Cast: Zoé Héran, Malonn Lévana, Jeanne Disson, Sophie Cattani, Mathieu Demy
Characters: Laure (Mikael), Jeanne, Lisa,
Immediately the film is permeated with the airy, breezy, sun-stained, ethereal, floating beauty so native to French cinema
Courageous to make a film based almost entirely around young children; but they have been blessed with a precociously talented cast.
Her slow-building fascination with her body, and boyhood (playing football shirtless, spitting at will) is beautifully realised.
All the boys go for a wee… but what can she do?
She keeps her Plasticine penis in a keep-sake box on her bedside table… ripe with symbolism; a surreal and moving image.
- She is innocent and scared.
Jeanne’s face when Lisa shows up asking after “Mikael” is one of the most entertaining moments of film the EIFF. And it is the beginning of one of the finest comic performances of the year.
The “wise younger sister” is a cliché, but it feels so right here.
- She joins the illusion; spinning fantasies about her amazing older brother who protects her and gets all the girls.
- She cuts her hair and supports her
- She is too scared to open her mouth so she wont even eat.
The climax is a heartbreaking, Lord of the Flies moment of childhood cruelty. But nobody can be blamed because these youngsters are just confused by the idea of it all. They are too young to understand gender ambiguity.
Was it disgusting that they kissed; just because it now transpires they were both girls? They cant take back what that kiss means, they just have to incorporate the caprice and dishonesty. Lisa clearly doesn’t entirely regret the kiss, and she is perhaps the most confused and put out. But she senses that it should be “disgusting” and, too scared to stand up for her personal feelings in the face of overriding “normality”, she consents to join the abuse of her one-time lover.
But she cannot let go. They share something simple and honest, and it cannot be crushed by bullying or matters of physical anatomy.
Zoé Héran is perfect in the lead role. Her sandy complexion and androgynous pixie looks allow her to shape-shift seamlessly from one identity to the other. We are lost with her throughout.
Characters: Laure (Mikael), Jeanne, Lisa,
Immediately the film is permeated with the airy, breezy, sun-stained, ethereal, floating beauty so native to French cinema
Courageous to make a film based almost entirely around young children; but they have been blessed with a precociously talented cast.
Her slow-building fascination with her body, and boyhood (playing football shirtless, spitting at will) is beautifully realised.
All the boys go for a wee… but what can she do?
She keeps her Plasticine penis in a keep-sake box on her bedside table… ripe with symbolism; a surreal and moving image.
- She is innocent and scared.
Jeanne’s face when Lisa shows up asking after “Mikael” is one of the most entertaining moments of film the EIFF. And it is the beginning of one of the finest comic performances of the year.
The “wise younger sister” is a cliché, but it feels so right here.
- She joins the illusion; spinning fantasies about her amazing older brother who protects her and gets all the girls.
- She cuts her hair and supports her
- She is too scared to open her mouth so she wont even eat.
The climax is a heartbreaking, Lord of the Flies moment of childhood cruelty. But nobody can be blamed because these youngsters are just confused by the idea of it all. They are too young to understand gender ambiguity.
Was it disgusting that they kissed; just because it now transpires they were both girls? They cant take back what that kiss means, they just have to incorporate the caprice and dishonesty. Lisa clearly doesn’t entirely regret the kiss, and she is perhaps the most confused and put out. But she senses that it should be “disgusting” and, too scared to stand up for her personal feelings in the face of overriding “normality”, she consents to join the abuse of her one-time lover.
But she cannot let go. They share something simple and honest, and it cannot be crushed by bullying or matters of physical anatomy.
Zoé Héran is perfect in the lead role. Her sandy complexion and androgynous pixie looks allow her to shape-shift seamlessly from one identity to the other. We are lost with her throughout.
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