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Fat Girl (October 30, 2001)
Why are French movies always so much better than American flicks? I
would suppose there's a REASON why most filmic vocabulary either is or
stems from French. These guys (and gals, in this case) know what they
are doing. They just know cinema. They have a knack for acting, editing,
music, cinematography, storytelling, dialogue, and so forth. Whatever it
is they're doing over there, I wish we could bottle it up and feed it
forcefully to the producers/screenwriters/directors of the good ol'
USofA (I would imagine some of these captors would shrivel up and vanish
into oblivion like a gremlin in sunlight, however).
You should guess by now the theme of this review: yes, "Fat Girl" was
amazingly amazing. Kudos to... well, EVERYONE. I barely even know where
to begin. Obviously, I must commend the director/writer, 50-something
Catherine Breillat, who makes you wonder how the hell she is so
incredibly in tune with the youth of the Western world today. They way
the girls acted, the way they talked, the way they thought. Oh, yes, I
must have forgotten: "Fat Girl" or "A ma soeur!" ("With my Sister") is
the tale of the sexual awakening and deconstruction of two sisters, both
quite young (13 and 15) whilst on holiday in Italy (I think it was
Italy). The younger sister (Fat Girl herself) somewhat clings to the
older and much more gorgeous sibling who is tricked slowly into various
kinds of sexual whatnots with an older gent the girls meet Rome who is a
law student with a cunning way of convincing others to do just what he
wants (yeah, you guessed it). Anywho, back to the tale at hand: Breillat
is terrific, magical. If only Amy Heckerling had HALF the knowledge and
insight Breillat has, maybe her career wouldn't be flushing down the
toilet with her golden boys "Ever Clear" (I'm sorry, "Loser" was such a
FUCKING INSULT TO TEENAGERS EVERYWHERE! GOD!!!)
With that said, I just was incredibly impressed with the emotions,
attitudes, humor, and moods in which Breillat worked. The girls spoke
with a certain intelligence befitting upper middle class westerners,
always listening to American music whilst making sure to watch those
classic 60's French films. Fat Girl (Anais, protrayed by Anais Reboux...
someone to watch for in the future... along with rest of cast) speaks
almost like Calvin of "Calvin & Hobbes" in which she seems to have a
vast knowledge and vocabulary as well as sophistication... but really is
completely naive and ignorant to the real world around her, in fact
sometimes in a bluntly crude and comedic way. The direction of the film
itself worked fantastically, never too stylistic, never too static.
Always perfect. The way the camera moved went so shockingly well with
the choreography of the acting or even sometimes the dialogue itself
(always realistic, true, funny, poignant, by the by) that Breillat must
be a master of sharing her vision with the AD, cinematographer (wow...
beautiful), and various other crew members involved in such actions. Of
all the contemporary French films (or foreign films) I've seen in the
last few years, Breillat takes the cake for best filmmaker in my humble
opinion. I can't wait to see her other works in the future (and those
I've missed before).
The acting was just brilliant. The parents and older lover were nothing
out of the ordinary, but didn't hinder the two main actresses, so that's
all that matters. The star, Reboux, and her theatrical sister Roxane
Mesquida (uh, is she the most ridiculously beautiful girl in creation?
Hmmm... yes... think Fiona Apple meets Samantha Morton with a tinge of
Jennifer Jason Leigh... oh, if you think any of these girls are not
absurdly attractive, you should stop thinking that) just had an pefect
blend of inexperience and experience, a dichotomy inherent in the movie
itself. They knew everything, they knew nothing. We could tell all this
from their eyes, their mannerisms, their attitude. Breillat again helped
this by keeping moments pure. Sometimes an action would end, and the
characters would be merely staring at one another for a solid minute or
perhaps laugh suddenly or whatever. Kitchen sink realism at its best?
You know the answer. And Reboux's climatic end still is a piece of
photographic artwork. She sees you, we can't see her. How does she have
eyes like this? It's just not possible. See it and you'll know what I
mean. Wow. Impressive. Just impressive. I can't really get too specific
here, but just trust me when I say that these girls are the best new
talent next to "Panic"'s David Dorfman we have in the world today.
The music and editing were both sensational and key to creating the
movie behind the reality, giving us the mood without pushing too much.
We were allowed to wait, observe, and feel, live, breathe.
Congratulations to all on such a well made flick.
The ending was a bit abbrasive and there were some scenes that seemed
out of place or that went on a bit long, but otherwise, a flawless,
flawess picture. See this one.
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