Blame it on Gore?

By Daniel Nelson Anna is a self-confident nine-year-old Parisian girl whose comfortable life is turned upside down in 1970 when her parents get politics – Chilean, pro-Allende politics. The family’s orderly existence is disrupted by bearded foreigners talking late into the night, frightening demonstrations, exotic nannies cooking strange food. Her parents start going away on mysterious trips. And quelle horreur, she is withdrawn from catechism class. Her conventional, conservative grandmother is shocked. Anti-communist grandma does indeed Blame It On Fidel. Anna is the central figure of the film: we see events through her eyes, we experience her disappointments, anger, confusion, apprehension. Her values are challenged, her sense of security cracks. We watch her fight back, while all the time understanding more than she does. Nine Kervel is captivating as Anna. It’s a coming of age story, and she is both confused child and resolute adult. Mawkishness lurks dangerously around such roles, but she and director Julie Gavras – making her first feature film- rarely strike a wrong note, even when Anna is sharing a scene with her even less mature younger brother. It’s a perceptive, moving, amusing, often delightful film, almost nostalgic in the idea of radicalised parents. What would be today’s equivalent? Parents who suddenly decide to live zero carbon lives? Blame It On Gore? Remember, you read it here first.

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