A Bag of Marbles

This second French production based on the 1973 autobiographical novel by Joseph Joffo is a stirring, often heartbreaking story about a Jewish family separated repeatedly by the imminent threat of capture by Nazis. The bulk of the film follows the sometimes harrowing adventures of two young brothers, Joseph (Dorian Le Clech) and Maurice (Batyste Fleurial), who escape Paris in 1942 at the direction of their parents and barely make their way to Vichy France, where life is temporarily bustling. As things change, Joseph and Maurice adapt to reinvent themselves over and over, always making sure they have a cover story to stand by doggedly—even when a villainous German commander tries forcing them to admit they are Jews. Throughout their travels, the boys’ beloved father and mother, as well as older brothers, weave in and out of the kids’ clandestine lives, though never for very long. Director Christian Duguay embraces the narrative’s urgency, amplifying every emotion, every greeting and goodbye, every act of decency, by upping the stakes. Recommended. (T. Keogh)