User reviews

My favourite film of 2014 being Boyhood, I was naturally curious to see 2014's Girlhood. Actually, Girlhood- which comes from France- isn't meant to be the feminine equivalent of Boyhood. It doesn't have the same scope and clearly wasn't filmed over 12 years. It deals with a teenage girl who, failing to graduate to high school, drops out of vocational school to join a gang.

It's not as rough as you would expect for the first half of the film- what we have is an extended view of girls who like clothes, jewelry, singing Diamonds and even miniature golf. It's in the second half when we see a more serious fight (our protagonist, "Vic," uses a knife to remove another girl's bra) and then sex, and insults about being a slut. Instead of the gang being portrayed as a truly destructive force, it's actually more of a sisterhood whose members discourage Vic from descending deeper into criminality.

We certainly see Vic's motivations for joining the gang- she has little future, and is told it's too late for her. Not encouraging. Her home life is rough, too. I can't say I was blown away by Girlhood, but it's a believable drama with a sympathetic protagonist.

Marieme (Karidja Touré) is a sixteen-year-old, African-French girl living in a working class Paris suburb, where her poor academic performance results in no other option other than vocational school. Marieme's homelife is equally bleak, as she's often in the care of her abusive older brother, with no real friends or outlet of creativity to turn to. One day after school, she meets a gang of girls; lead by Lady (Assa Sylla), they are Fily (Marietou Tore) and Adiatou (Lindsay Karamoh), who ask if Marieme wants to hang out with them and enjoy a day of independence, free from school and the responsibilities of every day life. Marieme is instantly attracted by their sleek leather jackets, gold necklaces, and loud hairstyles, so she can't help but, overtime, develop a sense of attraction to them and their wily ways. It doesn't take long for Marieme to become invested in the gang's lifestyle, which concerns a lot of assimilation into their own everyday practices, such as relentless, bare-fisted fighting with other women in remote urban areas. The violence gets ugly and the lengths Marieme goes to be accepted are uglier.

Céline Sciamma's Girlhood is a delightfully unconventional picture that truly shows the subtle takeover that many gangs have on people, and in this case, women, the demographic who is sort of accepted as being "too good for gangs" or more drawn to harmless cliques that innocently gawk at guys and discuss fashion trends. Sciamma goes for a brutal but tender picture, much like her last film Tomboy, a surprisingly gentle film about a ten-year-old girl searching for acceptance with her short hair and fluid gender identity.

Where Tomboy spoke to young girls, Girlhood speaks to the demographic of young women that are handicapped, be it by finances, personal responsibilities, poor academic performance, or what-have-you to the point where joining a pack of dangerous women seems to be the only sane and logical thing to do. It's a scary thought but Sciamma depicts it in a way comparable to that of Larry Clark or Harmony Korine, where the film doesn't adhere to a slippery slope structure, where we're essentially watching the demise of a character before a rise even occurs. Sciamma doesn't subject her Marieme character to constant abuse that grows worse and worse, in an almost sadistic and self-damning way. Instead, she follows her along in a realistic manner, through multiple hairstyle changes and even an eventual identity overhaul in hopes that she'll find some semblance of solace with herself.

Many can see Marieme's problem a mile away and that's the fact that she's trying to solve her personal problems by filling the hole with other people, which, in a long-term sense providing a close relationship with males or females is built, will only result in mistreatment and abandonment on her part. Marieme is trying to find solace in others when she should be spending more time alone, searching for herself instead of falling prey to the vicious acts of gangmembers she barely knows. However, this is where Sciamma's film becomes a multilayered examination of the troubled female heroine; we can either view her choices as that of an naive young girl pining for acceptance or somebody who is trying to figure out what she wants and taking pride in group identity.

However you view Marieme and Sciamma's general purpose for Girlhood, certain ideas and attributes about the film hold up in their own, less ambiguous way. For starters, Sciamma goes for a long and aesthetic that relies heavily on vignettes and a lack of pacing in the conventional sense. Her pacing is very loose, and unfortunately, this lack of a cleaner structure finds itself all over the board in the way the film wants us, the audience, to react. Her pacing, and overall aesthetic, resembles that of a potboiling soap opera in that, no matter how Sciamma decides to position her characters or her camera, everything still feels like something alone the lines of a soap opera in terms of its look and feel. This is a somewhat distracting attribute, especially for a film nearing two hours in length and running on a rather minimal plot.

