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Innocence

Play trailer Poster for Innocence R 2004 1h 55m Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
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71% Tomatometer 21 Reviews 75% Popcornmeter 2,500+ Ratings
At an unusual private school for girls, new students, including young Iris (Zoé Auclair), show up in coffins. The establishment's teachers, Mademoiselle Eva (Marion Cotillard) and Mademoiselle Edith (Hélène de Fougerolles), introduce Iris and her fellow pupils to the school's curriculum, which includes fairy-like dances through a nearby forest. When night falls, the older girls, who are on the threshold of womanhood, are then given mysterious, life-changing lessons.
Innocence

What to Know

Critics Consensus

Beautiful, inscrutable, and overall unsettling, Innocence may leave viewers wondering what they've just seen, but it'll certainly be difficult to forget.

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Critics Reviews

View All (21) Critics Reviews
Jonathan Romney Sight & Sound With dazzling performances from a largely pre-pubescent ensemble cast, 'Innocence' is without doubt the most disconcerting French debut of the year. Aug 1, 2018 Full Review Wesley Morris Boston Globe Rated: 3/4 Nov 24, 2011 Full Review Lisa Schwarzbaum Entertainment Weekly Rated: B+ Sep 7, 2011 Full Review Kathy Fennessy Seattle Film Blog Based on Frank Wedekind's Symbolist short story, "Mine-Haha, or The Corporal Education of Young Girls," Innocence often feels like Kafka--arcane rules and regulations--as interpreted by photographer Sally Mann or even author Lewis Carroll. Rated: 4/4 Jul 14, 2024 Full Review Lindsay Pugh Woman in Revolt If David Lynch and Ingmar Bergman had ever collaborated, it might look something like Lucile Hadihalilović's breathtakingly beautiful "Innocence." Oct 24, 2018 Full Review Sean Axmaker Seattle Post-Intelligencer ... haunting and hypnotic fairy tale... with a distinctly European sensibility... lovely lingering scenes that cast a spell over the almost abstract story. Rated: A Apr 13, 2006 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Audience Member Justamente por retratar seu universo estranho e incômodo de modo tão natural, o filme consegue ser intrigante e assustadoramente perturbador. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/18/23 Full Review Audience Member this film was mentioned in another review i read for a movie called Evolution which is sort of similar but with an all boys island versus an all girls boarding school. i was a bit thrown off while watching this because the version i found happened to have Spanish voice-overs when i was so sure this was a French film. also, no English subtitles so i'm just going off body language here... but i didn't really care for it. it was fine & i liked the creepy factor, but it wasn't nearly as intriguing as Evolution was. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 01/20/23 Full Review Audience Member One of the most empty film I have seen in long. It is A long video clip with no story or message to share with the viewer. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 01/19/23 Full Review Audience Member "Innocence" is a mesmerizing poem to pre-adulthood and is done in such a rich, colourful, and (often haunting) beautiful approach that it stays with the viewer days after, taunting and shouting in one's head for another appraisal. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/14/23 Full Review Audience Member This is a weird, weird film. One interesting thing about this movie is that it can practically serve as a litmus test for pedophilia - if you watch this movie, you will know for sure whether or not you are a pedophile afterwards. (I am not, for the record.) On the surface the film is very quiet and deliberately paced - it at first appears to be a simple depiction of a very strange boarding school for young girls. There are tons of scenes of the girls just playing, practicing ballet, eating, and doing other little girl things. It gradually becomes clear to the viewer that something more sinister is going on here, but just what that is is never, ever explained. I like how resolutely the movie stayed in the children's perspective. It's got beautiful cinematography and scenery. Marion Cotillard is good in a supporting role. But this movie, which on the surface seems so innocent, will burrow its way into your mind and stay there ever afterwards, growing weirder and darker with time. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/23/23 Full Review Audience Member Here's a slow-burn French film that really got under my skin. It's unnerving and mysterious, beautiful and thought-provoking. From the very first moments, I was filled with dread and minute by minute it elicited all sorts of anxious emotions and memories from childhood. So...quite the heady brew it concocted. Sometimes it felt like a horror movie, other times like a fairy tale but by the end of it, I was fascinated and confounded and disturbed. I couldn't get it out of my head so I started to read up on it and found a really interesting interview with the director (who unsurprisingly I learned was also responsible for writing Enter the Void...another movie that really messed with me). Here's a link to the interview, helped me piece some things together: http://scene360.com/articles/492/lucile_hadzihalilovic/#.UWuW7r-QekQ. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/09/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Innocence

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Cast & Crew

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Movie Info

Synopsis At an unusual private school for girls, new students, including young Iris (Zoé Auclair), show up in coffins. The establishment's teachers, Mademoiselle Eva (Marion Cotillard) and Mademoiselle Edith (Hélène de Fougerolles), introduce Iris and her fellow pupils to the school's curriculum, which includes fairy-like dances through a nearby forest. When night falls, the older girls, who are on the threshold of womanhood, are then given mysterious, life-changing lessons.
Director
Lucile Hadzihalilovic
Producer
Patrick Sobelman
Screenwriter
Lucile Hadzihalilovic
Production Co
Ex Nihilo, Blue Light, Ateliers de Baere
Rating
R (Some Sexual Content)
Genre
Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
Canadian French
Release Date (DVD)
Nov 13, 2007
Runtime
1h 55m