The Child in Time: Season 1

METASCORE

Universal acclaim based on 6 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 15 Ratings

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6.7

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6.7	Your Score
6.7	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 15 Ratings

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Season Details & Credits

PBS | Season Premiere Date: April 1, 2018

Summary: Children's book author Stephen Lewis (Benedict Cumberbatch) and his wife, Julie (Kelly Macdonald) try to come to terms with the disappearance of their four-year daughter in this adaptation of Ian McEwan's novel of the same name.

Genre(s): Drama, Movie/Mini-Series

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Season 1 Episodes

No episode information is currently available for this season

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

100

David Wiegand

Mar 26, 2018

McEwan’s theme, exquisitely celebrated in the adaptation by Stephen Butchard, the direction by Julian Farino and enviable performances by Cumberbatch, Macdonald and Moore, especially, is about the nature of childhood itself, about how it becomes subsumed in the quotidian routines of adulthood. Read full review

IndieWire Hanh Nguyen

Apr 2, 2018

The viewer must go along with Stephen on this strange and intimate journey because only by enduring the torture and confusion can the catharsis occur. There is hope, there is another side for those left behind, and for The Child in Time it is hard won, but builds to this conclusion deliberately and beautifully. Read full review

John Anderson

Mar 29, 2018

The actors are convincing, honest and heartbreaking. It’s the hardest kind of thing to do. They do it splendidly. Director Julian Farino, known mostly for his work on television, can handle actors, it seems, but he’s also an exemplar of economic visual storytelling. Read full review

Collider Allison Keene

Mar 29, 2018

The Child in Time’s attention to the specific grief of one couple facing a void of the unknown makes it a truly devastating watch that leaves a lasting impact. Read full review

Brian Lowry

Apr 1, 2018

Offer(s) Cumberbatch completists a performance that conjures a different sort of quiet magic. Read full review

Rob Owen

Mar 29, 2018

The Child in Time takes some bizarre turns that draw it away from the grief/guilt cycle endemic to the film’s premise. There’s Stephen’s publisher friend (Stephen Campbell Moore) who has a Benjamin Button-style awakening that plays into the theme of childhood. And the film also offers an ending of hope, a welcome if somewhat unbelievable salve on the almost unbearable pain of the program’s earliest moments. Read full review

User Score

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6.7

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User Reviews

MrsDrStrange

Aug 11, 2018

This is is really a sad film, poor baby :( But Benedict ia an amazing actor. That pain, that happiness.. All seems really really true.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

promised_mahdi

Apr 20, 2019

this isn't about a lost child or a relationship between her parents actually i think its about being a child for example happy like a child good like a child hopeful like a child
you can find this concept also in the little prince written by Antoine de Saint Exupéry
there is a connectionthis isn't about a lost child or a relationship between her parents actually i think its about being a child for example happy like a child good like a child hopeful like a child
you can find this concept also in the little prince written by Antoine de Saint Exupéry
there is a connection between love and spirit of childhood which you can save that even you aren't a child anymore with love
think about love more… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

rajeevfromca

Apr 8, 2018

I usually love Masterpiece productions and Benedict Cumberbatch has a lot of star power now. But this show was eventually disappointing as it did not amount to much. The main thread of how parents deal with the loss of a child was done well enough, but without any novelty or fresh insights.I usually love Masterpiece productions and Benedict Cumberbatch has a lot of star power now. But this show was eventually disappointing as it did not amount to much. The main thread of how parents deal with the loss of a child was done well enough, but without any novelty or fresh insights. Only the good performances from Cumberbatch and Macdonald kept things going. However, the big letdown was the secondary thread of the publisher regressing into childhood -- it wasn't fleshed out enough and felt like a distraction, annoyingly so. When the show ended, I was left wondering what to make of these 90-minutes. PBS usually makes good shows, but this one seems more a vanity project embellished by star power. I suggest staying from it.… Expand

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

Seasons & Episodes

83

Series Overview
Season 1

83
- Season 1 Overview
  Air Date: April 1, 2018
- No episode information is currently available for this season