Poll: Kids in Movies, Games, TV, etc

[tkioz]

Am I alone in being REALLY sick of kids in TV shows, movies, and games? Whenever they on the screen I just wish they'd go away so the adults can go back to the plot.

In Skyrim I'm not disturbed enough to download the kid killing mod, since that's way creepy, but if there was a "mute kids" I'd take it in a heart beat, because the little shits just get on my nerve.

In shows like Terra Nova everytime that young brat with the dinosaur fetish is around I just want to skip forward.

Am I alone in wishing for a return of the days when a child might be seen but never heard (unless it wants a good kick in the backside)?

 

[WhoaItsBrett]

For me it really comes down to how they portray the kid in the plot, and if the actor/actress isn't super bad. In Skyrim, I HATE the kids. Because ALL of them are terribly annoying, and snotty to boot. But, in one of my favorite Movies , The Man From Nowhere , the plot revolves around the antagonist saving a little girl. Granted, for a good chunk of the movie she wasn't there, I still liked having her in it. The actress was pretty good, and the character she was portraying was likable. Also, the little girl in Terra Nova isn't THAT bad.

 

[Thaluikhain]

Depends. Children very often can be seriously annoying, yeah, but that's usually the writer's fault, not the fact there are kids around.

They can be done well, if effort is involved, it just usually isn't.

 

[StorytellingIsAMust]

It depends on the writer and the actor. After all, without kids, we wouldn't have the Goonies.

 

[JoJo]

Snotrags... little shits... young brat

The use of these words lays your position wide and clear, it's not the kids which are the problem, it's your intolerance that is the problem.

 

[tkioz]

Snotrags... little shits... young brat

The use of these words lays your position wide and clear, it's not the kids which are the problem, it's your intolerance that is the problem.

My intolerance is for kids added just to tick a box. "Oh hard boiled resistance fighter? better make sure he's looking after a kid to soften his image!" ugg... never mind we'd rather the plot keep moving then see him hug some little shit with a voice that makes me want to jam pencils into my ears.

 

[Dapper Tadpole]

It's a heavy Your Mileage May Vary situation, and it all depends on the actor and/or how the kid in question is used. For example, the kids in Whiterun (Skyrim) are only annoying because they're stuck with repetitive dialogue. The number of times I've heard the one girl tell me she's not afraid of me even if I am her elder should be grounds for slapping her across the face as I shout, "*****, I've killed dragons!" On the same note, I was challenged to a game of Hide and Seek with them once and it was a fun couple of minutes in that these kids just wanted to play with the new guy in town because he seems trustworthy, even if he is a Dunmer.

Meanwhile, the prologue in Thor shows a young Thor and Loki walking through the vault and it's kind of interesting to see how brash Thor was while Loki calm and quiet, something that carries on to their adult persona's. The kid in The Iron Giant was good because his voice doesn't drive on our nerves and it gives the story a protagonist even more innocent than the brain-damaged giant robot.

Of course there's the other end of the spectrum, things like The Little Vampire or Are We There Yet? really make me question the motives of the producers: are they trying to piss me off? (And yes, even when I was a kid myself I asked these questions.)

 

[Batou667]

Depends. Sometimes they "work" as characters, other times they prove to be the weak link in the show.

I particularly hate young child actors who deliver all their lines at an ear-piercing shout and haven't the foggiest clue about changing their volume or tone to suit the situation. What's that? They're only five years old, cut them some slack, I'd like to see you do better? Look, if they're on TV I expect a baseline of competence, be they a toddler, octogenarian or performing poodle.