With that, Touré's performance is quite the standout, given that for the twenty-year-old's first acting gig she is left to carry a lion's weight of the film on her back in addition to having a character without a fundamental identity. Much like the young Zoé Héran's Laure in Tomboy, Touré finds ways to make Marieme speak to young women who have found themselves lost and without a healthy creative option to turn to amidst a bleak outlook. This sets up Sciamma for her many idiosyncratic insights into the gender fluidity of her female subjects in a manner that gives Girlhood a stamp of cold-cut realism and honesty films of this nature are hard to come by.

Starring: Karidja Touré, Assa Sylla, Lindsay Karamoh, and Mariétou Touré. Directed by: Céline Sciamma.

All-girl "gangs" may offer female teenagers a safe space to experiment with the trappings of womanhood - a step-up from childhood, but a transitional stage nonetheless. This social dynamic is explored in 'Girlhood', but against the backdrop of an impoverished, ethnic minority community in Paris, where every choice made has wider repercussions for life. Unfortunately, the film feels disjointed, in part because it doesn't seem to know whether it wants to celebrate this "girlhood", or look on aghast; of course real life isn't black and white, but the film seems to alternate between portraying these two extremes, instead of managing to paint a subtler shade. Beyond the fact that life's hard and people (and especially men) are hard as well, I didn't take too much away from this film.

Growing up on an estate, young Marieme finds herself leaving education, isolated within her own community, and stressed by those many forces on her. When she gets a new group of friends, she finds herself drawn into this new group of girls, changing her lifestyle as a result.

Perhaps overpraised when it was released, I was pretty impressed by this film once I got to see it. It is an odd mix and one that is defined by the music and visual heavy opening; this is an approach that the film frequently takes – which is to have fun and stylish moments amid the crime, violence, and sense of oppression that exists otherwise. In some ways one could accuse the film of glamorizing this world, however what it is actually doing is presenting it in a natural and convincing way. By letting us in on the fun and comradery of Marieme's group, the film shows us why she is drawn into it, and the contrast between what she has otherwise. This is not the film saying that the gang is a better option, or a healthy one, but it does help us understand what is going on with the characters.

These moments of style and fun also prop up the feeling of the estates as a real place. The pressure on the women in the film is tangible, and the nature of the world is played out well. It is a gritty and quite raw picture and one that works. In the lead Touré does well with the journey from child, to girl, to violence, and into a place that is really none of them but is informed by a wisdom that she hard earns. She is well supported by the rest of the cast – with Sylla being one standout. As a whole the film is well balanced and delivers a natural and engaging coming of age story.

The film follows the life of a teen growing up in a rough suburb of Paris. The technic on display is solid, creating strong visual motifs that carry and modulate throughout the film. The director likes showing characters in groups, dominating the frame. The film understands the attraction of a posse to a person not fully confident or formed, and communicates it soundly. She contrasts these images with the more personal shots of people alone, lost. These shots are rare, and really work all the better for it. A two-shot is also in use, but also frequent. There is a dissonance, something not fully confident about these shots, showing the heroine's inability to fully be herself and complete with just one person.

While the visual strategy of the film is sound, it also comes off as somewhat simplified. There is only so much you can tell the viewer with a specific shot structure. And one of the things that stays bland is the main character. She never seem to come together as a person, and while thematically it makes perfect sense, it feel frustrating to watch a film that ask you to follow a progression, only to not get to see any kind of payoff. The development is really minimal, with most of the broad changes happening when we're not around.

Overall, the filmmaking kept me interested moment to moment, and the film does take bold turns in order to take the story and character into different places. But the characters leave a lot to be desired and I just never got into the main character arc.

Girl power comes from French cinema in this classic coming-of-age story; female centric and empowerment driven, Girlhood is centered around 16 year old Marieme and her struggles with peer pressure and self discovery. While the tale may be repetitive, director Céline Sciamma gives fresh visuals and dramatic flare to the film, which is captivating from the very start. Set in the lower class suburbs of France, Girlhood is as much an emotional journey as it is a visual one, and a satisfying film from beginning to end.

