The Sitnky French and Their Stinky Films

One of the greatest surprises I ever had in life was finding out that small foreign films aren't necessarily blockbusters in their native lands. I guess I figured that if the movie made it to our shores, it must have been pretty big back in the motherland. When visiting France a decade ago I was shocked to see giant billboards in Paris for solely American films like "Mr. G" (Holy Man), "Sexe Intentions" (Cruel Intentions) and "American Boys" (Varsity Blues). Then I discovered while discussing movies with our host family in Provence that French art films are just as obscure there as they are here. I guess explosions truly are the international language and thoughtful, talky movies are an acquired taste no matter where you live.

We recently watched two Frenchy films and I loved them both. First up is The Class, an incredible portrait of an open-minded, thought provoking teacher trying his best to excite, entice and engage with his high school students. The naturalistic acting and dialogue is incredibly refreshing and the honest portrayals of the students, a diverse assembly of personalities and varying interest levels, was addictive to watch. I felt like I could have easily enjoyed four hours of this film and its fascinating conversations.

The scenes of the teachers chatting in the lounge or preparing for the school year or weighing their options when deciding how to punish a student were some of the most fascinating in the whole movie. Watching good intentioned adults struggle with the bizarre reality of the high school world and the adolescent mind was at once terrifying and exhilarating, making me both fear for and have great hope for the future. I give it a 7.

This movie reminded me why I got out of the profession. As always, my hat is off to teachers worldwide for holding their nose and jumping into the deep end. I have neither the desire nor the fortitude to pull it off.

Next up is L'Enfant, a brilliantly acted film about babies having babies. Well, not babies exactly but young adults who are selfish and petty and have twisted moral codes.

It seemed to me that the mother had her head screwed on pretty straight but it was just the guy who was a total degenerate. I guess she's at fault for hanging around with him in the first place but once he sells the baby she at least has the sense to try to ditch this zero.

What blew my mind about the character of Bruno was how out of whack his ideas were. He sells their child for cash while out walking around the gritty streets and is shocked - SHOCKED! - when his girlfriend Sonia is upset about this. Bruno seems to be expecting a round of applause or drinks for his actions and instead is mysteriously met with tears and rejection. The rest of this incredible movie follows Bruno as he tries to buy the baby back and right the many wrongs in his life. Unfortunately, his one talent is making bad decisions so it doesn't go as smoothly as he hopes.

The guy's a total cretin and he made me sick just to look at him. I thought this would be a heartwarming tale about young love and making it work in the unforgiving landscape of the modern city but instead was about scumbags and roustabouts and I was bitterly disappointed. A big fat 2 for this one.

I didn't know you were such a softie. I expected you to dig the dirtiness and grime of this movie.

When there's a baby in peril, I don't fool around. It took me a while but I finally figured out the titular child of this film was not the actual baby but instead Bruno and his petulant and infantile antics. A true downer.

I wonder why it wasn't a blockbuster?