Tender tale: French filmmaker Céline Sciamma's 'Petite Maman' is 'something magical'

The cinema of Céline Sciamma speaks a language far removed from the “normal.” Washed clean of pretension and needless artifice, her films are quiet, dreamy and, most of all, organic in their capacity to empower and enlighten. “Petite Maman,” her follow-up to the acclaimed “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” advances that mission through its recurring themes of isolation, loneliness and the marginalization of women and girls effectuated by society’s obsession with gender and the preordained roles therein.

In this instance, she presents us with three generations of one family and demonstrates how it’s not just real estate one inherits from the other, but also genetics and mores. But what sets “Petite Maman” apart is its unique exploration of the more inscrutable hand-me-downs, such as a mother revealing to her daughter the childhood dreams that went unfulfilled and the ensuing disappointments induced by squelched aspirations. Why, Sciamma asks, do we hide these truths of high expectations and crushing letdowns from our children? Isn’t it better to be honest and open so little girls can better avoid the traps of conformity?

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Granted, such themes are a bit heavy for an 8-year-old to comprehend, but then her protagonist, Nelly (Josephine Sanz), is just precocious enough to sense things aren’t right with her mom, Marion (Nina Meurisse). Yes, both mother and daughter are grieving the recent death of the family matriarch, also named Nelly, but Mom’s depression is rooted in something deeper and more existential. It speaks volumes to young Nelly that her parents don’t sleep together on a trip to Marion’s childhood home to sort through Grandma’s possessions. The pervasive silence grows even more piercing when Nelly awakens one day to find her mother gone. “She preferred to leave this morning,” Dad (Stephane Varupenne) tells her. “We felt it was better.”

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He states this so matter-of-factly, it’s as though he assumes Nelly will think nothing of it. Again, why do parents disavow a child's ability to comprehend consequential matters such as marital strife? The kid knows he’s lying, but says nothing other than Mommy is “sad.” This somber opening is “Petite Maman’s” equivalent to the Kansas portion of “The Wizard of Oz.” And you sense something magical is about to unfold, and it does.

Grandma’s house is remote, and the surrounding woods are enticing terrain for a young girl to explore. Within minutes, she spies another child, a doppelgänger (Sanz’ twin, Gabrielle) named Marion. You don’t need to be Stephen Hawking to realize one of the girls has traveled through time to create this marvelous opportunity for Nelly to connect with her mom at the same age and intellectual level.

What happens next is so profound, so moving it catches you completely off guard. It speaks to how childhood dreams often are just that, dreams. Marion, for example, wanted to be an actress. And in a sort of cosplay version of Clue, she proves to be quite adept, both in her delivery and in her versatility portraying multiple characters. Nelly shares this gift. Is this genetics? DNA is certainly a factor when Nelly learns Marion’s upcoming operation is intended to prevent her from inheriting her mom’s hobbling limp. But what’s at play has more to do with life and its unpredictability. Big plans seldom pay off. And it’s a lesson Nelly soaks up, largely for the better.

The eeriest scene arrives when Nelly brings 8-year-old Marion home to meet the man who will become her husband. It’s somewhat telling that Marion is not terribly impressed with her future taste in men. The payoff is as funny as it is sad. And that’s very much the tone throughout “Petite Maman.” It’s only 72 minutes, but what it contains is deeper, richer and more insightful than any three-hour epic.

As fans of Sciamma know, her films are visual works of art, where the ambient sound of nature (think the crashing waves in “Portrait”) is as much a character as those of the human persuasion. For Sciamma, it’s where life’s most fathomable moments reside. It’s part and parcel of her emphasis on subtle details, like a grandmother solving a crossword with her granddaughter, or a daughter sharing with her mom the hobby of rock collecting. No dialogue necessary, just simple moments to absorb. And with the exception of one very beautifully constructed montage toward the end, there’s not one note of music or distractive narration.

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It sounds boring on paper. But in practice, it’s downright stirring. And the way it compels you to ponder the childhoods of your own parents is likely to leave you in tears. As Sciamma suggests, we should all have the chance to meet our parents as children; discover their dreams, fears and how they related to their own moms and dads. It just might free us of a lot of guilt and help us better understand ourselves. It also could spell doom for the psychiatric profession. But just imagine how much happier we would all be; not just in touch with our inner child, but the one hidden within the two people who created us.

'Petite Maman'

Rating: (PG for smoking and some thematic elements.)

Cast: Josephine Sanz, Gabrielle Sanz, Nina Meurisse and Stephane Varupenne

Director: Celine Sciamma

Writer: Celine Sciamma

Language: French with English subtitles

Runtime: 72 minutes

Where: AMC Boston Common and Coolidge Corner Theatre, beginning April 29

Grade: A

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This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: French filmmaker Céline Sciamma's 'Petite Maman' is 'something magical'