The Child I Never Was (2002)

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A serial killer dispassionately discusses the nuts and bolts of his grisly avocation, as well as the youthful traumas which helped to mold him into a psychopath, in this disturbing independent drama from Germany, based on a true story. Young Jurgen Bartsch (Sebastian Urzendowsky) was raised in a family where his father (Walter Gontermann) barely acknowledged his existence and his mother (Ulrike Bliefert) displayed an inappropriate degree of affection toward him. When he reached puberty, Bartsch (played as a teenager by Tobias Schenke) was a young man confused and bitter about his growing sexual maturity, and possessing a deep hatred of those around him. Bartsch was a 15-year-old apprentice butcher when he kidnapped and murdered a young boy; he would kill three more boys in a similar fashion before he was captured by police in 1966. After he was found guilty, Bartsch carefully documented his childhood and his crimes in a series of letters and essays, and Ein Leben lang kurze Hosen tragen is drawn from his own words as it dramatizes his life and his crimes. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Theatrical Feature Running Time:

83 mins

Complete Cast:

Director(s):

Kai S. Pieck

Writer(s):

Kai S. Pieck

Producer(s):

Andrea Hanke, Bettina Scheuren

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• 2003 - The Child I Never Was - German Camera Awards - Outstanding Editing in a Feature Film
• 2003 - The Child I Never Was - San Francisco International LGBT Film Festival - Levi's First Feature Award