migitano I saw this wonderful film in two versions when it was first released. The first was with sub- titles, and in the second English was dubbed in. The sub-title version was much better, as it more closely followed the actual language used. But I thoroughly enjoyed the film on both occasions, and later added a copy to my collection.The performances of the boys was uniformly superb, and the "war" progressed naturally and logically to its inevitable disastrous conclusion. I was, as I am sure everyone was, totally captivated by the performance of little Martin Lartigue as Petit Gibus, the smallest member of Lebrac's gang. I will never forget his checking of his "qualifications" for leading the gang, and his sad conclusion that he would "Never be the leader!"All in all this is a delightful film which I still enjoy watching as much as I did when I first saw it.

dlkumler This unforgettable movie about poor, rural French kids who battle each other as representatives for the "republic" or for the "monarchy" in the woods after school. The loser has his buttons knifed off by the winner; since the loser has only 1 pair of trousers he must ask his mama to sew on his buttons.... This "simple" outcome has stuck with d me for 20 years--this great simple film that explores how children unwittingly play out their parents' point of view and how that affects their developing identity. It is wondrously un-American: it's not about individuality triumphing over; it is a view of a world that America has never filmed or explored: one where poor people have character but are condemned to repeat unwinnable battles of the past.

elfqueen The war of the buttons is one of those films that warms the cockles even at a tender age (where such nostalgic sentimentality like cocklewarming is not even a concept yet). The artful description of human nature at its early stages, the heartache of being young, the struggle of empowering onself and of feeling powerless in a world dominated by grown-up violence and/or indifference is so tender, so enchanting that it should be compulsory on school curricula, at least for students of French. Seeing this film makes me yearn for the French countryside, it makes me laugh, it makes me happy, it makes me want to be child and to have a child of my own. And it also moves me to tears, and makes me remember the agonies of childhood. In short, this film is true art in the old philosophical sense: it produces emotion, true emotion, it depicts beauty and it involves its audience in thorough katharsis. A gem.

Wrangler A real delight. Wistfully nostalgic for the innocence and inspired creativity of childhood. Hilarious in parts. Why is this such an obscure film?