Girl tomboy It would seem that you will not enter the same river twice, and it is unlikely that Celine Skiamma will return to the topic of same-sex love among teenage girls after Water Lilies, but the years have passed and Celine has issued an even more provocative thing - Tomboy.
A picture that raises the theme of a girl’s attraction to a girl for all her timekeeping never once tries to make it truly tragic, does not say that it is bad or wrong. The film in every respect preaches tolerance and understanding, and in this case, the emphasis is not even on the relationship between children, and the acceptance of their parents. Acceptance as they are, despite all their antics and oddities, because of which there is no reason to be disappointed or love less.
The main character Laura is ten, she does not have pierced ears, she does not wear dresses and skirts, does not like bright girl colors, and even with a short haircut, and she practically did not begin to grow breasts, like a boy. And the mischievous nature makes her such a tomboy that even another girl Lisa takes her for a boy during her acquaintance. Laura with her parents and younger sister Jeanne came to a new house and does not know any of the local children, the summer is over, school is ahead, and here is a new acquaintance, a new friendship... or something much more? And that's where the fun starts. Laura realizes that she has fallen in love with a new friend and pretends to be a boy named Michael for her and all the other children.
A very peculiar story of first love is presented extremely original, with bright and deeply thought out characters who do not so much reveal themselves as directly and very seriously influence the story told, balancing on the verge of happiness and exposure. The three main characters played outright: Zoe Heran, Malonne Levan, Jeanne Disson – all deserve special praise. Parents also turned out to be famous, Sophie Cattani and Mathieu Demi are very bright role models to demonstrate sensitivity and understanding.
The main medal here has two sides. With one, Zoe Heran brilliantly plays out the boy’s temperament especially of this age, through a mixture of the desire to stand out and at the same time “be like everyone else”, through the perceptions of people and the world around him, and at the same time showing a really great wit to look and think like a boy. The viewer, who has not read the synopsis, and does not know what the essence of this picture is, would be sure from the very beginning that the main character here is a boy. A special revelation for such, apparently, should be the scene in the bathroom, once and for all proving who is in front of us. On the other hand, Zoe, even without punctures in the ears and a short haircut, still contains exactly girlish charm, this is elementary recognized by the eyes and smile, by facial expressions.
In order to really look like a boy, Laura cuts even shorter (alya “American daughter”), dresses only dull colors, changes the pink ribbon of the keys to a white lace, and for scenes of joint bathing, she sculpts a penis out of plasticine, so that visually no one guessed anything.
In contrast, building a boy, the main character is a feminine, but not fragile Lisa performed by Jeanne Disson. Her duet with "Michael"-Lora turned out to be extremely touching and emotional, and at the same time extremely cute. Unlike similar paintings such as “Heavenly Creatures”, “My Dog Life”, “Free Me” or again the same “Water Lilies” here is a slightly different bias in the same question, different angles of view and facets of perception.
Relationships in general resemble “Let me in,” at least they look just as sweet and smiling. The scene with the gum given, a walk with the first kiss, discussions of the upcoming school or frenzied "dancing" in the pink room - all this is extremely touching, sending back nostalgic memories of early love and then experiences. And the scene with cosmetics is one of the most remarkable, and most of all I want to note the reaction of the mother, who instead of the usual inadequate “wash immediately! little more!” is very happy to see her daughter in makeup, emphasizing her femininity and craving for cosmetics.
And despite the fact that the main screen duo is not so often on the screen is fond of melodrama and relationships, the rest of the characters of the picture serve only to design and frame this romantic story, popping up there more often with obstacles and problems that make life richer and more interesting. Here’s the younger sister learned about Laura’s secret, here’s the mother almost did not understand the secret hidden from her, here’s Jeanne offended by some hooligan and Laura-Michal is forced to defend, and in the end, of course, the secret becomes clear.
But even here, surprisingly, everything remains cheerful and bright. The mother explains to the eldest daughter why she must confess, and accepts her even with lesbian inclinations, here is the father who could yell, flog and abandon her daughter, very fondly and loyally calms Laura, and finally even after learning the whole truth, Lisa still comes and arranges a date, and from the final look and playful smile it becomes immediately clear - they are still much more than just friends.
There is no such “strawberry” as in the films of the genius-Hamilton, passion and debauchery, as in “Lawful Childhood”, frank lesbian scenes, as in “Freedom of Love” and art-house oddities in the manner of “Ice Castle” or “Tom and Lola”, but the less reproaches in the debauchery of the screen action will be addressed to this picture, (at the same time the film can be called vital and relevant) one revealing scene in the bathroom here is already enough, and subsequent episodes with undressing are very reminiscent of the famous “scent of humor / short”.
A lot looks on a smile, a lot in a storm of emotions. The picture touches and grabs the soul, leaving a very pleasant aftertaste after watching. The movie turned out bright, spectacular and extremely positive. At the same time, and vital, and at the same time almost fabulous, because it is painfully rare in such “vital” paintings there are pleasant and cheerful endings without death, separation and other tragedies.
The picture, of course, is not for everyone, but it will clearly have both connoisseurs and haters. A love movie! Without a drop of melancholy, but on strong emotions and sincere feelings, with a delightful performance of actors of all age categories and a brilliant fascinating script that immerses in an abundance of experiences and memories.
And although here very many details are similar to the plot features of other similar paintings, released in different periods, Tomboy does not lose its independence, integrity and even stands out against the background of most of its kind. One of the best movies about lesbian love at a young age. Bold, but bright, provocative, but very correct, such a film deserves the highest praise.
10 IZ 10
Original