Girlhood, which, by the way, is not a female answer to Richard Linklater's Boyhood, is very performance driven and an actor's dream. Karidja Touré carries the film on her small shoulders, projecting various emotional moments with strength. One scene in particular is very special to the film; the four girls rent a hotel room and get all dressed up in formal wear to just hang out with each other and drink alcohol. Eventually, they play Rihanna's "Diamonds" and begin dancing away their problems from the outside world. This moment in the film is captured so beautifully, it could have (and should have) been Rihanna's official music video. The blueish tones of the room, the general feeling of sisterhood, and the miming of the lyrics while dancing around in beautiful dresses show the girls' dreams of a better life, but making the most of what they have in that moment. It's a very powerful scene, which ultimately gives Girlhood its authenticity as the perfect portrait of the undeniable complexity of adolescent life.

I like films like this one. They have purpose, relevance, and seek to connect us with lives we have not lived but can empathize with.

It's easy to see these characters as punks until it becomes difficult to. Writer/director Céline Sciamma makes no effort to judge the actions of the characters and thereby gracefully detaches her ego from the story. This makes for a film watching experience that is more absorption than hard analysis and intellectualization of this protagonist's life. This does not make it any less a provocative work, but allows for understanding we would not get otherwise, as with a camera less subtle.

Yes, it's a coming of age film, but without the climactic moment when the character comes- of-age (whatever that means). Instead the film is about comings and goings of identity and security, and why a person would seek these things.

It's socially relevant in the way it poses the character's environment and socioeconomic influences as factors to her motivations. We get a true sense of her circumstance. It explores low income, predominantly black areas of society untouched by most films. The attention it gives to people of this circumstance and the understanding it promotes is certainly a means to social change if only these sorts of films could reach more people.

Much attention is payed to bodies, skin, and faces, which the lighting often compliments. This is the source of the film's power rather than extraneous camera movement. The fascination here is intriguing as it's not out of lust but… well maybe it's just about the fascination. We are sensitive towards our physiques and appearances, and the camera shares this, only the bodies it shows are not just the characters' bodies but the actors' bodies. Bodies are a source for both power and insecurity to the characters. I don't feel the need to analyze this, only to comment, so I won't say any more.

While Girlhood won't be in everyone's movie watching range, it's definitely worth seeking out if you're inclined.

In 2014, two films with similar titles were released: "Boyhood" and "Girlhood". But they were very different. The first was an American movie, shot over 12 years, with an all- white cast. The second was a French work with a narrative of a few months and a cast almost wholly black.

"Girlhood" - which was called "Bande De Filles" in the original French - tells the story of 16 year old Marieme (a remarkable showing by young Karidja Touré) who joins a gang of three other girls in an effort to find some status, only to discover that this is not the life she seeks. Like "Boyhood", there is no real resolution but simply a coming of age. Céline Sciamma - herself white - both wrote and directed this original view of what it means to be young, uneducated and black in France.

Marianne is 16 and her teacher, let's call her the sad result of a privileged white community tells her that she is not going to be admitted to high school. She replaces the role of an absent single mother who works incessantly as a cleaner to support her family. When there is no place where she can feel protected, she gets "adopted" by a girl's band. The morality of her life changes. There is another set of rules by which she plays now. She doesn't question them yet. It's not the new clothes and make up that make her stay, not the coolness, but the "belonging" feeling. Underneath all the decadence that we notice, there is love. One that they are probably still learning how to show. Marianne gets through a series of metamorphosis. Strength in her neighbourhood is gained by immoral devices but we are watching a world that creates its own set of rules. The camera does not approve of them nor does it judge them. It merely observes them maybe with a bit of compassion. At the end we no longer see a girl but a woman. One that can take her own decisions, without allowing exterior forces to change her trajectory. She can now accept her own vulnerability yet be stronger.

A beautiful coming of age film. It captures the highs and lows of youth and the pressures that come with falling in with the wrong crowd so tastefully. I've seen plenty of films like this but very few that were so unpretentious. It was gritty, emotional, uplifting and engaging at the same time. It avoided the pitfalls of many crime/gang films and leaves you to come to your own conclusions about the characters and their choices. Rather than dwelling on a bleak existance it encapsulates the feeling of belonging that often defines peoples youth.

