The books author György Dragomán grew up in the worst totalitarian empire in world history, the communist block countries of Romania and Hungary.The view from eyes of an 11-year-old near brainwashed by groupthink, where he is pressured to wish away his own liberty in order to conform is a insightful point of view given today's group think and "children's crusades" being foisted in todays' young people, by what pretends to be grassroots but which is really cynically created by the forces of oppression.The author is a fan of Ray Bradbury whose Fahrenheit 451, about the dangers of dividing society into groups that are perpetually outraged by anything that might be offensive to any one group, and the shutting down of free speech and burning of offending books is something we see in anti-free speech movement in the US.

After a fair wait I finally had a chance to see this film and I can't say that I was disappointed. It's a great cast that deliver strong performances throughout. The film doesn't feed you every answer - this can occasionally take it to the point of feeling disjointed, but it comes across as a deliberate effort to make it jarring rather than any deficiency in the script. I was left wanting more - it would suit a short series but on reflection I was glad it resolved the way it did. This film didn't need wrapping up with a bow. It didn't need to be clean. If it had either it wouldn't be the film it is. The art direction is particularly strong - distinct and consistent, fully in keeping with the world it portrays. The score supports and enhances the story well. Is it perfect? Maybe not, but It's an engaging watch with some high points that lift it above many others in the genre.

This was a visually a stunning film about a charmed Dystopian world filmed on location I think in Hungary. Uncomfortable to watch through the innocent boys' eyes as he realizes all is not as it seems..... Very good acting from young newcomer and all the cast - some terrifying twins like something out of Mad Max. Jonathan Pryce always hits this characters spot on. Agyness Deyn very natural. Strangely topical in our current climate in 2017... Who really knows what is what and of course, a child sees things differently. Never read the book, which clearly has undertones of 1984 and other classics.A great first film from a new producing/writing/directing team.

I love dystopian films and therefore I really enjoy this film, yes as some critics mentioned there are a few set pieces / stories that aren't fully explained (The robot or cave scene for example) but the viewer needs to take this as a part of the overall world the film is set in. Why is the state depraving his citizen of wealth or technology? what happen to people that rebel, how to survive? what is freedom? all these questions are viewed from the young main protagonist that is delivering a really good performance. A film that makes you think is always a good thing, a film that doesn't have an happy ending is also always better...