Child of God (film)

Child of God
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	James Franco
Produced by	Caroline Aragon Vince Jolivette Miles Levy
Screenplay by	James Franco Vince Jolivette
Based on	Child of God by Cormac McCarthy
Starring	Scott Haze Tim Blake Nelson James Franco Jim Parrack Nina Ljeti Brian Lally
Music by	Aaron Embry
Cinematography	Christina Voros
Edited by	Curtiss Clayton
Production company	RabbitBandini Productions Made In Film-Land
Distributed by	Spotlight Pictures
Release dates	August 31, 2013 (2013-08-31) (Venice)
Running time	104 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Child of God is a 2013 American crime drama film co-written and directed by James Franco, and starring Scott Haze, based on the novel of the same name by Cormac McCarthy. It was selected to be screened in the official competition at the 70th Venice International Film Festival and was an official selection of the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival. The film made its United States premiere at the 51st New York Film Festival and then was screened at the 2013 Austin Film Festival.

Plot

Set in mountainous Sevier County, Tennessee, in the 1950s, Child of God tells the story of Lester Ballard. Ballard is a dispossessed, violent man whom the narrator describes as "a child of God much like yourself perhaps." Ballard's life is a disastrous attempt to exist outside the social order. Successively deprived of parents and homes, and with few other ties, Ballard descends literally and figuratively to the level of a cave dweller, as he falls deeper into crime and degradation.

Cast

• Scott Haze as Lester Ballard
• Tim Blake Nelson as Sheriff Fate
• James Franco as Jerry
• Jim Parrack as Deputy Cotton
• Jeremy Ambler as Boy With The Rifle
• Fallon Goodson as Girly
• Vince Jolivette as Ernest
• Brian Lally as John Greer
• Nina Ljeti as Victim #1
• Boyd Smith as Mr. Fox
• Terrance Huff as The Pitchman
• Nathan Mohebbi as Victim #1's Boyfriend

Production

On September 14, James Franco announced at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival that he was set to direct an adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's third novel Child of God.

In January 2012, it was announced that Scott Haze had signed on to play Lester Ballard, the film's protagonist. It was also announced that Tim Blake Nelson and Jim Parrack had signed on to play Sheriff Fate and Deputy Cotton, respectively. Production on the film began on January 31, 2012, in West Virginia.

Reception

The film received mixed to negative reviews, holding a rating of 38% on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. The critical consensus states: "An obviously reverent adaptation that fails to make a case for the source material being turned into a movie, Child of God finds director James Franco outmatched by Cormac McCarthy's novel."

External links

• Child of God at IMDb
• Child of God at Rotten Tomatoes