Bluebird

Merel is the "perfect" child - the mother's good daughter who lovingly cares for her disabled younger brother; an ideal student from the teacher's perspective, she knows all the answers. This last trait leads to her being bullied at school. The acting is very good.

The scenes are good enough to serve as talking points, but the bullying may be too intense for many kids experiencing such abuse.

The film also has it's limits. The mother is too accepting of Merel's explanation that her skateboard fell into a canal (thrown there by her peers) and the resolution at the end - not to be mentioned as a spoiler - is simply too simplistic and not at all realistic.

I really love these docu-style films. Having missed the opening credits (I found it while zapping), I thought for the first 5 minutes it was a documentary. So cool. Also, with the very skillful and appropriate underacting, it was hard to tell what this was at first. A German children's series? A docu on living with disability in the family? Ah, Dutch drama! Rotteveel is an outstanding actress, with the typical looks of the runway model: Looks ordinary, almost plain at first glance, but is stunning upon closer examination. Her acting is of the deceptive natural kind and it fitted in well with the direction and camera work, beautiful, those wide shots.

I didn't get the choice of music, though. Choosing the Red Hot Chili Peppers' song 'Otherside' during a sad moment is understandable, ("A candidate for my soul mate bled" "Slit my throat, it's all I ever" ), but R.E.M.s 'Losing my religion' during the end? And what about Michel Fugains 'Un beau roman' when her stepbrother is going to school? What is the connection between that and a nostalgic summer romance song? Unfathomable.

A 12 year old girl got to be 'picked' (bullied) on at school from just on moment on the other. At home she doesn't tell here parents, and as the situation get worse and worse, she gets quieter all the time. She has an (adopted) younger disabled brother and the have an excellent 'relationship'. She is with him all the time. When stuff get worse, it start effecting the 'bond' with here brother.

I find the 'play' between the girl and her disabled brother real good, and the atmosphere from the school klas picking on her, real enough to be true. (in NL anyway.) Good movie, i wasn't bored for one moment.

"Bluebird" is an extremely well-crafted Dutch movie which, though originally produced as a children's film, would be enjoyed by audience of any age. It features a 12-year-old schoolgirl, Merel (meaning 'blackbird'), who is a good student, a good swimmer, a caring older sister for her handicapped young brother and an avid reader of classic English novels. One day, suddenly, she found out that she's being bullied and later, physically beaten by certain classmates of her. But she didn't somehow complain or inform about this to her teacher or her parents. But her private life and her nature began to change.

From my description of Merel's character earlier, it may seem that she's a perfect child. But she's not. She does not have any good friends except a kindly man she met at the train. She is basically introvert. But she's not at all glum or mentally precocious. She is happy when she really likes it, at other times she's just silent. In this very difficult role in my opinion, debutant Elske Rottevéel gives a really outstanding performance. The camera is on her in practically every scene, showing her every emotion. And she never seemed uncomfortable or weak in her role. The occasional bits of Merel's subtle and controlled expressions of happiness are nicely portrayed by Rottevéel. I safely write that hers is one of the top five performances I've seen by a child actor. And mind you, she's not some 16-year-old playing 12.

The film ends with a quite predictable ending, which is good because I wouldn't like major plot twists in this kind of films. The filmmakers should be thanked once again for presenting us such a simple example where one doesn't need to exaggerate in any way to make a good film. And thanks to the film authorities of Netherlands to select this film to compete for the Academy Awards nomination, otherwise audiences like us from another continent wouldn't come to know about it.

A few minutes into this delightful film, my partner whispered, "Merel doesn't waste a second." That's right, she doesn't, and neither does this outstandingly well crafted coming-of-age film about a precocious and ambitious 12 year old girl living in Rotterdam. Merel (young Elske Rotteveel) would be quick to correct my last statement, pointing out that she is in fact 12 ½ years old, not 12.

Merel zooms on her skateboard to barely catch the morning train, reads Roald Dahl on the trip to school, aces the oral discussions in her classes, dashes off after school to fetch her kid brother Kasper and wheel him home (he's a Thalidomide child without hands or forearms, unable to walk), then on to her high diving lesson at the swim club, or to the next rehearsal for the musical "Turandot" that she's in, then homework and snuggling up with Dad to watch TV for a minute, but only after she has bathed Kasper and lovingly acted out a story using little figurines to entertain him.

What's wrong with this picture? Well, for one thing, Merel doesn't appear to have a single peer friend. For another, she seems more than a little pushy in asserting her mastery of everything she attempts. When the lead singer in "Turandot" rehearses a solo, Merel - who naturally has memorized the lead part in addition to her own choruses - sings along and must be shushed by the drama coach. In class she's quick to signal that she knows the answers and she's always right, always.

She doesn't act the snob or smarty pants: far from it. Her manner is entirely natural and unassuming. In fact she exudes a wondrous confidence and charm; she's tender and loving toward her family. She is just so damnably competent that she's irrepressible. And she's so busy, her life is so full, that she hasn't yet felt lonely, felt the need for friends. Her mindless diffidence and superior achievements begin to cost her big time with the other kids at school, as she becomes the target of escalating teases and worse.

The story hurtles along toward the climax and resolution of her social dilemma, reaching a conclusion that is fitting and believable. Splendid supporting turns are contributed by Kees Scholten as Kasper, and by a male actor named Anne Buurma, who befriends Merel on the train and nicknames her "Bluebird." Don't for a second be put off by the fact that this little gem was made for TV. You won't see a better C-o-A story for some time to come. This movie should be required viewing in every middle school in America. My grade: A- 9/10