Martian Child Film Analysis

Martian Child is a film that focuses on the blossoming relationship between a movie writer and the unique child he considers adopting. Throughout the film, the child, Dennis, displays his unique personality everywhere, believing to be from the planet Mars. The movie writer, David, was always there for Dennis. It took time for their friendship to ultimately become the father-son relationship Dennis needed in his life. In the end, Dennis comes to the realization that there is someone out there that accepts and loves him for who he is. There were many background issues seen throughout the film. David grew up a unique child who was also misunderstood by his family and peers. He experienced tragedy when his wife recently died and then again when …show more content…
The film took a glimpse into David’s childhood, which showed him wandering alone on the playground followed by running away from a group of bullies. When Dennis attended school for the first time, he was immediately teased for looking and acting differently. Dennis displayed Solitary Play frequently, which for his age assuming he is of school age is a form of play that is unusually seen. These examples refer to the Social Developmental concept. The film showed Dennis being bullied by his peers by being called names such as “retard”, which also falls under this concept. The entire film also displayed Dennis’ ability to use his imagination in his play by believing he is a Martian. In one part of the movie, Dennis placed the vacuum handle on his forehead, starts walking around the room and making sucking-like sounds as if he is the vacuum. This is relevant to Jean Piaget’s Preoperational Stage: Mental Representation, which is typical of children Dennis’ age. This theory also falls under the Cognitive Development …show more content…
I compared Dennis’s personality traits to my own. Like Dennis, I was an uncommunicative child but that was because I was very shy and observant. Socializing was something I did not show until I started Elementary school. I often preferred keeping to myself than interacting with others. That is why it concerned me that in the film, Dennis was negatively labeled because he preferred not to interact with others. David was someone Dennis started to trust and communicate to. As their relationship grew, you can see Dennis’ language development grow rapidly as he expresses himself with words. I had that one person who helped my development grow, including the ability to speak very frequently. My twin sister was someone I always talked to and felt secure