Other People's Children (2022) User Reviews

Heartfelt and modern; worth watching

[steveinadelaide · 7/10 · 22 June 2023]

"Other People's Children" is a French drama exploring motherhood's complexities and family dynamics. The film follows Rachel, a high school teacher who falls in love with Ali, who is separated from his wife and has a young daughter. The movie starts with a romantic image of the Eiffel Tower at night, which sets the tone for the dreamy and idyllic opening moments. However, the film quickly delves into the bittersweet reality of the characters' lives, with unarticulated tensions and inconvenient desires.

The acting performances are outstanding, with Virginie Efira delivering a radiant and beautiful portrayal of Rachel. The film also features smart, self-aware, and complicated female characters, which is a refreshing change from the usual tropes. The direction is solid, and the cinematography is beautiful, capturing the essence of Paris and the characters' emotions.

Unfortunately, the lives of the supporting characters are not as well-developed as Rachel's, making them feel two-dimensional. And the story takes a conventional turn towards the end, diminishing its uniqueness.

"Other People's Children" is a heartfelt and modern love triangle exploring motherhood and family's joys and pains. The film sneaked up on me with a depth and complexity of feeling that resonated. While it has some flaws, it is still a solid movie worth watching.

Movie Is Missing Something

[evanston_dad · 7/10 · 2 May 2023]

For a lot of people, women not being able to get pregnant falls into the category of first world problems. And I'll admit that I haven't given much thought to that scenario, having the luxury of 1.) being a man and 2.) having a wife who was able to easily conceive exactly when we decided to have children. So for someone like me, "Other People's Children" does a pretty good job of personalizing what it feels like for women who feel the child-bearing window of opportunity closing. It also explores how callous the world can feel to those women, and how much the world of parenthood is taken for granted by those who didn't struggle to enter it.

That said, this movie is missing something that would have made it really memorable. There's nothing wrong with it, but I see it fading into the background quickly, and I doubt I'll give it a second thought when I'm looking back at the movies I've seen this year. Virginie Efira gives a lovely performance (and reminded me at times so much of Stockard Channing), but her performance would be more memorable if the movie around her was stronger.

Grade: B.

Simple Story With A Strong Lead Performance

[chenp-54708 · 6/10 · 30 January 2023]

Saw this at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival

"Other People's Children" is a story about a childless woman forms a deep bond with her boyfriend's young daughter. This is director Rebecca Zlotowski fifth feature film and I have seen two of her previous works which are "Planetarium" and "An Easy Girl". Planetarium was really bad and An Easy Girl was pretty good. Here, Zlotowski provides good direction and wholesome scenarios despite having a predictable narrative. Various films about childless woman, romance and bonding had been explored before and for the most part, despite a few different approaches on the subject, it was mainly simple.

Many of the romance movements and motivations were basic and pretty standard for a typical French romance story. What makes the film still interesting was the direction, beautiful production and designs and a strong performance from the main lead actress Virginie Efira. Efira's performance was incredible as she captures every emotion from her character and has good chemistry with Roschdy Zem. The two lead performances helped to give a certain charm between the two characters and helped to make them pretty interesting. The child actor was also pretty good and adorable.

Besides a simple story, there were some moments that didn't do for me as some of the soundtrack choices were a little off-putting and some of the pacing could have used some work. With the main characters, there were side characters that felt a little out of place or underdeveloped that I wish could have been explored a little more. However, despite being predictable, I was still able to connect with the movie emotionally and still be invested with what is happening around them. I appreciate Rebecca Zlotowski approaching this story with a different point of view and I do look forward what she has to offer next.

Rating: B-

Fear of woman and worries about to have children

[AvionPrince16 · 7/10 · 26 October 2022]

I found the film very sensual and intimate. We enter the life of Rachel, Ali and their fears as well as their fears. Rachel is a woman whose private life is unveiled and her intimacy (shots of her naked that I appreciated and found funny when she finds herself naked in the balcony). We understand that she has difficulty having a child and that she would like to have one (problem that any woman can experience one day in her life). And suddenly, she meets Ali (I find the relationship Viriginie Effira and Roschdy Zem fusional and very credible on screen). On the other hand, I found Rachel's attachment to Leila quite brief and the subtlety of their relationship is not entirely explicit enough, which makes it a fairly superficial relationship and this woman's desire to have a child. The film was more centered on Rachel and Ali, each of whom will express their fears and fears (Rachel and the lack she feels when she sees Leila). I found Ali also interesting but not central because it is clear that it is more Rachel's story. What more can be said? Except that I had a good time with them and shared their intimacy. Whether it is with the gynecologist, Leila or Ali, we have neither more nor less the fears and fears of a woman of not being able to have a child as well as her attachment to Leila which will not last. And also the separation with Ali. There was also Rachel's relationship with one of her students, but it is quite futile and superfluous in the central theme of the film: the woman. A film that I was able to appreciate as a man and the different moments of intimacy create a fairly instant closeness with Rachel. Touching movie. Movie that I recommend.

Definitely not a rom-com!

[mr-stephenwalker07 · 7/10 · 2 October 2023]

I can only assume that the reviewer who described this movie as a rom-com either watched a different film to me or understands something completely different by the term. It's about as far away from a rom-com as can be.

Equally, the extended Paris Travel Service sponsored scenes of Paris simply don't exist in the film that I saw.

It's a sensitive 90 odd minute film centered on the main character, Rachel, a childless 40 something woman whose biological clock is ticking rapidly. She's faced with (spoiler alert!) finding love and the possibility of a child of her own but then having that hope extinguished. Her younger sister then finds herself having an unplanned pregnancy and gives birth making Rachel an auntie.

This is probably why we see a few close ups of Virginie Efira....the film explores her emotions and reactions to events as they unfold. Not unreasonably I think.

