The Selfish Giant poster

The Selfish Giant

7.2(254)20131h 31m2

A hyperactive boy and his best friend, a slow-witted youth with an affinity for horses, start collecting scrap metal for a shady dealer.

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Status
Released
Budget
—
Box office
$12.2K
Language
English
  • friendship
  • horse
  • attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (adhd)
  • yorkshire
  • based on short story
  • woman director
  • school suspension
  • bradford

Top billed cast

Behind the camera

Director

Clio Barnard

Produced in

United Kingdom

Gallery

Still from The Selfish GiantStill from The Selfish GiantStill from The Selfish GiantStill from The Selfish GiantStill from The Selfish GiantStill from The Selfish GiantStill from The Selfish Giant

Videos

Release dates

  • United StatesUS

    • Theatrical (limited)R20 Dec 2013
  • United KingdomGB

    • Theatrical1525 Oct 2013
  • CanadaCA

    • Theatrical (limited)24 Jan 2014
  • BelgiumBE

    • Theatrical1415 Jan 2014
  • DenmarkDK

    • Theatrical1124 Apr 2014
  • FranceFR

    • PremiereCannes Film Festival16 May 2013
    • Theatrical18 Dec 2013
  • GreeceGR

    • PremiereThessaloniki International Film Festival6 Nov 2013
    • TheatricalΚ-1513 Feb 2014
    • PhysicalDVD6 Aug 2014
  • IrelandIE

    • Theatrical1525 Oct 2013
  • NetherlandsNL

    • Theatrical1430 Jan 2014
  • SpainES

    • Theatrical13 Nov 2013
  • SwedenSE

    • PremiereStockholm International Film Festival7 Nov 2013
    • Theatrical28 Mar 2014

Frequently asked questions

The Selfish Giant was released on 25 October 2013.

Audience reviews

3
  • R

    r96sk

    7/9/2020

    7/10

    Very much enjoyed this, from a film point of view of course given the dark and saddening tone of the story. <em>'The Selfish Giant'</em> is a gritty drama involving two kids who get mixed up in the wrong world. At the beginning I was worried it was going to turn into a cliché-filled, overly stereotypical tale of less well-off families. It does in small doses, but feels legitimate for the majority. Cast-wise it …

  • G

    griggs79

    3/28/2025

    6/10

    _The Selfish Giant_ is an interesting watch—gritty, heartfelt, and beautifully shot, with powerful performances from its young leads. There’s a rawness to it that feels authentic, and the friendship at its centre is touching in that bruised, kitchen-sink way. But as much as I wanted to be moved, something about it felt a bit… manipulative. Like it knew exactly how to push the poverty-porn buttons. It lingers on the h…

  • C

    CinemaSerf

    6/12/2025

    7/10

    “Arbor” (Conner Chapman) is a bit of a tearaway who’s on medication that his elder brother frequently sells and hates going to school. His best mate is “Swifty” (Shaun Thomas) - a gentle giant of a boy, and the two are inseparable. When a brawl at school sees the former excluded permanently and his pal for a fortnight, they decide to turn their heads to scrap collection. A perilous business where much of what they ar…

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