AllMovie

The Italian childhood fantasy Little Flames (Piccoli Fuochi) concerns 5-year-old Dino Jakosic. Proving too much for his parents, Jakosic is often sent to his room, where he interacts with several bizarre "imaginary" playmates who bedevil the servants with their sadistic pranks (the audience is never certain whether the playmates are real or whether the boy is pulling off the pranks himself). Valeria Golino plays the family's new maid, whom Jakosic takes a liking to. He begs his playmates to leave Golino alone, but out of jealousy they plan an awful revenge on the poor woman. In a startling sequence, Golino's boyfriend is tied to a bed and set afire. Jakosic confesses to the murder (indeed, as mentioned, he may have done it), but no one believes him capable of so horrible an act. Little Flames does not so much end as stop abruptly, with Jakosic bidding his playmates goodbye after they've wreaked their last havoc. Be sure not to book this one for your kid's next birthday party.