Wednesday, December 17, 2014

Movie review - "L'effrontee" (1985) (aka "An Impudent Girl") (1985) **

Early film from Charlotte Gainsborough, French showbiz royalty, being a product of Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsborough. She was only 13 or so and plays a girl around the same age. The story is similar to Carson McCuller's The Member of the Wedding with Gainsborough as the girl on the cusp of adulthood living in a small town, who has no mother and is close to her annoying brother (as opposed to a friend); unlike in McCullers there is no wedding or notable servant character - instead she develops a sort of crush on a 13 year old piano playing prodigy, and announces herself as the girl's manger (this is cute) and fends off the advances of a delivery guy who has the hots for her (this is dodgy).

There's a slightly uncomfortable element to the scenes of men pursuing Gainsborough and her running around in a swimsuit etc - I've noticed a few French films with pre pubescent girls have this whiff of dodginess about them (eg My Father the Hero). Some of it is charming though and Gainsborough is very good.

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