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Petite Maman (2021)

Cinebuffs Recommends


Sciamma's follow-up to the jaw-dropping Portrait of a Lady On Fire is a worthy contender for the film of the year in 2021.


Finally seeing it now, a couple of years after the fact, makes it no less impressive. The tender and beautiful story of Nelly, a young girl grieving for the loss of her grandmother and the concerns for her own mother shows Sciamma's deft skill with showing us humanity, warts and all.


Brilliant performances are now an expectation rather than a surprise in Sciamma's work and she again employs Claire Mathon as cinematographer, such was mere magic-weaving created the last time they worked together. Subtle as it is, there is more magic going on here, even if it isn't really amplified, just like the rest of the film.


Undeniably beautiful in its melancholy sadness and muted exploration of relationships between parent and child, this, like Portrait, is not for everyone, especially the impatient, even if the message is maybe one everyone really needs to hear.


NB - I never realised they sold Quality Street in France.



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