Sure, we don't get really deep into the backgrounds of the other characters (it's a 90 minute movie) but, we see insights into Ali (likes football and music), what Dylan's future life looks like, and Rachel's family sufficient for the purposes of the narrative.

It's a good movie.

Excellent sweet French drama

[searchanddestroy-1 · 12 September 2023]

From time to time, I love watching such typical French dramas, so close to reality, actual human behaviours, involving situation in which you easily could recognize yourselves. This is not a pure drama however, not gritty, tough, just compelling enough to grab you, a very good study of a special relationship between a young woman and her new lover's daughter. Some situations are though a bit too much, but there are here only to bring some spice in a story without which it would be too flat for the audiences. Good overall atmosphere, very agreeable without being cheesy nor run of the mill. Excellent, flawless acting too.

Definitely not w ROM-COM

[feresdallel · 7/10 · 7 November 2023]

To whoever that thinks the movie is a romcom it only means one thing, is that you did not get the movie.

I studied cinema, and the movie is more dramatic than romcom!

The movie is quite simple but with deep meanings. It's main focus is parenting. Is it a need to be a parent? Should we all become parents? Where does the need and/ or the feeling comes from?

Virginie Efira (Rachel) performance is great. Rochdy Zem (Ali) performance is just fine. The kid (Leila) performance is outstanding.

I being a pansexuel cis-man, only daily basis I feel like Rachel. I worked with kids and I loved it. When I met the child of a friends of mine and we get along, it makes me happy.

I know I want kids, I want them. Why? I can't answer to this question. But could we all have kids?

It might be easier for a woman to get a child without having a partner, not the case for men. And adoption is a very complicated procedure in most of the countries discriminating those who desire to be single parents.

Beautiful film-lead actress is vulnerable and perfect

[LyceeM16 · 9/10 · 30 January 2023]

I watched this at Sundance online. This film is so relatable for women who are struggling with the emotions and practicalities of thinking about perhaps having a child before it is too late. I too fell in love with a man with a child and I can imagine the devastation of losing both at once- along with the life one thought was one's own. The acting by. Efira is vulnerable and beautiful and assured. The young daughter is beyond endearing. The director shared in the Q and A that her life had some parallels with that of the lead character - and moreover that she found herself pregnant during the making of the film. Wiseman's cameo and Mastroianni's roles are unexpected additions. The music-esp Waters of March- is a delight. Bravo! I cant imagine this film not unlocking the emotions of viewers despite the fact that some parts of the plot were predictable..

Masterful french piece

[martinpersson97 · 10/10 · 21 April 2023]

This film is without a doubt one of the best films of the year for sure, and yet another great testament to the capabilities of french cinema and this very acclaimed and masterful director.

It is expertly paced, following a very thourough and simple enough script about everyday life and struggles that should resonate with most. It isn't overly filled with conflicts, and it handles it all gracefully.

The actors, the female lead in particular, being one of France's best actresses, all do an incredible job, and you could very well have expected a Caesar for their roles.

The cinematography, cutting and editing is splendidly done, and it's just a very beautiful film to look at.

Overall, truly an incredible piece of filmmaking that I would highly recommend!

... few films you feel the characters emotions so deeply

[bjarias · 9/10 · 18 April 2024]

... this is a film should you not feel much for what her character goes through, you'll miss the point of lots of really good acting skills and very good movies in addition

... she has such range, they both do... matched together they give one of the really great film productions of 2022... lots going on onscreen, and all of it you feel so directly, even though you might never have been a part of any of it... as said, they're always good, this is one film that must be watched again, and it will loose nothing in more viewings.. a timeless work by great actors of today... still having many years-works remaining in their careers.

A rom-com à la française is still a rom-com

[Mengedegna · 4/10 · 27 April 2023]

A rom-com à la française is still a rom-com, and this is a particularly poor one. Why it's currently being shown with the imprimatur of Film at Lincoln Center I cannot fathom. The film involves some talented performers, particulalrly Roschdy Zem. I'm even willing to believe that Virginie Efira, the protagonist, is in fact talented. But director Rebecca Zlotowski's obsession with her is carried to such a a discomforting extreme that 80% of the film (I may be exaggerating just a little) is made up of tight shots of her face striking different attitudes, without a lot of the kind of background or build-up that would justify most of them. And one of the more interesting plot lines - she's Jewish, he's named Ali and is thus presumptively Muslim - goes totally unexplored. You get a lot of performative Jewish observance, but nothing about his heritage, whatever it may be (the niceties of French republicanism allow this to pass without comment). Like his excessively cute daughter, Ali isn't a full- blown charcter, he's just a plot device. All the attention is on Efira'a character, her concern over what may be premature menopause, and her poorly backgrounded neuroses. None of which is developed to the point where this viewer, at least, was particularly interested. More romantic views of Paris are inserted than are justified, other than for marketing purposes - compare and contrast with the current and far better, more substantive Everything Went Fine, a film set in Paris in which there is not a single shot of the Eiffel Tower or any other hint of Paris la romantique, but that is rigorously set in the Paris that people actually live in.

To go one would be cruel, and pointless, like the film itself, which is a real dud. Good music score, though.

La vie quotidienne

[frukuk · 1/10 · 4 April 2024]

This is a rather bland film. Everything goes relatively swimmingly for a long time and then, when things do get complicated, they are only ever so slightly complicated.

It feels like this is a distillation of the many films/stories in which a woman who desperately wants a baby, struggles to conceive in her late thirties. But in distilling all those other works, it lacks any unique flavour.

It doesn't feel like events are really happening to Rachel and Ali. It certainly doesn't seem like they really feel them. Things happen and they seem to shrug their shoulders and move on. Their lives just aren't interesting or stimulating enough for either them or us.