Playground (2016)

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Avg Rating: 3.2 / 5. Voted: 48

No one cared thus far. Do you?

Warning: Includes violence against children

AKA: Plac Zabaw
Year: 2016
Directed by: Bartosz Kowalski
Starring: Nicolas Przygoda (Szymek), Przemyslaw Balinski (Czarek), Michalina Swistun (Gabrysia)
Country: Poland
Language: Polish (English Subtitles)
Runtime: 01:17:15
Genres: Based on a True Story, Kidnapping, Teens-Childhood

Plot – Spoilers:
Playground follows three kids Gabrysia, Szymek, Czarek through their morning routines as they leave for their final day at school before the summer break. Gabrysia is well-off and feels she’s fat and unattractive to the boys. Szymek lives with his disabled father whose needs he looks into diligently, barring the occasional flareup of rage. Czarek has the most regular middle-class life with his immediate concern being a baby brother whose constant crying bothers him.

The lead-up to Playground’s shocking finale doesn’t really offer any explanations though you could argue and point to the little incidents that build up to it. Especially when they taste blood during the scene with Gabrysia in the ruins.

Loosely based on the murder of James Bulger.

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misanthropy
misanthropy
October 31, 2023 7:58 am

Reminiscent of the CCTV clip of someone crushing a toddler’s head with a rock on a yard and then running away, as well as the close-up clip a toddler getting beheaded by a train.

Kikitza
Kikitza
March 8, 2023 3:16 pm

Mid-tier film with a with great, gross miserable ending

joe126
joe126
February 13, 2023 12:17 am

If you want to see the short film Detainment (2018) about the James Bulger case, it is on youtube.

smiles
smiles
February 12, 2023 5:41 am

OMG. That was so effed up. The ending so realistic it made me sick to my stomach.

SCATBUTCHER
SCATBUTCHER
December 10, 2022 2:01 am

The train tracks scene could have been more graphic ngl

JustAFan
JustAFan
April 16, 2022 2:39 am

Loved the two lead boys and the slice-of-life feel to the whole film. Scene by the tracks was choice. 5/5

Big J
Big J
January 22, 2022 4:46 pm

What a killer ending and I do mean Killer,interesting its based on james bulger murder, and I thought this movie was going to be original lol

Porușniuc Adina
Porușniuc Adina
January 21, 2022 7:32 pm

OOOh i didn,t see that end coming!! Thank you for the movie Eum!

movienthusiast11
movienthusiast11
January 20, 2022 9:29 am

“badly translated” xD, you guys dont give yourselves enough credit. bless this site

Nate
Nate
November 24, 2021 12:00 am

Great film very provocative!

Ron Jeremy
Ron Jeremy
November 17, 2021 3:52 am

A potentially brilliant film,my only complaint is the end,i wanted to see that little fuckers head smashed in close up,not from half a fuckin mile down the road you pollack cunts………..oh im not into spoiler alerts so get fucked,plus if you lknew anything about this flick going in,youd know its based on the english case of jamie bulger………..& shit didnt end well for that poor little bastard did it

tonyelmono
tonyelmono
October 19, 2021 7:43 am

That was pretty fucked up

Dr Harris
Dr Harris
September 12, 2021 8:51 am

Cruel… Nasty… Horrible…
Just like a lot of people..
The film .. well.. gripping., Shocking.. challenging… Just like cinema should be.
Ultimately sad thought provoking and Depressing.

Erica
Erica
May 17, 2021 10:27 pm

The events of the James Bulger murder inspired this film. It makes for a good movie. It does seem plausible that these characters would end up senselessly murdering a two year old. Sadism. the one kid having a disabled dad (one of the boys irl had disabled family members I think a sibling). Being poor. Not having as much power as your cooler, older brother who doesn’t look as baby-faced or girlish as you, who looks tough with his buzzed hair and not like Sinead O’ Connor. Enjoying tormenting sexually the fat girl who has a crush on you. Teasing animals. If you didn’t know the Bulger case, the end would have been very shocking. The discrepancy between the peaceful area by the train tracks in the bright sunlight, and the casual snuffing out of an innocent life. No movie about the events would be a good thing. It was just using some real life tragedy for entertainment, to ponder the question “how could such young people do such a thing?” This film is a fantasy about being able to know and see the inner workings of something so senseless. About being in awe of the evil of human beings. As far as why the James Bulger murder happened, it is tormenting thinking about why it happened. Two sadistic kids…left alone…too young and dumb to realize that they can’t get away with murder…they traumatized themselves by the ordeal. One of them seems to be a pedophile in his adulthood (if… Read more »

baptist7203
baptist7203
April 12, 2021 8:23 pm

Whats really sad to think is that the little boy in this didnt suffer nowhere near as much as poor little james did. Again EUM more than delivers.

