There are some intriguing thematic shots here, including close-ups of feet and the staircase, which kept me thinking, as well as an honorable portrayal of children from a man who has been able to maintain touch with his own childhood (which as I grow older becomes harder and harder to do), but overall, a pretty boring script, which, I think, was what knocked the beauty out of this film for me. Shots like this thumbnail are so poignant: us the audience, the adults, view the child through this cage; we are the ones that are trapped, watching these children enjoy themselves—they are not in their commonly-said ‘own little world,’ but us adults are trapped in ours, while these children our free. This notion of being trapped relates to the narrative through these children trapped in their home, abandoned by their mother. But it seems as though they survive—one might say quite well, and perhaps live a life that we might, in some ways, be jealous of, despite the outwards signs of decay and filth.