Jumbo

Released Feb 19, 2021

1h 33m

Drama

TRAILER

for Jumbo: Trailer 1

List

76%

71 Reviews

Tomatometer

30%

Fewer than 50 Ratings

Audience Score

Jeanne, a shy young woman, works at night in an amusement park. Fascinated with carousels, she still lives with her mother, the extrovert Margarette. Whereas no man is able to find their place among the rocky and unusual duo, Jeanne starts to grow an odd relationship with Jumbo, the park's new flagship attraction. Soon, it appears that Jumbo, a striking and colorful merry-go-round, starts communicating with her...

Read More

Read Less

Watch on Fandango at Home

Premiered Aug 29

Buy Now

Fandango at Home

Rent Jumbo on Fandango at Home, or buy it on Fandango at Home.

Critics Consensus

Jumbo might be more compelling as an idea than a complete viewing experience, but whatever this strikingly unusual love story lacks in narrative finesse, it makes up in originality.

Read Critics Reviews

Kyle M

Romantically metaphorical but the unique concept turned out indecisive and offensively psychological without furthering its wondrous stir as curiously thought. (C+)

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

04/23/24

Full Review

Audience Member

Jeanne is a withdrawn and shy woman who works in an amusement park, yet has not yet come to terms with being an adult. Has she been in love before? Does she have plans of leaving the home of her mother? And why is she so fascinated by lights and carousels? However, she soon falls in love with a newcomer to her place of work. Spoilers on, but in case you didn't guess, she falls in love with Jumbo, the new ride at the park. Remember when that dude wanted to sleep with Airwolf? Yeah, that's a real thing. Objectophilia is when you go beyond simply enjoying objects and begin to have deep attachments to them. The kind of attachment that makes you want to make love to them. I mean, if you clean a ride and it begins to make sounds and blink, obviously it is returning your affections. This is one of those movies that asks that you make this narrative leap with the film. Can you accept the love between human and object? If so, then you'll be rewarded by what follows. And if not, well, maybe a more traditional love story is something you should watch. Jumbo attempts to explain why Jeanne feels the way she does. But can any of us really explain love? Why does the heart want what the heart wants, even if it's to lick the oil of our lover off the floor and communicate in beeps and lights? Maybe those noises and colors are a closer tie than most of our inter-human coupling have anyways. So yeah, when Jeanne's mom Margarette wants her to find a really nice guy, maybe she didn't consider that a Tilt-A-Whirl would be that man. Guess who's coming to dinner? Hope you like food on a stick, I guess. This is writer/director Zoé Wittock's first full-length feature. I feel that this has enough ideas to work as a short, but you can't fault that she went for it. Here's hoping for more bright lights and beeps in her future.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/06/23

Full Review

Audience Member

I hated this movie and it's hard attempts to be cutesy and quirky. Basically 90 minutes of a whiny brat with a bad haircut throwing tantrums because no one understands her feelings for this ride. No thanks.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

02/15/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Great and unexpected modern fairytale ! Crazy pitch and surprising take on it, this is a heartfelt movie that will take you on a ride to remember. I laughed and I cried. Thank you for the experience. A must see of 2020 !

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/09/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Jumbo tells a very unique story with a great lead performance. Noémie Merlant was absolutely great here. She proved herself with Portrait of a Lady on Fire, and shows yet again how talented she is. I would love for her to breakout in the mainstream. The film tells its love story between woman and machine a lot more conventionally than I thought. But there is some great imagery courtesy of director Zoé Wittock. The film has great pacing and keeps you invested. The ending didn’t really feel well earned, but other than that I thought this was a very solid film. Overall, I really liked this. It tells a good story and is well acted and well directed. I also think this might work as a metaphor but I won’t delve into that due to spoilers. I definitely recommend checking this out.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

04/04/21

Full Review

Read all reviews

Post a rating

Zoé Wittock

Director

Noémie Merlant

Jeanne Tantois

Emmanuelle Bercot

Margarette

Bastien Bouillon

Marc

Sam Louwyck

Hubert

Tracy Dossou

Fati

Show Less Cast & Crew

Show More Cast & Crew

67%

%

Honey Cigar

100%

75%

One Second

40%

63%

Walkaway Joe

TRAILER

for Walkaway Joe

83%

57%

Dolce fine giornata

93%

67%

Around the Sun

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

Awards Leaderboard: Top Movies of 2020

Jumbo: Trailer 1

1:58

View more videos

View more photos

Donald Clarke

Irish Times

Well worth paying your money and taking the ride.

Rated: 4/5

Jul 23, 2021

Full Review

David Jenkins

Little White Lies

It's a little like Steven Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind, in which a person's world is suddenly torn apart by an unexplained but intense attraction to some flashing lights in the sky.

Rated: 3/5

Jul 10, 2021

Full Review

Ian Freer

Empire Magazine

Wittock is an exciting new talent to watch, and Merlant spins something potentially laughable into a rollercoaster - or at least, waltzer - ride of emotions.

Rated: 4/5

Jul 10, 2021

Full Review

Amy Smith

InSession Film

Zoé Wittock gave herself an incredibly tough task when making this her feature directorial and writing debut.

Rated: B

Mar 1, 2024

Full Review

Nadine Whitney

AWFJ.org

Belgian director Zoé Wittock’s debut Jumbo tells a bizarre tale. Jeanne Tantois (Noémie Merlant) is a shy and “special” young woman who falls in love with the machine she names Jumbo.

Jan 23, 2023

Full Review

Edward Porter

Sunday Times (UK)

Objectophilia, romantic desire for inanimate things, occurs in reality, but we learn nothing about it here.

Rated: 2/5

Dec 6, 2022

Full Review

Read all reviews

Synopsis

Jeanne, a shy young woman, works at night in an amusement park. Fascinated with carousels, she still lives with her mother, the extrovert Margarette. Whereas no man is able to find their place among the rocky and unusual duo, Jeanne starts to grow an odd relationship with Jumbo, the park's new flagship attraction. Soon, it appears that Jumbo, a striking and colorful merry-go-round, starts communicating with her...

Director: Zoé Wittock
Producer: Marie-Sophie Volkenner
Screenwriter: Zoé Wittock
Distributor: Dark Star Pictures
Production Co: Centre du Cinéma et de l'Audiovisuel de la Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles, SofiTVciné 6 , Kwassa Films, Eurimages, Wallimage, Belga Productions, Les Films Fauves, Tax Shelter du Gouvernement Fédéral Belge, Insolence Productions, Film Fund Luxembourg, Flamme Film, Proximus, Centre National du Cinéma et de L'image Animée
Genre: Drama
Original Language: French (France)
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 19, 2021, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 16, 2021
Runtime: 1h 33m
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

Most Popular at Home Now