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sebastiaansimons
Reviews
Elle s'appelait Sarah (2010)
It could've been so much better
Elle s'appelait Sarah is a heart touching, sad movie about world war II definitely worth watching, yet it has got is up and down sides. Let me start with the up sides.
To be very simple: the movie tells a great story. However, if you have seen other movies of WW II ( The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas,...) it becomes very familiar. Still, this movie has its unique details, so it can distinguish itself ( but only a little bit). Second good thing is the acting of the main character (Kristin Scott Thomas) which really carries this movie along with the fact it has a good story. I also have to congratulate the young actress Mélusine Mayance, for the same reason.
Now the down sides. There is some bad acting from several actors like Frédéric Pierrot which surprises me a bit. Anyway, it's not really disturbing but I didn't like it. Second thing what did disturb me was the fact some scenes just didn't needed to be there, which slows the movie down. On the other side some scenes needed to be more stretched out. Third thing is the fact that the movie romanticizes the war. The camp looked like a amusement park with all the kids playing. If you're going to make a movie about the war, you should show it in all its aspects, because now it can give a biased view.
Conclusion: Elle s'appelait Sarah missed a final touch. Maybe it was the acting? Or the music which didn't play a major role in it? Or scenes that had to last a little longer because they were so important? A bit of the three perhaps. In a nutshell: it's worth watching. That's why I give it a 7/10.