Belle et Sebastien
Director: Nicolas Vanier
Cast: Felix Bossuet, Tcheky Karyo, Margaux Chatelier, Dimitri Storoge, Andreas Pietschmann
Rating: (M)
3 stars (out of 5)
From the opening frames, you might be forgiven for thinking you have been plunged into Mount Aspiring National Park or The Sound of Music.
What with breathtaking mountain vistas, snowy peaks and wild chamois, Belle et Sebastien makes quite a visual statement from the start.
It is set in the French Alps in 1943 and based on a novel by Cecile Aubry that spawned a 1960s television series.
Six-year-old Sebastien (Felix Bossuet) lives with his adopted family after his mother died in childbirth.
Convinced into believing his mother is still alive and living just over the neighbouring mountain pass in ''America'' (Switzerland), Sebastien looks up to the gnarly old figure of Cesar (Tcheky Karyo) who educates him on life in the mountains when he is really meant to be in school.
What ostensibly is nothing much more than a humble story about a boy who tames a massive feral dog, Belle et Sebastien delivers so much more.
Forget the underlying political current of French resistance, which is never really delivered with any real punch; the film really harnesses the wide-eyed innocence of childhood.
Pitched to appeal to children and adults alike, it's stunningly shot and with a cast of characters that really shine, including the best canine lead you will see in a long time.
This is one instance where the film-making decision to work with children and animals really does pay dividends.
Best thing: The dog: what a performer.
Worst thing: The lack of exposition concerning the role the community played in smuggling Jews out of France.
See it with: Your children, grandchildren, nephews and nieces.
