PONETTE
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 1997 Steve Rhodes
RATING (0 TO ****): *** 1/2
"Your mommy is in bad shape," says the father to his hospitalized four-year-old daughter, Ponette. "The doctors think she may die."
Told completely from the perspective of the child and containing one of the most mesmerizing performances of the year by Victoire Thivisol as Ponette, the film's development is as unusual as the story itself.
According to the press kit, French writer and director Jacques Doillon first composed only the synopsis for the film and then spent the next six months interviewing four- and five-year-olds, asking them their thoughts on a wide variety of subjects, including death. From the words and actions from these discussions, which he taped, he prepared the script. When you listen to the film, the dialog almost always rings true. (Only in one sequence, set in the kids' bedroom, does he try to stuff too many adult sized sentences down their little mouths.)
More than finding the dead-on dialog, he made an even bigger discovery when he met Thivisol, then a three and one half, in a preschool in Lyon. I have not seen a better performance than hers this year. Stunning and richly textured, her acting more than makes up for the film's limitations. (Sometimes listening to a bunch of preschoolers babbling on can become tedious. Hollywood would gloss over this by hiring some adult stars and shifting the focus away from the children.)
In the film's second scene, the despondent father (Xavier Beauvois) drives along while talking to Ponette. He is angry because his wife was foolishly not wearing her seat belt when the accident occurred. He tries to impress upon Ponette the reality of what has happened.
"Mommy is dead," he tells her. "Do you know what that means?" Although quite intelligent, Ponette has the mind of a child. "Yes," she responds. "She is flying with her magic mirror."
Thivisol expresses her sadness though a wide range of emotions. When confronted with devastating reality, her lower lip extends, she hopelessly tries to fight back the tears, and her cheeks get rosy red. In others, she uses her big eyes to penetrate the very souls of those addressing her. Her spoken words are touching even if you can't speak a word of French.
The story is full of the misinformation found on a playground. Ponette believes that her mother is still alive, and her friend's theories confuse her even more. Her father takes her to live with her aunt (Claire Nebout), who tries to help by telling her the story of Jesus's resurrection. This, of course, becomes garbled in little Ponette's mind, who becomes convinced that her mother will come back just like Jesus did. She reasons that Jesus returned merely to visit with friends, so her mother would have a much stronger motivation to return from the dead since she could visit her own daughter.
As you watch the movie, it is impossible to keep from contrasting the images one normally gets of kids in the movies with those in PONETTE. Most movies have kids in minor, but terminally cute roles, as in JERRY MAGUIRE. If a child actor does have a substantial role, it is rarely in a serious picture. The few potential dramatic roles tend to be adventure yarns, like ALASKA, where the characters have little depth.
The father in PONETTE is a very unsympathetic character. Spending most of the movie being AWOL, he arrives again in the middle only to yell at his daughter for clinging to the belief that her mother will come back. "How much longer will you wait for her?" he barks. "Are you crazy or what?"
Ponette's most emotionally draining scene occurs when she sneaks into a chapel one night. In a scene reminiscent of Emily Watson's in BREAKING THE WAVES, Thivisol cries her eyes out while praying. "God Almighty," she petitions. "You know my mommy is dead because she is with you. I want to talk to my mommy." That she could pull this off without seeming manipulative of the audience's emotions is a tribute to both her and the director.
Parts of the film are lighthearted. Fellow preschooler Carla (Carla Ibled) secretly kisses a candy and then tricks poor Mathias into eating it. This causes all of the boy's friends to burst into the chant, "Mathias loves Carla, Mathias loves Carla." Mathias is completely embarrassed.
Usually, however, the story stays firmly in the tragic. Little Antoine (Antoine du Merle) taunts Ponette on the school grounds with, "You killed your mother because you were mean." She was no such thing, but kids can sometimes say extremely cruel things.
The ending is somewhat of a cheat and goes on too long, but the dazzling performance by Victoire Thivisol as Ponette is not to be missed. Not a perfect show, but a wonderfully revealing one.
PONETTE runs just 1:32. It is not rated, but would be G or PG. The film would be fine for all ages. It is in French with English subtitles so those too young to read may be lost. I highly recommend the picture to you and give it *** 1/2.
**** = A must see film. *** = Excellent show. Look for it. ** = Average movie. Kind of enjoyable. * = Poor show. Don't waste your money. 0 = Totally and painfully unbearable picture.
REVIEW WRITTEN ON: June 25, 1997
Opinions expressed are mine and not meant to reflect my employer's.
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