Review of Water Lilies (2007) by Simone D — 26 Dec 2008
An astonishing debut film from Celine Sciamma that details the wants of three French girls. Sciamma rejects exploitation and instead ponders the manipulations and inchoate desires of the three. Marie is the protagonist and she is nowhere as naive as she first appears.
Her object of desire is both the school's great beauty and closet case, Floriane, whose comprehension of how to present a ravenous boy-hungry facade has made her disliked by her schoolmates. Marie's longtime friendship with the overweight Anne begins to suffer as both become lost in their want.
The film is smart in that Anne's lust for the school hunk is played out similarly as Marie's lust for Floriane. All three women get what they want but the lack of satisfaction that occurs due to compromises made leads to a dead end.
Floriane's inability to reject that persona imposed on her is sad and it is no surprise that only her character is left alone at the end in a solitary dance. All three young actresses give compelling performances but the star here is Sciamma whose screenplay and direction show a bigtime talent in the making.
This review of Water Lilies (2007) was written by Simone D on 26 Dec 2008.
Water Lilies has generally received positive reviews.
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