Trouble at Timpetill

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Les Enfants de Timpelbach
Film poster
Directed byNicolas Bary
Written byNicolas Bary
Nicolas Peufaillit
Produced byDimitri Rassam
CinematographyAxel Cosnefroy
Edited byVéronique Lange
Music byFrédéric Talgorn
Production
companies
Distributed byPathé Distribution
Release date
  • 17 December 2008 (2008-12-17) (France)
Running time
133 minutes
CountryFrance
LanguageFrench
Budget$14.5 million
Box office$10.7 million[1]

Trouble at Timpetill (French: Les Enfants de Timpelbach) is a 2008 French fantasy adventure film written and directed by Nicolas Bary, based on the novel of the same name (fr) by Henry Winterfeld, first published in 1937.

It was filmed in Luxembourg and in the German-speaking community of Belgium.

The film won the TFO Prize for Best Youth Film at the 2011 edition of the Cinéfranco. Bary has revealed plans to remake the film with his production company, Timpel Pictures.[2]

Plot

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The plot closely follows the storyline of the novel.

The action takes place in the village of Timpetill, located in an unnamed mountain country in Europe, most likely Switzerland or Luxembourg. Some signs are written in German, others in French, but the road markers are shown in fantastical, unreadable script.

The main character is Manfred (Raphaël Katz), a schoolboy of about nine years old. Life in the village, with its curious blend of patriarchal traditions and late-19th-century dress alongside modern inventions such as cars, trains, and even a mechanical flying cuckoo, seems idyllic at first. Yet the town is plagued by a gang of children called the "The Knackers", who take pleasure in cruel pranks at the expense of both other children and adults. Unable to identify the true culprits, the adults begin to suspect all the children to some degree. In desperation, they decide to teach them a lesson by pretending to abandon the town. Planning only to spend a day in the forest before returning, the adults inadvertently stray into a neighboring country, where they are arrested and thrown into prison.

Meanwhile, the children, realizing that the adults have disappeared, initially rejoice at their newfound freedom. Most join the gang’s revelry in the local tavern, while a smaller group, led by Marianne (Adèle Exarchopoulos), understands that they must take responsibility for running the village and securing food. One by one, hungry children begin leaving the gang to join Marianne’s group. "The Knackers", however, are quick to retaliate.

Cast

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Production

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After three short films, Trouble at Timpetill became the first feature film of Nicolas Bary, who was 26 years old in 2008. The producer, Dimitri Rassam, of the same age, is the son of Carole Bouquet, who also appeared in the film. Following in the footsteps of his father, the film producer Jean-Pierre Rassam, who died in 1985, Dimitri Rassam realized his own first feature film.[3]

In concept, the story resembles William Golding’s novel Lord of the Flies, which also tells of a group of children suddenly left without adults. Unlike Golding’s novel, however, in Timpetill it is the "reasonable", democratic group of children that prevails.

The film received funding of 600,000 euros from EURIMAGES.[4]

Filming locations included:[5]

The film was released in France and Belgium on 17 December 2008.

References

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  1. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  2. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  3. ^ Janina Strötgen: „Eine altertümliche Welt mit moderner Botschaft“
  4. ^ Bericht über Filmförderung[dead link]
  5. ^ Drehorte
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  • Trouble at Timpetill at IMDbLua error in Module:WikidataCheck at line 29: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).
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