Puppylove

A coming-of-age tale told in faux cinéma vérité style, Delphine Lehericey's Puppylove centers on Diane (Solene Rigot), a 14-year-old living in a provincial town with her single father Christian (Vincent Perez) and little brother. She is nervously inching toward sexual experimentation, secretly watching adult movies on TV (the story is set before the Internet), masturbating while bathing, and even climbing into bed with an equally nervous classmate, although they do not progress beyond a bit of snuggling. All of that changes when neighbor Julia (Audrey Bastien) moves in. Far more experienced and reckless than timid Diane, Julia enjoys nightclubs and one-night stands with older guys, introducing Diane to her wild lifestyle. The parents seem oblivious: Julia's father is abusive, and Christian is depicted as a hopeless man-child, all too ready to revert to frat-boy foolishness (at one point, Julia attempts to seduce him, and his flustered response proves his immaturity). A cautionary tale buoyed by the performance of young Rigot, who conveys a perfect mixture of wide-eyed naiveté and teen angst, this is a familiar story, but edgier and more provocative than usual. Recommended. (F. Swietek)