Nénette et Boni (1996)
Directed by Claire Denis

Film Review

One of Claire Denis' most potent films is this carefully woven portrait of isolation and estrangement, centred around an adolescent young man desperately looking for meaning in his life whilst rejecting all family ties.  Beautifully filmed by Agnès Godard and with some impressive acting performances, the film captures the realism of a life on the margins of society, but with a lurid poetry which seems to be filled with humanity.

In contrast to much of Denis' other work, Nénette et Boni is less hampered by excessive artistic pretensions or overly conscious attempts to make a social statement.  The situation and the characters in this film have a depth and language of their own, making Denis' artistic excesses (so visible in films such as Chocolat and Beau Travail) superfluous.  This is not to say that the film does not carry Denis' personal stamp - it clearly does.  However, by not submerging her characters in an unnecessary deluge of artistic licence, the director allows the film to speak directly to the audience, through simple and effective images which are alternately shocking and poignant.   The result is one of the most evocative films of adolescence made in France in recent years. Nénette et Boni was awarded the Best Film prize at Locarno, where its two stars, Grégoire Colin  and Alice Houri won the Best Actor and Best Actress awards.

Film Synopsis

Since his mother's death a few years ago, Boni, 19, has led a mostly dull life, living in the pokey Marseille flat he inherited from his mother and earning a pittance as a pizza seller.  He relieves the monotony of his dreary existence by mixing with traffickers and fantasising about the alluring woman who runs the baker's shop.  Boni is proud of his independence and will have nothing more to do with his estranged father, who walked out of his life some time ago, taking his daughter Nénette with him.

When Nénette suddenly reappears in Boni's life the young man is unsure what to do.  She has just run away from her boarding school and, knowing she is pregnant, is in a state of emotional distress.  She is only 15 and has no one else to turn to for help.  Despite his sister's sorry predicament, Boni finds it hard to sympathise with her.  It is with great reluctance that he allows her to move back in with him, but as the days pass he begins to develop an affection for her and looks forward to the day when the baby will be born.  What he doesn't yet know is that Nénette has no intention of keeping her child...