In Old Hollywood films, child characters are kept to a few brief scenes. Thankfully, because those child actors didn't have the skill to perform on that level. Films start getting great child actors in 70s, and by 90s that is the norm. Worth analyzing.
I excluded movies marketed for children here (Our Gang, Disney's early live actions for kids). Child actors had big roles in those movies. But kids movies didn't need child actors to be as impressive as adult co-stars in nor require the range & style of acting of adult actors.
Shirley Temple was most impressive child actor of the Golden Age. Hard worker, w/ a bit toughness behind her indefatigable optimism that gave her charm. But her movies still were for her exaggerated kid acting style. She had a shtick. When she aged her acting didn't land anymore.
Shift starts when 9 year old Tatum O'Neil is able to keep up w/ the acting of her dad, and general style, as co-star of New Hollywood director Peter Bogdanovich's "Paper Moon" (1973). Then you get Jodie Foster's hardened, mature performances.
1990s, all these kid stars who can evoke complex, serious, & dark emotions for dramas they'e in alongside era's biggest stars. Or have charm & range to be centerpiece of blockbusters. Leo DiCaprio, Kirsten Dunst, Haley Joel Osment, Brad Renfro, Lindsay Lohan, Macauley Culkin etc
The acting --emotional complexity & skill--these 70s-90s performed was much remarked upon at the time. It's unusual & unnatural for children to be able to act that convincingly. What went into producing all these talented kid actors/performances needs to be seriously explored.
(And of course, I have some thoughts about how this timeline of impressive child acting performances aligns with creation & development of MKultra)
@Shortwoman93 Over the Edge, a good movie. 1979 Jonathan Kaplan and cult film status. It was Matt Dillon's film debut. Maybe too many Jodi fosters and similar outcomes from early acting skilled careers, consciously or to make less aware but more malleable in later years and careers.
@GCown36613 I think about Over the Edge a lot
@Shortwoman93 I only fairly recently read about Shirley Temple’s, uh, “experiences”, with the grown men in Hollywood and was even more disturbed than I anticipated. Trauma based behavioral modification before there was a special program for it.