Petite Maman: A Theatrical Allegory

Someone who goes to the theater to see Petite Maman will be stuck by two things that set it apart from most other movies. The first is the runtime because it clocks in at just over an hour which is virtually unheard of for a theatrical release. The second is the fact that the plot is not designed to be taken at face value. It is rare for a movie to take such a brazen stance towards telling an allegorical story, however for this film, it works supremely well.

Much like a lot of other movies lately (and there is a broader conversation to be had about the lasting impact that Covid has had on the themes explored in art), Petite Maman is an exploration of grief following the death of a family member. In this case Nelly’s grandmother passes away and she travels with her mother to her grandmother’s house to clean it out. While on the trip, Nelly encounters another little girl named Marion who turns out is her mother as a child, hence the movie’s title. It is the relationship that develops between the two girls that allows for both to express their feelings about each other, learn more about each other in a meaningful way, and then allows for Marion to process the death of her mother and for Nelly to process the death of her grandmother.

Despite the description, the movie is not science fiction and there is no time machine that physically transports Nelly back in time to visit the eight-year-old version of her mother. Not to seem dismissive but the story seems to function more like an episode of Rugrats where the interactions between Nelly and Marion could be entirely Nelly’s imagination. This is where the movie should not be taken at face value because it is not about the how, it is about the what, namely what are the characters going through and what are they trying to process. It would be like reading one of Aesop’s fables and asking “Why is the rabbit talking?”

A movie this short and this dependent on character arcs needs to be carried by strong performances and the two leads of the film(Josephine Sanz and Gabrielle Sanz) do an excellent job as Nelly and the eight-year-old version of Marion respectively. Director Celine Sciamma continues to shine and show herself to be an outstanding talent behind the camera with this serving as a follow-up to 2019’s Portrait of a Lady on Fire (which if one is interested in watching can be found on Hulu).

Petite Maman is worth a watch, however considering the ever-crowding summer release slate, it probably will not be in theaters long. If it lasts until next week, that will be genuinely surprising, however it will probably find its streaming home sooner rather than later. Regardless of how one sees the film, this is a story that must be experienced. One final note, the movie is in French (as the title would suggest) so viewers should keep that in mind before watching.

Final Rating 9.5/10