Forbidden Games

This one tug Blobbo heart-blob.

Two kids with an obsession with funerals may be charming to some, particularly since it's a response to wartime, but I found it tiresome. After about an hour or so of collecting crosses I found myself wishing they would change the subject.

Beautifully shot and very well-acted film. The start of this film is very well-directed by Clement and wonderfully acted by Fossey from beginning to end. The film is primarily about the escapades of Michel and Paulette in the latter's new family. The film also has a lot of light-heartedness in the midst of loss and despair during World War 2 France. it explores a child's perception of religion and death and how the dead are remembered during a period of war. I would highly recommend this film to anyone who loves French cinema. My only issue with the film was the ending that, while heartbreaking, has left me conflicted regarding whether a more impactful ending could have been shot.

About as charming a film as you could wish to see. Two sweet kids in wartime France have a whimsical time in the countryside, leading to warring and confused neighbours.

One of the more well-known anti-war films from the perspective of children that don't understand their environment, Clément's Forbidden Games strips away much of the romantic veneer that many contemporary depictions of World War II added to avoid damaging morale or to whip up a patriotic fervor. In it, a young girl (Fossey) loses her parents and young puppy in an air raid while fleeing the Nazi approach (with some rather poorly-timed squibs), setting a somber tone right off the bat; the girl, unfamiliar with the permanence of death, then sets about creating a makeshift cemetery for small animals with the aid of a boy in her slapdash foster family (Poujouly), incidentally setting off a domestic conflict between neighbors over the thefts of crosses for their physical coping mechanism. Notably, the film ends on a rather gloomy note as well, refusing to allow the audience's forced confrontation of the secondary victims of war to be lightened by hopeful sentiment. Often praised for its child performances that were uncharacteristically good for the time, the film did not meet with acclaim in France (where audiences' wounds from the war seem have been too fresh), but did find success elsewhere in theatres tired of seeing clips of Americans storming beaches as their primary depicition of WWII on the big screen. In the modern day, the premise would be considered (successful) Oscar bait, but coming from a French source less than a decade after the conflit's conclusion there is a far greater claim to sincerity with this film than more recently produced depression-inducers. Not necessarily to my taste personally or particularly deep, but competent for what it is. (3/5)

Between 2.5 and 3 stars. The story looks only a vehicle to describe sentimental although too much realistic feelings. At the end, it talks about terrible crime which is treachery to children.

A powerful story and generally every aspect of this film is exquisite. Truly a masterpiece.

A heartwrenching tale that captures youth more authentically than any motion picture ever made.

1001 movies to see before you die. A powerful 52 French drama focusing on children and their way of coping with war and death. It was well made a beautifully crafted. Saw on Internet Archive.

A farmer's son selflessly helps a young orphan girl cope with death by building a cemetery for her dog and all the other dead critters they can muster, complete with catechisms and crosses stolen from the local churchyard, in this bittersweet WWII film.