PONETTE
A film review by James Berardinelli
Copyright 1997 James Berardinelli
RATING (0 TO 10): 7.5 Alternative Scale: *** out of ****
France, 1996 U.S. Release Date: beginning 6/97 (limited) Running Length: 1:37 MPAA Classification: No MPAA Rating (Mature themes) Theatrical Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
Cast: Victoire Thivisol, Matiaz Bureau, Delphine Schiltz,
Xavier Beauvois, Claire Nebout
Director: Jacques Doillon
Producer: Alain Sarde
Screenplay: Jacques Doillon
Cinematography: Caroline Champetier
Music: Philippe Sarde
U.S. Distributor: Arrow Releasing
In French with subtitles
Few of us who call ourselves "adults" truly remember the experience of childhood, except as a dim and distant illusion. Oh, we can recall what we did as a child, and often our memories of that period are among our most precious, but, looking back, we view things through the haze of maturity. Every once in a while, however, something comes along that breaks through that filter -- a movie, a scene on television, a page in a book, or a moment in real life. Jacques Doillon's PONETTE is one such catalyst. By presenting the world through the eyes of a grieving four- year old, PONETTE manages to do what few motion pictures can -- regress an audience into childhood.
I would place PONETTE in the company of two other recent films that have successfully attempted something similar: Dorota Kedzierzawska's CROWS and Rebecca Miller's ANGELA. In both of those movies, however, the protagonist was older (9 in CROWS, 10 in ANGELA), and neither featured a young actress with as much emotional power as Victoire Thivisol, who plays the title character in this film. When Thivisol's eyes well up with tears and her upper lip begins to quiver, viewers reach for Kleenexes.
PONETTE works in large part because of its simplicity and realism. The plot is minimal -- just enough to give us a reason to stay with the tiny protagonist for ninety minutes. Ponette has recently lost her mother in a car accident. Her father, a somber, emotionally-detached man, informs her that "Mommy was broken," then disappears for a while, leaving his daughter in the care of her aunt. So, with the aid of two cousins and, later, a group of other school children, Ponette must grapple with confusing religious issues while trying to understand the meaning of life and death.
The film effortlessly takes us into the magical world of a four- year old, where stuffed animals have extraordinary powers, dolls are more than inanimate objects, and God is someone you can talk to and expect an answer from. Some of the most memorable moments in PONETTE center around the innocent conversations of children -- how Catholics are different from Jews, what it means to be "single", and how eating a certain candy can make you fall in love forever.
For more than eighty minutes, PONETTE continues strongly, but, in the end, writer/director Jacques Doillon seems at a loss how to end the movie. His choice, while admittedly cathartic, feels like a cheat. The pseudo-realistic, almost-documentary quality of the film evaporates; PONETTE's final scenes jar us out of the fragile reverie generated by what preceded them. Fortunately, the contrived ending does little to dampen my enthusiasm for the picture as a whole. When I recall PONETTE, the first thing I think of is the heartbreakingly pure performance of young Victoire Thivisol.
From start to finish, Thivisol is nothing short of amazing. This is the kind of portrayal that would be labeled as a standout from an actor of any age, but, from someone who's only four, it's astonishing. A share of the credit must be lavished upon Doillon -- it takes a masterful film maker to elicit this kind of unforced performance from a child. Had Thivisol shown a hint of artifice, PONETTE would not have worked. The strength and consistency of her acting keeps this film on a high level. Even if the movie was not so moving and evocative, it would be worth viewing simply for the character that Thivisol brings to life.
- James Berardinelli e-mail: berardin@bc.cybernex.net ReelViews web site: http://www.cybernex.net/~berardin
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