Tomboy (2011)

So much average

Sick Product of a Sick System

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

The movie is the story of Laure, a young French girl who moves to a new place and has to find a place within the children group of her neighborhood. Dominated by young boys, the group counts only one girl who is going to become Laure's confident without actually knowing that she is called Laure. Indeed, Laure pretends to be a boy, Mikael, as soon as she arrives in the neighborhood. The movie is thus, centered on Laure's attempts to be look, behave, talk and act like a boy within the group while she is still hiding this double identity to her parents. This unusual plot is really interesting. First, it raises deep issues that may ring a bell to some viewers. The issues of identity, peer pressure, gender and community are raised throughout the movie. Therefore, Tomboy is the proof of movie's ability to raise personal questions in the viewers mind. Secondly, the notions of active questions and suspense can be applied to this movie. While the time passes and Laure's attempts to look like a boy are compromised either by herself or by her peers. Thus, during the whole movie a single question hooks the viewers: "is her identity going to be discovered?". Altogether, through its content and its form, Tomboy is a really interesting to watch if you are willing to think a little bit!

* * * some spoilers * * * Not sure what this oddball film's message was supposed to be, other than for parents to tell their own kid, "Don't you try it!".The notion that Laure could actually fool Lisa--a girl her own age-- into believing she was a boy for so long was difficult to swallow, given her obvious femininity: smooth complexion, body language, soft spoken voice, etc., not to mention her lack of an Adam's apple (laryngeal prominence)--the first feature to look for when identifying a male impersonator.Laure's initial hesitancy to horse around and play games with the neighbourhood boys seemed to confuse Lisa at first yet not enough to arouse serious suspicion.Another clue which none of the boys caught onto was the fact that Laure and Lisa never wore socks under their sneakers while every boy except one did. Indeed, how many film viewers even noticed that giveaway?I have no idea how frequently such deliberate impersonation by children actually occurs throughout the world, but it's a risky endeavour that could end badly and even tragically under the wrong circumstances. At least Laure's parents reacted appropriately, which is more than can be said for many of today's messed-up parents who, incredibly, even attempt to burden their newborn children with totally unacceptable names which, thankfully, most responsible governments refuse to permit nor register on their birth certificates.

Gender stereotypes are very powerful in our society, and in Celine Sciamma's sensitive film, we see the story of a young girl who prefers to identify as a boy. The film's strength is that it doesn't look from a forced viewpoint of trans-sexualism, but simply tells a tale of someone who doesn't fit in with the role she is expected to play. It's nicely judged, although quiet, and an interesting light on the way that, even as children, we put pressure on each other to conform, adapt and survive in what is sometimes a hostile world.

This movie is very hard to find. It's almost non-existent. I came across it at a video store by accident. If you like to see films where the Director legitimately cared about what was being created then this by all means is one that is not to be missed. It isn't for everyone, I don't recommend it to the airheaded Battleship crowd, I definitely do recommend it to people who appreciate movies with heart and soul.The story involves a new kid in town that, during summer vacation, tells all of her new friends she's a boy but the lie can't continue forever. School will eventually begin and the truth will have to emerge. Unfortunately she has exposed herself as Michael to a girl that has developed a big crush on "him".The acting in this very small film is so precise that it could be used as a tool in college drama classes and I'm not only referring to the sensational lead actress (who delivers an Oscar caliber performance) but every other performer as well. I could rattle on for hours about this. A standout, in particular, is the actress playing her younger sister, she's remarkable. It's a triumph to see these two extremely young actresses trying to out-act each other when they're sharing screen time. The girl who plays Michael's admirer, the mother, the father, all the neighborhood kids, are all note perfect.The lead is thoroughly convincing as a boy in both looks and persona as well as being quite brave in regards to fighting. Close to the end we see something that appears to be completely wrong when the mother forces her tomboy daughter to wear a dress and tell everyone the truth, especially her admirer. There is very little dialogue but the message is crystal clear.I never seen the lead actress in anything else and all through the film including the ending when she is wearing a dress she simply looked like a boy and a boy wearing a dress. Afterwards I looked at her profile on this site and seen a beautiful girl. When someone drowns themselves that deep in character that is rather stunning.A quiet, sweet and rewarding show.