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This Christmas, I watched the 37-minute film Le pupille (The Pupil) on Disney+. It's one of the 15 films shortlisted for the Academy Awards early next year in the Live Action Short Film category. Set during wartime Italy, the film features little orphan girls living in a boarding school run by nuns, as they go about their routines on Christmas Eve leading to Christmas Day. There's a little bit of a musical number. But instead of singing "It's A Hard-Knock Life", the orphans act as a Greek chorus, opening and later closing the film, singing the summary of the plot as well as the denouement. The film contains themes of youth defiance against cruelty, injustice and totalitarianism encapsulated in a funny, bittersweet but not too saccharin-sweet story that is as heartwarming as it is profound.

At the center is the wide-eyed little girl Serafina (played by Melissa Falasconi, who received an Honorable Mention as Best Actor from the Philadelphia Film Festival), who brazenly stands up against the dictatorial Mother Superior, Fioralba (played by Alba Rohrwacher, the director's sister). The trigger for the main conflict is a humongous red cake which is given by someone for the orphans but the Mother Superior has other ideas for it.

The film's rebellion theme reminds us of Roald Dahl's Matilda and a past Oscar-winning short film titled Mindenki (Sing). But writer-director Alice Rohrwacher - a past winner at Cannes with 4 features films in her IMDb filmography - infuses Le pupille with so much tongue-in-cheek humor that keeps it from being too tense but still delivers the point precisely. Co-produced by, among others, the legendary Alfonso Cuarón, Le pupille is a wonderful, brilliant, entertaining and fulfilling short film. I look forward to seeing it listed in the Oscar nominations, to be announced on 24 January 2023.

Noel Murray of the Los Angeles Times wrote, "This captivating and surprisingly suspenseful film shares with Rohrwacher's other work a wry sense of humor and a deep understanding of how people can be horribly evil, sometimes in the name of truth."

I'm leaving him a bit here because the tone created in the movie is definitely not original.

Firstly; Alfonso Cuaron is in the producer's chair of the movie, and the movie is almost a copy of A Little Princess, a re-make of Cuaron's 1995 movie.

Come on, I understand that those who haven't seen that movie can't see this obvious resemblance, but I don't understand how the big academy has let this happen.

Le Pupille is a short film by Italian director Alice Rohrwacher (Lazzaro felice). A Christmas tale with a strong connection between reality and imagination, which follows the usual atmospheres of the Bolognese director and this time combines Dickensian with an ineffably Italian magical realism.

The script, as wittily told by the orphanage girls themselves, is a free adaptation of the Christmas letter, which the renowned writer Elsa Morante sent to her friend and literary critic, Goffredo Fofi. The short film builds the story around the anecdote told in the letter, respecting in part, the writer's own words, which in the form of a song, is interpreted by the pupils of the boarding school. Le pupille, a title that in Latin means precisely girls and where the director gives it that imaginative double meaning, with those eyes of the girls, moving freely in any direction, a detail shot that becomes the central message of the short film.

With Le pupille, Rohrwacher gives free rein to all his poetic notes, already present in his feature films, and signs a unique short film that seems to come from another era, with that 16 and 35 mm photography of marked grain, the work of his usual collaborator Hélène Louvart, visually reminiscent at times of Jack Cardiff's Black Narcissus for Powell & Pressburger. She also allows herself to pay tribute to slapstick comedy without complexes, with those accelerations in editing, underlining the fleeting moments of joy. But above all it pays homage to the Italian cinema, references such as the Tavianni brothers, the Vitoriode Sica-Cessare Zabatinni duo, or Pier Paolo Pasolini, maintaining the difficult balance of reality and fantasy, in the genre of Italian neo-magical realism.

Le pupille is a humane and moving story about rebellion, morality and purity at an early age and how our actions have unintended consequences, in the face of the emptiness of some traditions.

*A more detailed review can be found on the youtube channel Kristonkino.

I did not like it. Although, the shooting style made my "not bad" reaction to the film. The production design was very good. The kids were very realistic. It was like a documentary. I was sad while watching the movie. It's still a matter of religion. We watch people who take their childhood away by imposing their ignorant narratives on children by naming them evil and bad. Alba Rohrwacher played so well that you hate the character. The nun who did not want to give the cake to the girls because she wanted to flatter the biship. However, after seeing religious and ignorant people in a movie, I got angry, as always. I hope one day everyone will understand the truth and investigate their religion. As a short film, it wasn't bad. Also, the singing scenes were very good.

