The Selfish Giant (2013)

Two thirteen year-old working-class friends in Bradford seek fortune by getting involved with a local scrap dealer and criminal.

Director:

Clio Barnard

Writers:

Clio Barnard, Oscar Wilde (inspired by 'The Selfish Giant')

Stars:

Conner Chapman, Shaun Thomas, Sean Gilder

12 wins & 21 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Conner Chapman	...	Arbor
Shaun Thomas	...	Swifty
Ralph Ineson	...	Johnny Jones
Ian Burfield	...	Mick Brazil
Everal Walsh	...	Railway Man (as Everal A. Walsh)
Sean Gilder	...	Kitten
Lorraine Ashbourne	...	Mary
Elliott Tittensor	...	Martin Fenton
Rebecca Manley	...	Michelle 'Shelly' Fenton
John Wall	...	School Nurse
Mohammed Ali	...	Mo
Jamie Michie	...	Teacher
Steve Evets	...	'Price Drop' Swift
Siobhan Finneran	...	Mrs. Swift
Bailey Clapham	...	Swift Child

Storyline

An official selection at the Cannes Film Festival, The Selfish Giant is a contemporary fable about 13 year old Arbor (Conner Chapman) and his best friend Swifty (Shaun Thomas). Excluded from school and outsiders in their own neighborhood, the two boys meet Kitten (Sean Gilder), a local scrap dealer. Wandering their town with just a horse and a cart, they begin collecting scrap metal for him. Swifty has a natural gift with horses while Arbor emulates Kitten - keen to impress him and make some money. However, Kitten favors Swifty, leaving Arbor feeling hurt and excluded, driving a wedge between the boys. As Arbor becomes increasingly greedy and exploitative, tensions build, leading to a tragic event that transforms them all.

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Plot Keywords:

yorkshire | horse | boy | scrap metal | working class | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Clio Barnard based Arbor and Swifty on two children she met while filming The Arbor (2010) who worked as scrappers.

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Quotes

Policeman: This is a formal interview under caution. Do you understand that, Fenton? Hey, do you understand?
Arbor: Yeah.
Policeman: A witness saw two youths burning railway or communications cable.
Michelle 'Shelly' Fenton: That's nowt to do with him.
Policeman: Cable theft is a very serious crime, Mrs. Fenton. Trespass on the railway is £1,000 fine.
Arbor: I ain't been on railway.
Policeman: Vandalism, endangering lives, maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
Michelle 'Shelly' Fenton: He's just a kid. He ain't nicked no cable. You're looking at wrong place.
Policeman: He is, as you say, Mrs. Fenton, a minor. There's ...

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Connections

Featured in Women Make Film: A New Road Movie Through Cinema (2018)

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Soundtracks

Conspiracy
by Bill Brown

User Reviews

A new Loach in the making?

I have to confess I have a 'soft spot' for realist British drama and any film featuring scrapyards and neglected locations nearly always gets a high rating for me.

Having seen Clio Barnard's previous film 'The Arbor' a couple of years back, I was curious to see her next feature and it's well worth the price of admission. Her style and subject matter here remind me of Andrea Arnold's 'Fish Tank' and also a little of Rufus Norris's dysfunctional family in 'Broken', both of which were high on my score sheet.

The two young leads are outstanding, even if their strong northern accents are sometimes hard to follow for me, a southerner, and the portrayal of exclusion, its consequences and repercussions is handled brilliantly by the film makers as you are immersed in their world for what feels far longer than the 90 minutes running time.

See it and appreciate that British drama is alive and kicking. I look forward to her next project.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 October 2013 (UK)

Also Known As:

The Selfish Giant

Filming Locations:

Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, UK

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,589, 22 December 2013

Gross USA:

$12,189

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,114,027

Company Credits

Production Co:

British Film Institute (BFI), Film4, Moonspun Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1