Belle & Sebastien

The French movie Belle et Sébastien was shown in the U.S. with the title Belle and Sebastian (2013). It was directed by Nicolas Vanier. Félix Bossuet plays Sébastien, a young boy growing up with his grandfather and aunt in the French Alps, just across the border from Switzerland. (Actually, they're not really his grandfather and aunt, but those are the roles they would fill if they were biologically related.

The film takes place during WW II. We learn that the French Resistance in the area arranges the safe passage of Jews across the mountains into Switzerland. Naturally, the job of the occupying German soldiers is to stop this process and capture the Jews, along with the Resistance fighters who are helping them.

Sébastien doesn't go to school, because his grandfather believes that the boy will learn more by living the life of a mountaineer, learning practical information that will be of greater use than a formal education. That leaves Sébastien free to wander over the area. At one point he meets the huge white dog Belle, and they bond.

The local populace--including Sébastien's grandfather--believe that Belle is killing their sheep, and they are trying to find and kill the dog, while Sébastien is trying to protect and save her.

In a way, this film is programmed to capture our hearts. Sébastien is a brave and resourceful boy, Belle is gentle and beautiful, and we have all grown up with a cultural history of crying when a wounded Rin-Tin-Tin or Lassie is crawling under the barbed wire.

Still, the movie avoids most of these clichés, and Félix Bossuet is truly a gifted young actor. (I'll never understand how directors are able to bring forth such superb acting from children, but they do it. Director Vanier certainly manages it in this movie.)

We saw this movie at the Dryden Theatre as part of the wonderful Rochester International Jewish Film Festival. It took real strength on the part of the RIJFF to show this movie. Basically, it isn't about Jews. It's true that the Resistance is helping the Jews, but we only see the Jews as refugees, never as individual characters. The plots are all about Christians. However, that's one of the aspects of the RIJFF that makes it such a great festival--their movies aren't restricted to just a narrow band of "Jewish" films.

Belle et Sébastien will really work better on a large screen, because of the incredible mountain scenery. However, if you can't see it on a large screen, see it on a small screen. It's too good to miss.

Note: As I write this review, the movie has a tepid 6.8 IMDb rating. I'm not sure why--it's much better than that.

A review of this film by a guy actually named Sébastien because her mother liked the 60's TV series so much, what a concept! So this film is based on a children's novel by Cécile Aubry telling the story of a friendship between a young boy called Sébastien and a big white dog named Belle living in a small French village in the mountains in 1943. Before watching the film, I was only familiar with the anime version of the 80's that I loved, so I cannot evaluate how faithful it is to the original novel. My impression and Wikipedia tell me that a few creative freedoms were taken. So, we hear about a "beast" in the mountains killing sheep. Sébastien lives with his grandfather César and spends most of his time outdoors. It's revealed quite soon that the "beast" in question is actually a big dog that was beaten up by his former master, fled and became wild. Not that wild since Sébastien discovers the dog and quickly befriends her in secret, although the dog is still hunted and in constant danger of being killed by the villagers. Sébastien eventually names her "Belle" because once cleaned up, she's so beautiful. Of course, there's also a play on the Beauty and the Beast theme, la Belle et la Bête, that Sébastien probably never read. Not initially related but eventually becoming important, is that France is occupied by the Germans, and there's a clandestine operation by the French passing Jew refugees over the mountains to reach another country. There are regular visits by the Germans in the nearby village and they want to stop this.

So, I found the movie rather peaceful and relaxing with beautiful mountainous landscapes. Contrary to what another review says, there is a story and even a few mysteries such as what happened to Sébastien's mother, who's helping the Jews and the true motivations of a few characters. I loved Belle, she was expressive and she looked like I what I envisioned she should in real life. I didn't like the actor Sébastien so much. Yes, he's cute, but a few times, there was a little something off in the way he played. It didn't seem all natural for lack of better explanation. The relationship between him and Belle was mostly fine, but there was some chemistry missing. I sometimes felt some kind of "disconnect" between him and her. The other adult actors were adequate, except for the doctor that I found bland, and the German lieutenant that I found more interesting than the rest. In fact, I liked how ambiguously he was portrayed.

The animal sequences didn't particularly impress me, as it sometimes felt as if they were filmed separately, although they were real animals. Scenes of danger, especially the last one, felt a bit awkwardly filmed. At one point, there was a song sung by Sébastien in the background that I found very corny, but it might be my cynical adult side complaining. The couple of other songs sung by an adult woman fared better, but I would have preferred just poignant music instead. I don't really remember the soundtrack otherwise. I wish I would have been moved emotionally by the film, but I wasn't really, although I found a few sequences charming. So maybe it's nostalgia for the old cartoon talking, but for me, this adaptation, although competent enough, seemed to lack a certain magic. I'd recommend it for big dog lovers. As an aside, my girlfriend, not familiar with the story, liked the film much better than I did.

Rating: 6 out of 10 (good)

An intriguing tail and adventure of a little human and Belle the Great Pyranees. She is the star of the movie.

In 1943, in the French Alps, the orphan Sébastien (Félix Bossuet) lives in a small village with his grandfather César (Tchéky Karyo), who is a shepherd, and his aunt Angélina (Margaux Châtelier), who is a baker. Sébastien misses his mother and believes she has traveled to America. He expects to get a watch with compass as a gift from her. The local Dr. Guillaume (Dimitri Storoge) is a member of the Frech resistance that helps Jewish refugees to flee to Switzerland and the German Lieutenant Peter (Andreas Pietschmann) and troop are hunting down the resistance. When sheep are found slaughtered, César and the other residents believe that a stray dog that has been abused by his owner is the responsible and hunt it down. Sébastien finds the dog, gives the name of Belle to her and they become friends. But the animal is considered a beast by the inhabitants. Will Sébastien be capable to save Belle?

"Belle et Sébastien" is a great family entertainment, with a beautiful story of friendship. The needy Sébastien find his soul mate in a stray female dog and together they become friends during the World War II. The wonderful landscapes in the Alps are highlighted by the cinematography and the camera. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Belle e Sebástian" ("Belle and Sebástian")

Belle and Sebastian, initially an excellent novel written by Cécile Aubry, has been adapted in movie by Nicolas Vanier. This beautiful and charming story makes a perfect family movie. Children as well as adults can enjoy it!

First, the story takes place during the WWII in the French Alps. Sebastian is a 6 year young boy, raised by his adopted grandfather. This little adventurer spends much time in the nature, playing with all it offers. One day, some sheep are found attacked. Everybody thinks that's a cruel and dangerous animal but during a walk, Sebastian meets this mysterious beast. It appears that it is a dog, a so cute dog that the boy recalled 'Belle'. At this moment, an unequaled friendship has just begun. Unfortunately, the determinate grandfather and his band have to kill the dog. Sebastian is so hungry with it and takes care of his best friend in secret. The boy will prove that the dog is not a bad animal the day it saves a life.

That lovely relation between a dog and a child is really pleasant for those who want to see a piece of sweet in this violent world period. In fact, we can also feel the strong atmosphere of occupation in that movie. A good point is definitely the beautiful mountainous landscapes. If you are fond of nature, you should be filled with Belle and Sebastian. We also have to notice the performance of Félix Bossuet, the young Sebastian who's particularly effective in his role.

In a word, I really recommend you this movie, a French one, something different than the full effects American movies. We sometimes need to see and enjoy simple things as a true friendship.