Childhood is a period where our imagination blends with curiosity. There is so much about life we start to learn, understand, and try to make sense of the world that surrounds us. We observe our parents, how they behave, react, and most importantly how they answer our questions about life. But one thing that is hard for them to explain is the death of a loved one and the grief that follows. It is not something that can be mended into words; rather, you have to feel the pain and find your way through it.
Eight-year-old Nelly (Joséphine Sanz) has just lost her beloved grandmother. She visits her mother’s (Nina Meurisse) childhood house to help her parents clean out the place and collect her grandmother’s belongings. Like any other child, Nelly goes around exploring the house and its surrounding woods. She is trying to find the place where her mother built a treehouse which she has heard so much about. One day, her mother leaves unexpectedly. And that is when Nelly meets Marion (Gabrielle Sanz), who is of the same age and shares a striking resemblance to her, building a treehouse. Soon the two girls find common footing in each other’s lives and become best friends.
From writer-director Céline Sciamma, Petite Maman steers away from the cathartic pain the filmmaker is known to create. Here she embraces the world of innocence in its purest form. As we follow Nelly and Marion on their adventures, we are transported back to the period where we found a whole universe in our backyard. Sciamma cleverly plays with domestic interiors by creating a wide space for the characters to play with. It’s nothing extravagant, rather simple, homely, and silent. The scenes in the woods truly capture the period where imagination knows no bounds.
Nelly and Marion’s relationship blooms through their curiosity about the world around them and the sense of grief they extract together. The conversations between them are honest without any hidden agenda. Their friendship reminds us of the first friend we ever had with whom we shared everything. Nelly’s excitement of having a sleepover at Marion’s house and their pancake-making are some of the movie's best scenes. Sciamma never loses the focus that they are just kids trying to enjoy their adolescence. It’s heartwarming to witness their growth, especially after the secret behind their special connection is revealed.
Leading Petite Maman are twin sisters in real life, Joséphine and Gabrielle Sanz, who give one of the purest and authentic performances by children ever to grace the screen. The natural chemistry they share with each other helped Sciamma to create this world with an ever-growing complex theme of maturity and grief.
Following a masterpiece like Portrait of a Lady on Fire is no easy task. But Sciamma does it flawlessly with just 72 minutes of runtime. She goes back to a small-scale world of wonder with the purest of emotions while grappling with tough topics of childhood. With two exceptional performances from the Sanz twins, Petite Maman wraps you in a warm bear hug that you never want to leave. Editor's Choice.
CHICAGO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL REVIEW