UK – Drama – Year: 2013 – Running time: 91 mins
Audience feedback: Rating: 
(4.58 from 26 responses)
‘Excellent’: 17 votes- ‘Very Good’: 7 votes
- ‘Good’: 1 vote
- ‘Satisfactory’: 1 vote
- ‘Poor’: 0 votes
The Selfish Giant shares its title with an Oscar Wilde children’s tale, but this unflinching, moving story of two Bradford boys who steal copper, illegally race ponies and flirt worryingly with danger all day long is rooted in a very real, modern Britain. It unfolds in a world of rundown housing estates backing on to open fields punctuated by cooling towers and electricity pylons. For all its stark realism, its passion, lyricism and fine acting performances make it one of the outstanding British films of recent years.
… the film is a triumph in the direction of young untried actors.
Jonathan Romney, Sight and Sound
Director: Clio Barnard
The Arbour (Documentary, 2010)
Film notes for “The Selfish Giant” (Nigel Best)
Audience feedback
Discussion forum
Further reading:
Sight and Sound (Jonathan Romney)
The Independent (Geoffrey MacNab)
Theatrical trailer: