A movie you'll probably never see

reviewed Sun, 03 Aug 1997

Ah, to be back in a city where they actually show movies that aren't advertised with the word "thrill ride!"  And how did I choose to indulge in this rediscovered luxury?  By going to the most depressing movie in town.

I went to see Ponette, a French movie about a little girl whose mother dies in a car crash.  It was wrenching, to say the least, for me -- go figure.  So I can't offer a very objective review -- I was in tears from beginning to end.  It didn't help that much of the action is set at a French boarding school, which triggered my own personal, Welcome-to-the-Dollhouse flashbacks of some of children I went to camps with in France.

Mr. Showbiz has a far better review of this movie than I feel able to put together right now, but I'll just say that it's a very heartfelt, realistic, painful film that truly takes you inside the little girl's head (the young actress, Victoire Thivisol, won the Best Actress award at Cannes).  It even manages an upbeat ending without seeming contrived.  But I'm not sure why anyone who doesn't have some sort of similar experience that they're trying to work through would go see it.  Unless you like seeing little girls cry.

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