"Coming of age" movies invariably carry a bit of awkwardness as we're reminded at least in part of how we behaved when we were young, or at least, how our peers behaved, or were perceived. I think it's to Céline Sciamma's credit, not to mention her cast, that compared to no few kindred titles this is light on that awkwardness and heavy on the drama. Already saddled by society's predetermined limits for her, Marieme sets off down a path of gangs, fights, and petty crime, gaining a sense of self-empowerment but also rather losing herself in the process. The swirl of camaraderie, risky behavior, and self-discovery is deeply compelling, offering a somewhat dour but engrossing portrait of a less glamorous side of life outside the City of Lights. For that matter, it would be easy for a title broaching such subject matter to fall into a depressing spiral, but as Sciamma has proven time and again she possesses a refined delicate hand as both writer and director that means her stories are approached only with utmost earnestness, care, and mindfulness. There's no singular stroke of genius here, but over its two hours 'Girlhood,' or 'Bande de filles,' more than proves its strength as a vivid, important reflection of contemporary chilldhood, and from top to bottom it's terrifically well done.

In every capacity the writing is bent toward a supreme balance between meaningful storytelling and subtle but unmistakable emotional punch. The characters, dialogue, and plot at large come across as a very real exploration of modern life; rich scene writing gives the protagonist a steady stream of scenarios that further tears her away from what her life had little chance of being, yet instead of the unending trail of sorrows this could have been, it feels like a natural narrative progression. That smoothness is bolstered by Sciamma's impeccable direction, orchestrating shots and scenes with a masterful keen eye, and the smart cinematography of Crystel Fournier. Even Julien Lacheray illustrates sharp intelligence in his craft a way that isn't always true of editing in every picture; some small moments are low-key brilliant. And not to count out anyone else's contributions, including those behind the production design, costume design, hair, or makeup, but apart from Sciamma's script and guiding hand I think it's safe to say it's the cast that stands out most. Everyone on hand gives a great performance, especially impressive for an ensemble comprised chiefly of non-professionals, but without a doubt it's Karidja Touré who really makes her mark, followed only half a step behind by supporting co-star Assa Sylla. It's no wonder that Touré especially earned award nominations for her portrayal of Marieme, for she slides into the role with such splendid ease, not to mention fantastic range, that one could be forgiven for thinking that she had prior acting experience.

Rounded out with a highly enjoyable soundtrack, primarily courtesy of Para One, 'Girlhood' is gratifyingly thoughtful in every regard. One might say that rather than make a film herself about black youth in France it would have been more appropriate for Sciamma to elevate a black filmmaker in her stead; on the other hand, I'm in no position to assess if Sciamma even had such pull at this point in her career, and in the very least, hopefully titles like this will help to pave the way for more black voices in French cinema. Either way the clear intent is admirable, and I think it's more true than not that Sciamma deserves at least a little credit for giving a spotlight to a marginalized group that hasn't had a lot of visibility in the medium in the country. And regardless, such considerations are beside the point, for like everything else she has made to date, the director has given us yet another outstanding feature that demonstrates her remarkably deft skills. One begins to wonder if Sciamma can do any wrong; so far, it doesn't seem so. Whether one is a fan of someone involved or just looking for something good to watch I don't think there's any going wrong with 'Bande de filles,' and I'm happy to give it my hearty recommendation.

There are several films about lost youth which are more focused in showing the background, the atmosphere, and the feelings than events themselves. This French film clearly is part of that tradition, and does it well. It is about the lack of opportunities, family problems, the life of black people in French peripheries, the blurred border between honest life and criminal one, the naturalization of violence. It is about being a woman in a sexist environment. It is also about true friendship, which may rise from gang belonging, and still be sincere. Without condescension with any character, the movie also shows that reality is multilayered, and not made by coherent always good citizens. Both the girl gang and Vic's siblings provide very well done and interesting interactions. I also loved the light of the scenes, particularly indoor ones, which worked quite well in the shooting of black skin.

"I told myself that was a perfect moment. And I'd never forget it."

It's with such a feathery touch that Céline Sciamma takes us down the path of how quickly girlhood slips away, probably under any circumstances, but especially growing up in the projects on the outskirts of Paris. There are some incredibly natural performances here, especially the one from Karidja Touré, who plays the 16-year-old at the heart of this film. We see moments in her life that are playful and pure childhood, but eventually we also come to understand her situation, dealing with an abusive brother and being called upon to help her mother clean hotel rooms, her schoolwork suffering in the process. The moment she's told she can't proceed on to high school like everyone else because of her grades and because she's already repeated a level, it's like we start watching her gradually fall through the cracks.

