Marie can stare longingly at Floriane only so many times before my more than ample patience for watching pretty, tormented girls becomes altogether spent.
Comment
03/31/08
Water Lilies (2007)
80
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:40
Fresh:32
Rotten:8
Average Rating:6.7/10
Consensus: Water Lilies is a sharply-observed, provocative coming-of-age story that captures the anxieties of the early teen years.
Theatrical Release:Apr 4, 2008 Limited
Synopsis: In this French film, a group of teenage girls reveal that it's not just adults who scheme and plot. WATER LILIES (LA NAISSANCE DES PIEUVRES) is set in the seemingly innocent world of synchronized... [More]
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Reviews for Water Lilies
Unfolding with a slow, steady certainty, this touching tale dives headfirst into the deep end of hormonal angst.
03/14/08
One of the slipperiest teenage coming-of-age dramas in quite some time.
04/04/08
A universe away from everyday American teen movies, this engaging and empathetic portrait of teenage life is packed full of stylish moments.
03/14/08
For all its virtues as a coming-of-age study, it's too slow, too single dimensional to create much of a stir beyond arthouse and hothouse interest. The close-ups of Acquart's classic beauty are well worth the screen time, however.
04/14/08
Girls just wanna have fun but the trio of adolescents in 'Water Lilies' have anxieties that act against that natural desire.
03/19/08
Well observed and painfully accurate in its depiction of the agonies of growing up, this is a small triumph.
03/14/08
A quiet revelation.
03/14/08
Suggests less the shallow waters of boxoffice safety than a teenage Catherine Breillat film. With all elements tightly drawn together under her supervision, Schiama announces herself as a major new talent to watch.
06/08/07
The cruelty of adolescence emerges razor-sharp and could send many in the audience back to the most painful days of puberty.
04/04/08
Frankly and sensitively packs in a lot of teen girls' yearning for conformity above the water line and down below%u2013 pressure, insecurity, romance, and sexual exploration.
12/07/08
Beautifully paced with an eerily-consistent tone
04/03/08
With terrific poise and the crispest, cleanest cinematography imaginable, the 27-year-old French director Céline Sciamma has given us a very provocative and stylish drama set in the world of teenage girls' synchronised swimming.
03/14/08
Although a little too open-ended to be wholly satisfying, Water Lilies is still an excellent directorial debut.
03/24/08
It'd all be tres dull if it weren't for the magnificent faces of Pauline Acquart and Adele Haenel. Actually, it still gets dull, even if at times the film skirts kiddie-porn territory.
08/01/08
Lacking in warmth but a promising example of young French talent in front of and behind the camera.
03/12/08
A sensitive study of budding adolescent desires, a pervert's delight, plus synchronized swimming. Yes, Water Lilies will be many things to many people.
05/16/08
Sciamma demonstrates the potential to make a truly erotic and interesting film. This just isn't it.
05/15/08
First-time writer/director Celine Sciamma focuses exclusively, empathetically and insightfully on her protagonists' coming-of-age experiences.
07/25/08
Celine Sciamma's quiet drama has moments of motionless yearning that contrast the intense emotions of its 15-year-old protagonists.
04/04/08
Latest News for Water Lilies
September 03, 2008:
Borderline kiddie porn featuring sexual girl-on-girl garbage sniffing of one's favorite female object of desire, post-feminist burying instead of burning bras as female self-hatred, and gal pal how-to tips on deflowering your best friend. 
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May 24, 2008:
Borderline kiddie porn featuring sexual girl-on-girl garbage sniffing of one's favorite female object of desire, post-feminist burying instead of burning bras as female self-hatred, and gal pal how-to tips on deflowering your best friend.
More...
April 03, 2008:
Borderline kiddie porn featuring sexual girl-on-girl garbage sniffing of one's favorite female object of desire, post-feminist burying instead of burning bras as female self-hatred, and gal pal how-to tips on deflowering your best friend.
More...
April 03, 2008:
Critics Consensus: Leatherheads Has its Ups and Downs; Nim's Island is Stranded; Guess The Ruins' Tomatometer!
This week at the movies, we've got pigskin pratfalls (Leatherheads, starring George Clooney and Renée Zellweger), isle imagination (Nim's Island, starring Jodie Foster and... More...
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