WATER LILIES (2007)

Written & Directed By: Celine Sciamma 
Cinematography: Crystel Fournier 
Editor: Julien Lacheray 

Cast: Pauline Acquart, Louise Blachere, Adele Haenel, Warren Lacquin 


Three girls, each about 15, deal with puberty, the onset of sexual attraction, and, for two, the pressure of virginity. Marie, who's slight and diffident, quiet and nearly expressionless, is friends with Anne, who's a bit chunky and impulsive and has decided that François will be her first love. Watching synchronized swimming, Marie is suddenly attracted to the team captain, Floriane, beautiful, aloof, tall, and rumored to be a slut. François pursues her. Marie begins to hang around her; they trade favors, and soon it's an odd sort of friendship. Each of the three experiences her own first, and Marie must sort out attraction and friendship.

This French coming of age story is typical of French cinema in some ways. Not too much action.

Written and directed by Celine Sciamma whose cinematic career has been in authoring and directing coming of age stories. That take place with female characters at the center usually. She manages to have an authority when it comes to visually representing emotions with her characters and in the storytelling.

The story is more told through emotions very little dialogue for those who don’t like to read subtitles. Things are said more through looks and glances.

For such a deep story and film it’s interesting that we don’t really get deep into the characters background too much or really into their psyche. Sure we may glimpse time to time, but not too much. The film pretty much stays on the surface of things.

The film touched on many firsts in a person’s Life crush, love, lust, kiss, sex, heartbreak. Even though It’s told through a girls point of view here a lot of the audience will be able to relate. That first love where you were obsessed practically about everything about them. Every detail the smallest things could mean so much, but you also had a parallel feeling of hate and anger for anyone else who was orbiting Around them as kind of competition and hated the object of your affection for lowering themselves to associate with that person and not paying more attention to you. Were they blind? Couldn’t they see toy were perfect for each other? They must have tricked you in some way. Where you can’t entirely trust your head or your heart as they are not exactly working together in rhythm. Especially when it comes to trusting another who makes you question everything.

There is also the theme here of pleasing people. Living up to their fantasy. Even though you are no way near it or making them realize you are not what they think you are. (How the smallest little faux pas firm them can bring you so low)

It’s intriguing and true to the world of the girls that adults don’t seem to play a major part of the story. We never see anyone’s parents and the only adult characters we see are usually more minor characters in the background. Who seem only to be there to annoy the main characters.

There is also the minor joy of watching synchronized swimming. Which in it’s own way is the movies musical sequences . Amazingly beautiful and tell tale they may only be there as filler but they are an achievement none the less.

This is a short movie that feels longer. Not necessarily in a bad way.

If you like coming of age films. I will say It’s a definite must see. Even though this definitely isn’t for kids. It’s a kids tale told by and for adults, but starring kids. Leave it to the French. The French have done it again with another highly emotional powerful film


Grade: B