Farfadet Kennedy
Farfadet Kennedy
April 8, 2021 1:09 am

poor little guy man that ending was brutal af

Helena Han Basquet
Helena Han Basquet
April 7, 2021 12:11 am

James Patrick Bulger was a 2 yr old boy (almost 3) from Kirkby, Merseyside, England, who was abducted, tortured and killed by two 10 yr olds boys, Robert Thompson and Jon Venables on Friday 12th February 1993. Thompson and Venables led Bulger away from the New Strand Shopping Centre in Bootle as his mother took her eyes off him momentarily whilst paying for goods in a shop. This film is stupid, sadistic and disgusting.

Leav
Leav
November 19, 2020 8:16 am

Seeing that kid hit his father made me incredibly sad

OJ
OJ
October 6, 2020 7:07 am

Cool, Thx mate.

OJ
OJ
October 5, 2020 10:47 am

IMDB filed this movie as 1h 22m but the version here ia 1h 17m. Do we miss something here and its a cut version?

Pamela
Pamela
August 1, 2020 2:09 pm

I remember watching a documentary about this or another child murder like it. Shocking. I only found this site a week ago so thanks because without this site I would have gone completely mad being so bored. Love this website!

Phil
Phil
July 17, 2020 9:13 pm

Such a sick horrible film anything to do with children sucks if I got my hands on them I’d slit them head to toe cunts

darkjoker
darkjoker
April 22, 2020 6:47 pm

Great Thanks for this upload.

Initially I didn’t realise this was based on James Bulger’s murder.

When the mall scene came up then it became clear.

Is it possible to upload the Irish short version of this – “Detainment” which got nominated for oscar?

Nameless
Nameless
February 26, 2020 8:39 pm

This movie makes you go through a wide range of feelings. Confused, worried, sad, mad.. the beginning is slow. That being said, you have to watch the whole plot because it shows how their behavior really develops and leads to what happens in the playground scene. It’s sad. The ending enraged me. I didn’t know it was based on a true story. I’m not sure if I’d recommend it as a must watch but I think if you have the time you should give it a go or at least read about it.

Chisel
Chisel
February 22, 2020 1:35 am

That movie pretty much sucked.
Really sad ending.

Bartel
Bartel
February 21, 2020 10:41 pm

Yeah and by the way… I LOVE YOUR SITE!

Bartel
Bartel
February 21, 2020 10:38 pm

If you “liked” that movie i would strongly recommend (NOT a request) the ukrainian movie THE TRIBE in which not a single word is spoken cause the entire cast is deaf.
It´s about this youth gang THE TRIBE and the rise and fall of his newest member.
Just watch the trailer. I think it´s right up your alley.
https://youtu.be/UsYmueYoTrw

Jesse
Jesse
February 8, 2020 3:13 pm

I agree I haven’t watched this movie yet, but thank you for posting. I literally wake up every morning, check Facebook, ignore everyone, jump on effedupmovies for a few hours, then back to life…So excited to see a new movie up so often thank you thank you thank you for the much needed break from boring stupid life!

Mike
Mike
February 8, 2020 1:33 am

Thank you so much for this gem of a film. The continuous use of juxtaposition is astounding, and the raw, town life of Polish society is spot on.

Love effedupmovies.com. It is indeed a destination site. Your work is appreciated more than you may realize.

Cheers,
Mike

tony
tony
February 6, 2020 4:46 pm

jesus christ….what for a movie….the end is unbelievable sad, brutal, sadistic ………. iam spechless…..

thanx for the movie admin 😉

keep up the good work

p.s very good page without bullshit mainstream blockbusters …..only hard (underground) stuff!

my respect

kudos ————> effed up movies!!!