The Kid with a Bike

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Luc Dardenne directs. Alain Marcoen behind the camera. Marie-Hélène Dozo cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Belgium, France, Italy. Dialogue in French.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

• 187 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
• 2Released 15 years ago.
• 3International production across 3 countries: Belgium, France, Italy.
• 4Directed by Luc Dardenne, shot by Alain Marcoen. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
• 5Editor Marie-Hélène Dozo shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
• 6Cécile de France and Thomas Doret and Jérémie Renier carry the top of the cast.
• 7IMDB entry: tt1827512 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
• 8Classified under 15 themes, including "robbery", "assault", "riding a bicycle", "redemption".
• 9Released under 21 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography

Alain Marcoen

Editing

Marie-Hélène Dozo

Production design

Igor Gabriel

Costume design

Maïra Ramedhan Levi

Sound

Thomas Gauder

Runtime

87 min · 1h 27m

Status

Released

Original language

FR

IMDB

The Kid with a Bike (2011) ↗

Also by

Luc Dardenne

• 
  When Léon M.’s Boat Went Down the Meuse for the First Time

  1979 · ★ 9.0
• 
  The Son

  2002 · ★ 7.4
• 
  La Promesse

  1996 · ★ 7.2
• 
  Rosetta

  1999 · ★ 7.1
• 
  The Child

  2005 · ★ 7.1
• 
  Lessons from a University on the Fly

  1982 · ★ 7.0

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

• 

  ▶
  The Dardennes on the Origins of The Kid with a Bike

  Featurette · Official
• 

  ▶
  THE KID WITH A BIKE Official Trailer VOSTEN

  Trailer · Official

Community reviews

What people are saying

• Andres Gomez2013-10-01
  ★ 8/10

  All in this movie breaths reality.

  Read full review ↓
• CinemaSerf2025-01-29
  ★ 7/10

  Hats off to Thomas Doret here as he creates a character in "Cyril" that I'd cheerfully have strangled. Now, of course this young lad has some just cause for being a genuine pain in the neck. He's been abandoned by his mother; his father just wants shot of him and though his only real adult friend "Samantha" (Cécile de France) does her best she just isn't what the boy wants. When a lad tries to steal his bike - his lifeline for staying in touch with his dad - he gets involved in some fisticuffs that earns him the nickname "Pitbull" and a new friend in "Weston" (Egon Di Mateo). Nobody wants him to be his pal, though, as he has a reputation as the local drug dealer. The question for "Cyril" now is whether he accepts the freely offered, but more limiting, affection of "Samantha" or does he see his new and exciting best pal as a way to move on from his hopelessness. There's a solid supporting cast to illustrate the roles social services try to play in helping out, but it's all essentially about the young Doret and his ability to tell the story from a child's perspective: vulnerable, mischievous and craving someone who will want him. It's not without it's laughs, and is well worth and hour and an half.

  Read full review ↓

Production companies

Who made it

• 

  France 2 Cinéma

  FR

• 

  Lucky Red

  IT

• 

  Les Films du Fleuve

  BE

• AR

  Archipel 33>35

  FR

• BE

  Belgacom TV

  BE

• 

  RTBF

  BE

Key crew

• ProducerDenis Freyd
• ProducerJean-Pierre Dardenne
• ProducerLuc Dardenne
• Executive ProducerDelphine Tomson
• Co-ProducerAndrea Occhipinti
• Sound Re-Recording MixerThomas Gauder
• Associate ProducerStefano Massenzi
• Associate ProducerArlette Zylberberg
• Sound MixerJean-Pierre Duret
• Associate ProducerAndré Michotte
• Supervising Sound EditorBenoît De Clerck
• Associate ProducerBernadette Meunier
• Production ManagerThomas Alfandari
• Costume DesignMaïra Ramedhan Levi
• EditorMarie-Hélène Dozo
• Production DesignIgor Gabriel
• Script SupervisorMarika Piedboeuf
• First Assistant DirectorCaroline Tambour
• Camera OperatorBenoît Dervaux
• First Assistant CameraAmaury Duquenne

Themes & keywords

What it's about, really

• robbery
• assault
• riding a bicycle
• redemption
• orphan
• bike
• stolen bicycle
• pardon
• denial
• criminal gang
• deadbeat dad
• acceptance
• new life
• period of adjustment
• foster mom

Release history · US

When it landed

• Theatrical2011-05-18

Also known as

International titles

• El niño de la bicicletaES
• O Miúdo da BicicletaPT
• O Garoto de BicicletaBR
• Der Junge mit dem FahrradDE
• Drengen med cyklenDK
• Το παιδί με το ποδήλατοGR
• To paidi me to podilatoGR
• Srác a biciklivelHU
• Ha'yeled im ha'ofanayimIL
• Il ragazzo con la biciclettaIT
• Shônen to JitenshaJP
• Gutten med sykkelenNO
• Chlopiec na rowerzePL
• Dečak sa biciklomRS
• Мальчик с велосипедомRU