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See also: SHADOWS FILM FESTIVAL | Last update 26.Nov.25

Little Amélie or the Character of Rain Amélie et la Métaphysique des Tubes
Review by Rich Cline | 4/5

dir Mailys Vallade, Liane-Cho Han
scr Liane-Cho Han, Aude Py, Mailys Vallade, Eddine Noel
prd Claire La Combe, Edwina Liard, Henri Magalon, Nidia Santiago
voices Loise Charpentier, Victoria Grosbois, Marc Arnaud, Laetitia Coryn, Haylee Issembourg, Isaac Schoumsky, Yumi Fujimori, Cathy Cerda, Francois Raison, Emmylou Homs
release Fr 25.Jun.25,
US 31.Oct.25, UK 13.Feb.26
25/France 1h17

CANNES FILM FEST
TORONTO FILM FEST

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With an eye-catching design that looks like a colourful children's storybook come to life, and a cheeky attitude that adds spark to the characters, this animated French-Belgian-Japanese odyssey sees the world through the eyes of a tiny girl who thinks she's the centre of the universe. So even if the narrative sometimes feels a little too pointed, this movie is utterly gorgeous to look at, and warmly moving too.

In 1969, Belgian diplomat Patrick (Arnaud) lives in Japan with his pianist wife Daniele (Coryn) and three rambunctious kids: bright daughter Juliette (Issembourg), bratty son Andre (Schoumsky) and tearaway toddler Amelie (Charpentier). Thankfully, Granny Claude (Cerda) and nanny Nishio (Grosbois) arrive to help with the little one. As Amelie explores the gardens around the house, she also crosses paths with the stern landlady Kashima (Fujimori), who's furious that Nishio spends so much time with loathed Europeans. And while Amelie's siblings struggle to understand her fiercely individualistic personality, she makes discoveries they can't begin to imagine.

Amelie's running internal monolog often overstates her attempts to make sense of new discoveries and get reactions from her family. Granny introduces her to the joys of white chocolate from Belgium, while Nishio thrills her with Japanese mythology. This reflects the push and pull of Amelie's identity. Indeed, Amelie's connection with Nishio emerges at the centre of the story, linking her to the land of her birth. Meanwhile, Nishio must balance Kashima's disapproval with her growing love for Amelie and her family.

There is a range of experience here, from goofy comedy to some intensely scary moments. When Amelie asks Nishio about death, she describes losing her family during the war in an inventively animated sequence that's darkly emotional. And a series of events on Amelie's third birthday remind her that Japan isn't actually her home. One day she will have to move to Belgium, a place that's completely foreign to her.

The animators skilfully capture the changing seasons while finding bursts of energy in each of the characters. The colours and brushstrokes are simply beautiful. Amelie learns that her name means rain in Japanese, appropriately because it's so precarious, dangerous and tempestuous (the original French title refers to God-like tubes). This is a film packed with lessons, as Amelie begins to understand the nature of sadness and longing, as well as the power of memory. It's a reminder to see life every day with eyes wide open.

strong themes 24.Nov.25

Sirât
Review by Rich Cline | 5/5

MUST SEE

Sirat
dir Oliver Laxe
scr Santiago Fillol, Oliver Laxe
prd Esther Garcia, Pedro Almodovar, Agustin Almodovar, Xavi Font, Mani Mortazavi, Andrea Queralt
with Sergi Lopez, Bruno Nunez Arjona, Richard Bellamy, Stefania Gadda, Joshua Liam Herderson, Tonin Janvier, Jade Oukid, Ahmed Abbou, Abdellilah Madrari, Mohamed Madrari
release Sp 6.Jun.25,
US 14.Nov.25, UK 27.Feb.25
25/Spain 1h55

CANNES FILM FEST
TORONTO FILM FEST

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Named after the bridge that crosses hell to reach heaven, this North African film is instantly mesmerising as it pulses to insistent electronic music while shifting into an intensely involving odyssey. Creating a loose but vividly driving narrative, director Oliver Laxe fills the screen with stunningly tactile details that continually take us aback with unusual beauty and deeper meaning. Where the story goes is both harrowing and moving.

Arriving at an epic rave in the desert, Luis (Lopez) is with his preteen son Esteban (Nunez Arjona) and their adorable dog Pipa, searching for his missing daughter. But she's probably at another party further across this war-torn country, so they join a ragtag caravan travelling through the parched landscape. The perilous terrain is a challenge for their minivan, but five ravers (Bellamy, Gadda, Herderson, Janvier and Oukid) offer them assistance. Along the way, they share various adventures, becoming a family. But there are also severe dangers in this wilderness, both natural and hellishly man-made.

Crowds of gyrating, blissed-out clubbers accompanied by trance music and a spectacular laser show give the setting an otherworldly ambience that's disrupted by heavily armed soldiers ordering them to evacuate. What follows is a cross-country journey with an epic Mad Max feel to it. And little Pipa even takes an accidental acid trip. Later along the road, heart-stopping events leave us absolutely floored. And the journey become increasingly wrenching from there.

Lopez gives Luis a lovely tenacity, a man who hasn't heard from his daughter for six months and isn't willing to stop searching for her. His reactions to the things that happen are often overwhelmingly honest. The young Nunez Arjona matches his quiet determination and has a more generous nature. He also finds it easier to slot in with these five quirk-filled travelling companions, who are played by non-actors with remarkable full-bodied authenticity.

Few films dare to tell this kind of story with such unflinching emotional intensity, creating a true-to-life mix of joy and pain with the power to send us reeling. The tension grows so terrifying that the film shifts into surreal, sunshiny horror. This makes several sequences feel seriously wrenching. But the way these messy people come together to hold each other is simply gorgeous. So this story becomes both a celebration of how scars make us beautiful and a lament for the violent world we have created.

themes, language, violence 24.Nov.25

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See also: SHADOWS FILM FESTIVAL