Little Criminals

In Canada, the age of criminal responsibility is twelve. Des knows this law and uses it as a justification for his criminal behavior, believing the police cannot charge him until he turns twelve. This knowledge shapes his entire mindset, leading him to push boundaries and commit increasingly serious crimes while he still believes he is untouchable.

The film establishes early on that Des exploits this legal loophole, setting up the tension for when his twelfth birthday approaches.

During the robbery of dealer Chet, Cory confesses to stealing something, which triggers Chet to attack Cory. When Chet turns violent and attacks his friend, Des hesitates but then shoots and kills Chet with a stolen firearm. The killing represents a point of no return for Des, fundamentally changing his relationship with Cory and cementing his descent into serious violence.

Their plan to rob a drug dealer marks a dangerous escalation from their previous crimes, foreshadowing the deadly consequences.

After witnessing Des kill Chet, Cory is traumatized by the violence and realizes Des is capable of killing. This shifts his perception entirely, he no longer sees Des as a friend but as a dangerous person. Cory immediately seeks protection from his stepfather and wants nothing more to do with Des, effectively ending their friendship.

Their partnership had been building toward violence, and Chet's death becomes the breaking point that destroys their bond.

Des sets the house on fire for two interconnected reasons: he doesn't want to be placed in foster care, and he knows that when he turns twelve in a month, he will face criminal charges for his crimes. Seeing no viable future for himself, he chooses self-destruction over both outcomes. He hides in a closet and falls asleep as the flames consume the home, leaving his fate uncertain.

Earlier scenes show his fear of the assessment centre and foster care, combined with the constant reminder that his twelfth birthday brings legal consequences.

The summary mentions that Des is stabbed by his mother during an incident, though the specific circumstances of the stabbing are not detailed in the provided summary. This violent act from his own parent leads to Des being placed in the assessment centre for troubled children.

When Rita informs Des that social services are trying to place him in a foster home, he reacts with strong rejection and flees the assessment centre. Des has lived his entire life in chaos but within his own environment, and the idea of being placed with strangers represents losing the only control he feels he has over his life. He'd rather remain on the run than be forced into an unfamiliar family situation.

His resistance to the assessment centre and authority figures appears throughout his interactions with Rita and staff.

Des's mother voluntarily relinquishes custody of him, though the summary does not specify her exact reasoning. Earlier scenes show her as neglectful, she does not take seriously the concerns raised by police and social workers about Des's escalating behavior. Her decision reflects her inability or unwillingness to care for her son, leaving him in the hands of the state.

Des flees the assessment centre as soon as Cory visits him. His escape is driven by his refusal to be placed in foster care and his desire to remain free while he is still under twelve. He also wants to execute his plan with Cory to leave the city by robbing Chet, the local dealer. The assessment centre represents the institutional system he has consistently resisted throughout the film.

Des meets Cory on the schoolyard when Cory gets into a fight with a bully. Des is impressed by Cory's willingness to stand up to the bully, seeing courage in him. The two form an immediate bond over their shared defiance and begin committing crimes together, with Cory joining Des's crime spree.

Their meeting establishes the partnership that drives much of the film's criminal action.

After Chet is killed, Cory becomes terrified of Des and wants nothing more to do with him. He asks his stepfather to protect him and distances himself completely from their former partnership. The violence has irreversibly damaged their friendship, and Cory chooses to break away from Des entirely.

The killing directly causes the breakdown of their friendship, which had been central to both boys' criminal activities.

Rita is a psychologist at the assessment centre who works with Des and tries to understand his motivations. She sees some improvement in his behavior over time and represents the one adult figure genuinely attempting to help him. However, her efforts ultimately fail to prevent Des's continued descent, as he rejects the system's help and flees.

Rita's involvement provides a brief glimmer of hope for intervention, which makes Des's ultimate choice more tragic.

Turning twelve is significant because it marks the age of criminal responsibility in Canada. Throughout the film, characters remind Des that he will be twelve in a month, adding mounting pressure. Once he turns twelve, he can be charged with crimes, which is why he commits ever-more-serious offenses before that deadline. His entire worldview crumbles as this date approaches, contributing to his final desperate act.

The countdown to his twelfth birthday creates mounting tension from the early scenes onward.