Sometimes a little movie drops you into a small, self-contained story where you hang with a small cast of characters whose lives are “important” only to each other. After being immersed within their bubble, we empathize and let our curiosity run deep and then…they move on and we move on, and we enjoyed our trip to a faraway place with a few strangers.
That’s the cool beauty of a story, a film like My Little One
Alex (Mathieu Demy) and Bernardo (Vincent Bonillo) meet up deep in the Arizona desert after ten years of not seeing each other. They’ve been summoned by Jade (Anna Mouglalis), the third part of what was once a tightly bonded trio of friends/lovers/potential business partners. But that was a decade ago, and they had all moved on with their respective lives in different parts of the world.
Standing by the side of the desert road, wondering why they’re there, they’re picked up by a ten-year old, Frida (Ruby Matenko) in a broken down truck – she can barely see over the steering wheel. “Get in,” she commands them, and off they go to the remote, ramshackle trailer where Jade and her daughter Ruby live – only in contact with a handful of Native Americans, who are protective of the Mom and daughter duo.
The two French and English speaking estranged pals are our eyes and ears in this mysterious setup. Why does Jade want them there? That is revealed, or at least hinted to, early on- Jade is possibly terminally ill. Ruby is ten years old and, as I said, it’s been ten years since this trio were together. So…questions.
This isn’t the kind of movie that’s going to answer all of our questions in expositive dialog. No, it’s going to give us glimpses through bits of conversation here and there, allowing us to piece together a bit of their history.
There are side trips to a medicine man or pharmacist, an oh so brief visit from child services, a descending helicopter that drops in, and John Doe from the Punk band X singing a song in the Navajo Casino.
By now, I think you know if this is your kind of movie or not. It’s an art house flick that peels away its layers one by one – keeping you interested by not giving you a glut of info right at the top. By the end, we’re witnessing a beautiful ceremony with unexpected comedic touches. It’s not exactly Walter Sobchak with his coffee can, but it reminds you that real life is weird and funny and sad-sometimes all in the same day.
I dug it.
My Little One streams on digital platforms starting April 26th. More info here: http://mylittleone.ch/en/
3 ½ out of 4 Stars | Directed by FRÉDÉRIC CHOFFAT and JULIE GILBERT | Cinema Libre Studio
