The Children’s Train review: a voyage through love & loss
Even though films about World War II serve as a historical reminder of the horrors of war, people love watching them. They present compelling stories of heroism, sacrifice, and camaraderie, that allow us to explore complex themes of morality, courage, and the human cost of conflict, all within a visually engaging format with a readily identifiable antagonist like the Nazi regime. The stories of soldiers, civilians, and resistance fighters evoke powerful emotions like fear, hope, and determination and create a deeply engaging viewing experience.
Throw in visuals of large-scale battles, military technology, shots of Hitler and his madness, the Nazis marching and war-battered people suffering, and the entire cinematic spectacle is somehow strangely palatable and satisfying.
Some of us will draw parallels between the themes of fascism and oppression depicted in these films and contemporary political issues, prompting ample reflection and discussion, others will just thank their stars that they live in times of peace, and get on with their lives.
The six years of global conflict that constituted World War II not only transformed the world politically, culturally, and technologically, it also set the stage for some amazing, unforgettable, and horrifying films ever created. These were stories celebrating the unsung heroes, as well as lamenting the villainous architects and atrocities of war.
This September will mark the 80th anniversary of the end of the conflict, so it might be a good time to watch some great World War II films; The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) Downfall (2004) Casablanca (1942) Inglourious Basterds (2009) Schindler's List (1993) being my all-time personal favourites.
The Children’s Train (2024) that I stumbled on purely by chance, is the newest addition to my list. Rated +13, I wasn’t sure if it is a kiddie movie but I as I began watching it, I realised that it was hovering over mature emotions, although kids should be made to watch it in the hope that they would realise what war does to people.
Based on the novel Il treno dei bambini by Italian author Viola Adrone, Amerigo Speranza’s story is a fictional one developed for 2019’s The Children’s Train book, and later adapted for the screen.
It follows Amerigo (Christian Cervone), a young boy living a hard life of poverty with his mother Antonietta (Serena Rossi) in post-war Naples of 1946. After a lot of personal turmoil Antonietta agrees to send Amerigo north through the Italian Communist Party’s “Treni della felicità” or “trains of happiness” programme, to a host family better-equipped to look after him. Plans change when Amerigo’s initial family falls through and he’s taken in by Derna (Barbara Ronchi), a single woman whose brother’s large family becomes Amerigo’s by extension. Amerigo’ new life begins where he has clothes, shoes, and food but also feels the pull for his new mother, while missing his real one.
The film transports us to post-WWII Italy, with stunning on-location shots showcasing the contrasting beauty of Naples, Modena and the Emilia-Romagna countryside. From gritty, urban streets with bomb explosions to serene rural landscapes. The film beautifully depicts Italy’s resilience and cultural richness.
Apparently, inspired by The Children’s Train, there is a train tour available in Italy which takes the tourist on the journey that Amerigo embarked on — from Naples’ historic neighbourhoods to the rolling hills of Emilia-Romagna.
Coming back to the film, Amerigo’s intriguing story is the story of many, many children who were actually put on trains and sent to wealthier families for fostering. The Italian Communist Party took control of Italy following the nation’s collapse in World War II. Since during the war, Italy was ruled by the National Fascist Party led by dictator Benito Mussolini, the nation fought with Hitler’s Nazis against the allied forces. As a result, Italy’s military and economic failures brought the nation to an all-time low as the war ended in their unconditional surrender, and people died of starvation and cold.
In Naples that was devastated by war, the hunger is so severe that even rats and cats are eaten, and for children, there is only poverty and the streets. In this dramatic context, a social project was born, which was initiated by the Communist Party and entrusted for practical management to the Unione Donne Italiane [Italian Women's Union] (UDI, the women's organisation of the political group). This project took 70,000 poor children to spend the winter with wealthier families in the north, where they were welcomed, fed, and cared for, with the hope of returning to their original homes.
Hence the Treni della felicità programme materialised, which is the central idea of this film.
Broadly viewed, the programme was a massive success, as it helped to save the lives of thousands of kids, but it also entailed kids being torn away from their mothers and sent to strangers who they had never met or seen. By the time the train operations concluded in 1952, over 70,000 Italian children were sent North via train, with some eventually returning home once the country’s economy recovered. It was a long, cold journey for the children but overall, it benefitted them and was appraised by human rights groups around the globe.
With his mother, Amerigo has a sparse life. He is bony lean, has hardly any clothes or food and no shoes. His mother is overworked, and frustrated with the hardships of life as her husband is away fighting the war. There were rumours that the children being taken away to be eaten by the Communists, after cutting their hands and feet off, and the children are frightened to leave, yet, Amerigo goes away with some neighbourhood friends, in the hope of getting a better life and being able to come back to Naples soon.
At the other end of the train, Amerigo meets his host family, but there lots of conflict in his little head. Here, he has food, clothes, affection, schooling and opportunities he never could have dreamed of back in 1946 Naples. He also misses his mother, feels displaced and sad on occasions. It makes you wonder how many children must have gone through immense trauma of adjusting with new families who were complete strangers. If a programme like that was to begin with modern day war such as the one in Ukraine or Gaza, there would be a host of additional issues to deal with in the woke world of today.
There’s a heartbreaking series of contrasts in the story. For instance, you think about what a mother must have gone through when she had to send her kid away, because she was unable to provide for him. While on the other side was a woman who knows nothing about parenting but takes on the responsibility of fostering a child because of her belief and loyalty in the programme. Then ofcourse, the boy’s complicated feelings about the new and the real mother, tempted and comforted by the socioeconomic comforts. With more detailed characterisation, deeper exploration of the twists and turns in Amerigo and the other character’s lives, I felt more than once that it could have made into a better series with several episodes than a 96-minute film. The lives of Amerigo and his mother indicates what happened to real people at the time and deeper characterisations would have worked better for the story.
To bring authenticity to the film, it was shot in various Italian locations, including Pistoia and Montalcino in Tuscany, Naples, and Reggio Emilia. Director Cristina Comencini captures the essence of Italy at the time with well-chosen backdrops to back up the story.
The film is both touching and sincere, with a genuinely popular language for the script, Il treno dei bambini deserves credit not only for bringing to light a rather unknown page of Italian history but also for contrasting two different yet complementary ways of experiencing motherhood. The film challenges the viewer to reflect on the question: is a true mother the one who gave birth to you but chooses, even painfully, not to keep you for your own good, or is it the stranger who generously decides to take you in to give you a future that was impossible at home? In this beautiful story that is full of emotions, there is a third protagonist, that beng the head of the UDI (played by actress Antonia Truppo), who cares for the Neapolitan children, and is the one who selects foster families in the north. This represents another dimension of motherhood, which is beyond definitions, but no less powerful.
Whether you’re a history enthusiast or someone drawn to deeply human stories, this cinematic journey will reminds you that the tracks of the past lead straight into the questions we still wrestle with today.