At the time of its release this film had me sobbing, it touched every sore spots in my soul. Friendship between two girls, Paris, insanity. I wonder what effect it will have on me now. I must watch it again. Anyway, a fantastic film , harsh, beautiful and simply wonderfully written.
Filed under: Films | Tagged: french film, mina Tannenbaum
I went to IMDB and look up the plot summary:
“The film tells the story of two girls who are of totally different character. They know each other since their childhood and were friends until they became teenagers. But growing up and becoming adults they go different ways.”
I hope you’re right, because it sounds awfully ‘after school special’ to me.
Would you call this a chick flick? I like chick flicks BTW.
Is it in Dutch and dubbed?
Is it available from Amazon?
If I watch it, will I need tissues?
Were you having a lot of emotional conflict at the time?
Was meeting Kevin a turning point in your life?
So many unanswered questions and so little time.
Don’t worry Sylvie, I’m off soon xx
Ghosty: I can see it can look that way, french film don’t usually do “after school special” TV does that well though…
DP:I watched it in french but I am sure it will be subtitled in english too, anyway your french is so good! Meeting Kevin was a turning point yes he introduced me to cheddar.
I think Daddy P is referring to…ahem… ‘rhythm cinema’.
I shall have to check it out – never seen it.
Added you to my blogroll!
Added to my list of ‘must see’ films which is getting bigger by the day … I won’t have time to blog soon
……
oooo you have had a make over …….very chic
err… i thought i got to the wrong site…
nice one!
*twirl*
Got you!
Tim Fid says:
I have seen Mina 3 times.
It is a lovely funny and at the end very sad film.
There some some amazing cinematography. In particular the place where
Mina turns into a “Yeshiva Bocher” and tries to strangle her alter ego, Ethel,
Ditto the section where time goes back to 1942 [with no speech or action]. [I seem to remember a similar piece in a Woody Allen film].
THere are other cinematic references to other films it seems – for instance when Ethel’s mum comes to visit she is puffing with her packages up the stairs {and pays Ethel’s gentile boyfriend, who has just got the order of the boot, to help her }. This reminds me of a scene in La Vie Devant Soi (Madame Rosa, a stupid title conversion, in Eng).
There is a short stage play piece out of Mina on You Tube as I write Apr 2008.
The Wikipedia entry on E. Zylberstein [Ethel] is pretty roughly translated and needs work. Unfortunately, for us blokes, it says she now (2008) has a “companion”.
The scene where Ethel visits the intellectual/artist, using Mina’s name as an entree, is just brillig – and funny.
La Vie Devant Soi is a good companion piece to this film IMHO.
Ainsi soit il. Vive La France ! etc (My grandfather’s brother is buried there – Somme 1916)
TEF
I too was powerfully affected by this film when it came out, and just rewatched it on VHS to the same effect. I’ll seek out above suggested movie, as this subject has always tied me up in knots:
what happens when you don’t get the “identity strength” from your family when you’re growing up…you sometimes look for that self-confidence to come from a best friendship; it’s a dangerious proposition to lean on any fallible human being so heavily.
This film depicts the struggle of surviving with little inner confidence and outside support from others with inventiveness, humor, class and extreme beauty.