Summary

An adorable Christmas story, never sappy or sentimental, where the Dickensian meets the ineffably Italian. A medium-length film in which Alice Rohrwacher admirably combines humor, irony, tenderness, musicals, pictorials, and comics to once again deal with power, religion, and micropolitics.

Review

The story takes place in a Catholic religious boarding school for girls during Christmas Eve and Christmas. We are in Italy, during World War II.

Based on a letter that the Italian writer Elsa Morante wrote to a friend, Le pupille is a wonderful Christmas story. The director Alice Rohrwacher, in less than 40 minutes, offers us a sensitive, humorous and deep story about that boarding school, with a relentless mother superior (Alba Rohrwacher, most just) and the preparations for her living nativity scene so that the convent raises funds in that such a difficult time.

One of the offerings that one of the aristocrats of the place will make (a devastated and funny Valeria Bruni-Tedeschi) will generate an unexpected conflict in the convent. It is in this conflict where Rohrwacher ends up introducing his usual and acute (never obvious or pamphleteering) treatment of power, religion and micropolitics. The economy of resources and the originality with which the filmmaker expresses the conflicts and accumulated tension is remarkable, and she does it purely on film, combining the pictorial, humor, irony, musicals, and comics. As light as intense.

The film is adorable (like its childish cast), but never sappy, combining the Dickensian, the ineffably Italian and that fair tone suitable for all audiences but not childish, in line with the best and most classic exponents of the Disney universe.

First of all, what a wonderful short!

The cinematography, the actresses (so cute!), the setting and the whole story... I loved it so much!

If you are looking for something short, that will warm your heart and make you and your relatives smile, this is the right one.

It feels so personal and intimate, in those 38 minutes you are part of their world and you'll wish to never leave it. At least I did.

Having already read the letter that inspired this story, I was pleasantly surprised by the film, it was not the way I immagined it, but better!

It was better than I imagined, so vivid and full of emotions.

PURE JOY FOR THE EYES, EARS AND HEART.

Happy Christmas!!

Road to the Oscars 2023. This is nominated for 1 award and it´s best short film. Le Pupille is cute and I liked what I saw. It´s a visually strong and cute short with some adorable acting in it. I think it´s a bit just there without much purpose or moral which the movie itself acknowledges, which isn't really an excuse for me. But overall, I see why some love this and I might return to it to reevaluate me thoughts.

On a catholic boarding school, a group of girls prepare for Christmas. We follow their lives and learn that they are in the end just humans.

I think the actresses playing the little girls are so adorable. It looks like they enjoyed being on set and they are clearly having a lot of fun with the roles. They just play it up for the camera, especially during the songs, and it´s so charming and heartwarming.

I liked the idea of showing a lot of young impressionable girls being under the watch of a strict nun. They are being treated unfairly, especially when religion doesn't mean a lot to them, and they just want to have fun and be kids. It´s a story about the fact that kids are inherently thinking of themselves and don't understand all the cruelty and higher thoughts going on around them, they just want to dance and have cake, thinking about what they want themselves and not what´s right in the eyes of God.

While I think the story is nonexistent and the short can feel a bit purposeless the idea is still cute. I found the short had a hard time starting up for me, but as it kept going I got more invested. It´s just not really a short where the plot means a lot, but the overall execution leaves it kind of just there without much more to take out of it. It happens and then it´s gone without much rime or reason.

I liked the score. It was really out there and sounded really unique. I found it a bit obnoxious at times, but it grew on me.

I really liked the use of faded colors in the short. It´s a really toned down color palette and even the most colorful thing like the later cake has this dusty red color instead of vibrant. In general the dusty look carries over and creates these really relaxing frames in terms of mood. I liked the scene where the girls are in costume. It´s a striking image and sticks with you.

Le Pupille is fine but left me with nothing. I think it´s cute and shot and directed really well with a huge emphasis on it´s visuals. Sadly, the story lacked a bit for me and didn't leave me with much. I might need to give it another watch in the future to really have my overall thoughts, but they are where they are now.

Oscar predictions: I haven't watched any of the live action shorts other than this yet so I have no idea what it´s competition looks like. I could imagen the academy liking this since it´s from a company like Disney and has a strong visual style. But it´s up against former Oscar winners and some heavier dramas and subject matters as far as I understand so maybe it will has less of chance in that department. Either way, I hope there are some gold in the short category, this was fine.

