Ma vie de Courgette

"My Life as a Courgette" is such a simple story and simplicity really is the film's greatest strength. There is no flamboyant animation, no huge narrative arc, no gargantuan obstacles to somersault over, no chaotic chase sequences, no loud, yappy dialogue...basically nothing like what you might expect if this same story was told by an American studio.

At 66 mins, it's short and to the point, quiet, contemplative and starkly sad, yet filled with uplifting moments of hope and tenderness, which it conveys without ever feeling contrived or overly- sentimental.

The young French voice cast are terrific (I do hope anyone reading this review watches the French version and not the American dub). They do well to convey the vulnerability behind the broken characters. That, and I think some of the lines just sound so much better in French - the way the brattish Simon spits out the word "potet" was particularly amusing to me.

The animation is rather basic and the character's faces are not hugely expressive, but enough emotion is conveyed through body posing, vocal performance and composition that you would need a heart of stone not to feel for the young gang of misfits.

By the time the bitter-sweet end credits song kicked in, I was noticing a little moisture in the corner of my eye. Not sure the kids in the audience enjoyed it as much as I did though....which is an important point really. This film is NOT intended for young children. It deals with adult themes like death, neglect and abuse, in a very delicate way mind, but still, it's not something that's going to entertain the 'fidget spinner' generation.