BERLINALE 2020 - Petite fille (Little Girl)
70th BERLINALE FILM FESTIVALSébastien Lifshitz' feature Petite fille (Little Girl) is a continuous emotional and profound documentary that follows Sasha as she exclaims from childhood she wants to be a girl. The film examines the acceptance from her family, friends and community, about her decision to be who she truly wants.
From its first until its last frame, Petite fille (Little Girl) is a captivating albeit soul-destroying feature with a considerable amount of gravitas and weight behind it. The emotional growth and trauma that young Sasha is going through are not only tragic, but undoubtedly compelling, as is seeing a person at such a tender age fight social and gender discrimination. However, what is most painful is that Sasha cannot be blissfully naive at this stage of her life; in fact, she understands and experiences the conflict consciously in all its drowning anxiety.
Cinematographer Paul Guilhaume captures these moments of utter dread and toxicity in intimate moments as a silent witness. As the viewer watches from a stone’s throw away, they watch Sasha's mother punish herself for the oppression in Sasha's school and community. These scenes, in particular, are harrowing sequences depicting the depths of emotional torment. Watching Sasha's mother explore all the possibilities to why Sasha has made her decision – discussing it with her husband, and Sasha's father, or medical experts – is a heartbreaking insight into the distance of love a mother will travel for their family.
Said direction and aesthetic, curated by Lifshitz and Guilhaume, are impacting and harrowing, yet covered with a beautiful layer of poignancy and hope. Even when Sébastien Lifshitz' documentary comes incredibly close to utter emotional devastation, it remains a powerful feature that gives hope to those who are lost or want to be found.
