This earlier film from Breillat is a typically truthful look at a foul-mouthed teenager's quest to lose her virginity; this time, the film's restraint in what it shows is understandable because it is dealing with an under-aged character but the Lolita-esquire aspects of the story (particularly apparent in the girl's love-hate relationship with her older brother's mature friend) are still effectively rendered. The film does not shrink from honing in on what the main character is truly after and ends just a few moments after she succeeds in reaching her goal. It also takes time to show that her parents are helplessly ineffective in containing their reckless daughter and distracting her from her single-minded quest to blossom into a woman before her time.
Review of 36 fillette
