THE WILD CHILD Movie Review

L'Enfant Sauvage

Though it initially seems like an anomaly among the films of François Truffaut, The Wild Child (L'Enfant Sauvage) may in fact be the most characteristic film of his career. Set in the 1700s, The Wild Child is a dramatization of the facts in a true case as documented in the diary of Dr. Jean Itard, a researcher who took up the task of trying to “civilize” a young boy who was found living alone in the French countryside after having apparently been raised by wolves. Truffaut himself plays Dr. Itard, and an extraordinary young actor named Jean-Pierre Cargol portrays the boy, who was named “Victor” by Itard after he seemed to naturally respond to the sound of the name. The Wild Child is in essence another version of Truffaut's semi-autobiographical The 400 Blows, but with an ending that suggests that not all of the world's abused kids can overcome their initial damage, no matter how decent or noble the instincts of the child or his potential savior. Itard does his best to remain the detached researcher, but with brilliant restraint and a refreshing lack of sentimentality, Truffaut demonstrates how both doctor and patient—a would-be father and son—are ennobled by their brief relationship. And a sequence in which Itard uncovers in Victor what the researcher calls “the most noble of human attributes”—rebellion against injustice—is powerful enough all be itself to make The Wild Child one of Truffaut's finest and most memorable achievements.

NEXT STOP … The 400 Blows, The Mystery of Kaspar Hauser, The Elephant Man

1970 (G) 85m/B FR Jean-Pierre Cargol, Francois Truffaut, Jean Daste, Francoise Seigner, Paul Ville; D: Francois Truffaut; W: Jean Gruault, Francois Truffaut; C: Nestor Almendros; M: Antoine Duhamel. National Board of Review Awards ‘70: Best Director (Truffaut); National Society of Film Critics Awards ‘70: Best Cinematography. VHS MGM, FCT