How on Earth did this absolute rubbish get nominated for an Oscar!?!

I'm speechless!

Yet somehow I've got to find another 450 letters for this review.

....Err?

There's really nothing here to even talk about, some jaunty light hearted music around a frankly vicious little scenario.

It's not even a story, there's no plot, no characterisation and specifically no moral; as stated at the end of the 35 minutes this short film lasts without credits.

It's one of those art for art's sakes productions that I don't actually see any "art" in.

Technically it's well made but that's the antithesis of "art" - Art isn't about technicality, it's about feeling; And this "film" has no feeling!

Based in a Catholic Church on a snowy Christmas time. Le Pupille is an adorable, a little goofy 38 minute short and fairly worthy of award nods! There's a lot of gentle and intense behavior mixed in. For sure well made but not the best Christmas story maybe close to it quite worthy of a high rating. All the girls involved are a wonderful magnitude of cuteness and joy! The nuns are a little harsh yet respectable. The production everything is so good, impressive, and a lot of charm packed in. The woman that keeps wanting to talk to the girls is great I love her style and dedication to what she wants. Would highly recommend all around very good.

I loved this film. The children are all brilliant the the layered story about what giving and self sacrifice really mean is wonderful, and the look and direction are all expertly executed. Subtle yet strong gentle yet brutal this is a film that warmed my heart even thought I didn't see it at Christmas. And to get that many children having such great reactions is indicative of a very good director indeed. Although I should imaging that the schedule was long for a short. The costrules the feel and th me cinematography were all wonderful a true treat and Xmas confection for everyone. Bit of a pole in the catholic sides too!

It's Christmas Eve, and then Christmas Day, and the little girls at a school run by nuns must deal with instruction, cajoling, threats of perdition, and so forth.

It's 39 minutes of little girls being cute while nuns tell them they're evil, and then wonder why they refuse to give up their cakes when only evil girls do so. I'm as much in favor of watching cute little girls -- and one cute mutt that keeps sneaking into the place -- being cute, but by the time you reach that length, it needs more structure than frustrating nuns. There's no need to go full St. Trinian's here, but there needs to be something more than Melissa Falasconi being so sweet that everyone who watches this needs an injection of insulin.

Told in a style that might best be described as Moonrise Kingdom meets The Bicycle Thief, this little tale hinges mostly on the naturalism of its young actresses, framed but some more experienced adult actors to keep it together. The period details are solid, as are the sets and musical numbers that serve as Greek Chorus of little girls.

Several times there are moments when I was tempted to assume I knew where things were headed, but on each occasion I was happy to be wrong. That also is what makes this work so well; it swims within certain storylines but is willing to go off script enough to remain surprising.

This short movie is unexpectedly enjoyable, well-produced, well-acted and originally scripted. It also has surprising suspense and very well-performed musical numbers. The costumes and make-up are very decent and accurate with the period. The soundtrack is outstanding as well. The short also has something to say, concerning how people, especially in positions of power, in the name of righteousness (possibly hiding personal gain) can be horribly harsh. All of the little girls are totally charming and lovable, and they act well despite the fact that they are little children. In general, the production values are very high. The Christmas setting during World War 2 is very astute and justifies the reason why the nuns want to restrain the girls from hearing anything else except for the news from the Eastern Front. I highly recommend this movie, and I think it deservedly earned a nomination in the "Best Live-Action Short Film" category on the 95th Academy Awards.

Among the Academy Award nominees each year, the live action shorts are probably some of the least seen, especially when there's a Hollywood movie where Tom Cruise narrowly avoids all danger. A real pity, because "Le pupille" ("The Pupils" in English) is one that everybody should see. Alice Rohrwacher's short depicts a Catholic boarding school in WWII-era Italy. The nuns try to keep the girls in line, but there's a girl itching to rebel.

It's appropriate that Rohrwacher's short is nominated in the same year as "Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio", also set in fascist Italy. Both movies depict a desire to reject a strictly enforced order. Above all, this short reminds us that kids are often smarter than we give them credit for. I haven't seen the rest of the nominees for Best Live Action Short, but I'd say that this one would be fully justified in winning. Definitely check it out if you get a chance.