Emma, a 17-year-old girl, sends a synopsis to a film-maker she admires. Intrigued and charmed by it, Paul invites her to his home. The arrival of this groupie plays havoc with the established order. In no time, Emma has formed an attachment to Paul’s wife, Margot, and is acting as though she were their daughter. Friend and confident, rival and victim, seductress and manipulator in turn, she plays with their emotions and their lives. Paul comes out the most shaken but perhaps the least scarred by these apparently droll machinations. —unifrance.org
A remarkably humanistic writer/director whose introspective features often dwell on youthful malaise, French filmmaker Jacques Doillon has an uncanny knack for exploring human nature and the impact of people’s actions on those most dear to them. Perhaps it was his penchant for directing documentary shorts early on that gave Doillon his insight, but by the time he moved into feature territory in the early ‘70s he had suitably mastered the ability to tell a solid and affecting story. In 1979, Doillon was nominated for two César awards for his compelling psychological drama The Hussy, and his 1984 film La Pirate was a Golden Palm nominee at the Cannes Film Festival. By the 1990s, Doillon’s career had gained effective momentum. His 1990 film Le Petit Criminel, which told the involving tale of a troubled adolescent, was nominated for multiple César awards. After his success with film Le Jeune Werther in 1993, the director scored his biggest international hit to date with the 1996 drama Ponette… read more
