Movies with child actors in leading roles are often tricky, but this pair of films is uncanny in the way children are presented. Much credit must go to the directors, Céline Sciamma and Laura Wandel respectively. The poise and sophistication of these performances is nothing short of outstanding.
#12) Petite Maman, directed by Céline Sciamma – It’s hard to talk about the creative exploration Sciamma plumbs in this deceptively simple story about a young girl who stumbes upon a friend in the woods who shares many of her characteristics. Coming off the sweeping romantic drama of Portrait of Lady on Fire, Petite Maman seems like a trifle, but it is perhaps one of Sciamma’s most ambitious films to date, thematically, at least. The two young actresses who play the film’s central characters make it all work. Without them it would have been a clever story, but their performances add to the depth and mystery that unfolds.
#11) Playground, directed by Laura Wandel – This hard-hitting examination of how children learn the harsh realities of adulthood is a tough watch, but the astounding performance that director Wandel reveals by child-actor Maya Vanderbeque is riveting. Nora and her older brother Abel, go to the same elementary school, and when she witnesses Abel suffering terrifying abuse by other boys in the playground, she is traumatized. Uncertain who to turn to, from her teachers to her father, Nora must thread the needle between fearing for her brother’s safety, to bowing to his wishes to stay out of it. Abel’s bullying has ramifications that spill over to Nora beyond her anxiety, as her friends start to shun her for being connected to him. As the situation evolves, Nora makes decisions in the name of self-preservation that affect those around her, It’s a frightening and painful film made all the more challenging by its stark truths.