine" on PBS.

[–] DivaJ75 13 years ago

I always thought that was the point. The narration scene describing Kathy in comparison with Sarah is hilarious.

"Give a hand to my band, Sexual Chocolate!" Coming to America

[–] ForeignInfluence 13 years ago

Yep, that was the Frontline guy, Will Lyman. Strangely, somewhat bland detached tone of his voice made the movie better for me. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0528164/

[–] Ltrgman 13 years ago

The narration was there to show that these "real" life people are so ridiculous and child-like with their actions and relationships that they're almost like fictional characters in a play that an audience is watching. It was implemented quite well and made a lot of sense.

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