The young woman meets a trio of friends who offer great camaraderie (the scenes of them singing and dancing to Rihanna and J. Dash are wonderful), but we also see her violently confronting rival gangs of girls, trying to handle her burgeoning sexuality in a neighborhood quick to label her, and eventually being groomed by a drug dealer. The inherent sadness in this story and all of the interpersonal relationships are handled with such a deft touch by Sciamma, which makes the film build in power over its second half. There is such humanism here, though the film never becomes cloying or loses its integrity. A near miss for an even higher rating.

It's easy to dismiss so much of this film as a gimmick on first-look. I mean, Girlhood... it just seems like such an obvious set-up for one of the most acclaimed films of this century. The good thing is that this film really isn't trying to follow the same structure as Boyhood. Whereas that film really embraced itself in realism, one can say that this one is trying to play with more conventional structures in terms of a 'coming of age" drama. One can say that the main character goes through more changes here, in ways that are more measurable. Perhaps in that way this film may not be as realistic, but perhaps in other ways it's more able to find something captivating in its quiet moments.

Marieme is an African-French tennager living in a poor neighbourhood in Paris. As her mother works long hours she has plenty of responsibilities within her household where her older and very strict brother takes the unofficial mantle of head of whilst their mother isn't present. Marieme's academic career has been affected adversely because of her household duties and it is suggested that when she leaves school she takes a vocational course which leaves her disillusioned and despairing.

She quickly finds solace and escape under the auspices of a girl gang. With this she appears to come out of her shell more but also sacrifices her true personality so that she can fit in and so a kind of grooming starts with her adopting the ways of the gang as a collective and burying her true self in the process. The gang appears to be the role models and family she always wanted rather than the actual family situation she finds herself in. This is very liberating. But also very dangerous when the will of the collective group take over her individual will. She is even given a new name by the group- Vic which is short for Victory and hew new (and fake) identity is sealed.

This film is stunning. It's a tale of coming of age, friendship and how life can hold many unexpected twists and turns. It also shows how some people's futures are so empty and devoid of meaning due to a bleak future that they are enticed by the perceived glamour of a life as a rebel or maverick. But with such a life comes serious consequences that are shown worts and all within the film.

With being in a gang there are also rivalries with other gangs to show who is the baddest and most dangerous. This happens in the form of organised fights that are arranged between members of rival gangs with plenty of onlookers cheering and even filming proceedings on their phones. The fights reminded me of some of the fights seen within the TV series Wentworth as they symbolise more than just a winner and a loser but also how they can determine one's status within a much bigger hierarchy.

Reject a boring life with soul destroying jobs, lack of prospects and a bleak future. But beware of what you accept in it's place as this may make you vulnerable to other kinds of dangers and place a target on your head.

One criticism that director Céline Sciamma received on making this film was that she is a white women telling a story of black women and so her film is somewhat disingenuous and not authentic. This is nonsense and I oppose this criticism just as much as the arguments levelled at certain actors for portraying a character who is within a different demographic to themselves. It's called acting for a reason just as directors can tell stories involving characters with different origins to their own.

Look out for the amazing sequence in which the leads mime to Rihanna's Diamonds, not that you would fail to miss such an exquisite moment. But this could be said about the whole of Girlhood. It's a stunning film.

A beautiful, brilliant, moving study of a teenage girl in the Paris projects discovering herself, the city, and the complexity of relationships. At times the film is a little self-consciously staged - and this works beautifully as if to emphasise the universal aspects of these very personal experiences. Music is important, punctuating the film at times close to a sense of the musical numbers of musical theatre; in particular is one scene, as the girls dance and sing along to Rhianna's 'Diamonds' in stolen dresses in a hotel room. It's a beautifully conceived, staged and played scene that is allowed to run the length of the song - a moment of care-free self-identification for the girls without the world's prying eyes to shape them into something other. This latter trap is one the central character repeatedly is drawn to and burned by throughout the film, the periodic briefly extended black screens functioning as marker points for something akin to scene changes as she discovers something new, more dangerous or significant than before. The ending manages to combine deep sadness and some kind of grounded hope against the expanse of the city, Marieme's internal struggle for identity continuing to be played out on a scale at once epic and intimate. An essential and masterful film.