Jane by Charlotte

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1:35

Jane by Charlotte

2022

1h 26m

Documentary

Biography

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

62%

Tomatometer

29 Reviews

Popcornmeter

Fewer than 50 Ratings

In creating a documentary portrait of a parent, as actor Charlotte Gainsbourg does in her directorial debut, one could overly flatter the subject or iron out the tough creases. Gainsbourg avoids these traps in her film about her legendary mother, the singer and actress Jane Birkin. Consisting of several intimate conversations between parent and child, as well as footage of Birkin performing onstage, the result is a spare, loving window into the emotional lives of two women as they talk about subject matter that ranges from the delightful to the difficult: aging, dying, insomnia, celebrity, and their differing memories of their shared past, which includes Charlotte's father and Jane's husband, Serge Gainsbourg. Jane by Charlotte is an unexpected, imaginatively visualized work that affords intimate access to someone whom many of us only think we know.

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Critics Consensus

Intimate in its approach yet often less than engaging, Jane by Charlotte is a documentary whose insights are most meaningful to the people onscreen.

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Carlos Aguilar

Los Angeles Times

Mar 25, 2022

Undeniably, what distinguishes “Jane by Charlotte” from any number of filmic or literary excavations that exist on Birkin hinges on the unbreakable union between its subject and its storyteller.

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Nick Schager

The Daily Beast

Mar 24, 2022

It leaves one wanting more, in the least satisfying way possible.

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Nick Allen

RogerEbert.com

Mar 18, 2022

2/4

Jane by Charlotte is meaningful in concept, but fleeting in its expression.

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Marya E. Gates

Cool People Have Feelings, Too. (Substack)

Feb 13, 2024

A deeply personal exploration of family and grief as Charlotte comes to terms with the mystical connection she shares with her mother.

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Morgan Rojas

Cinemacy

Apr 27, 2022

2.5/5

A love letter to mothers and daughters everywhere, the film encourages us to look at our loved ones with both admiration as well as compassion. After all, were just human. Even our mothers.

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Wade Major

FilmWeek (LAist)

Apr 19, 2022

My only wish is that Charlotte had not directed this herself... We might have gotten an even more profound look at the things all these conversations raises.

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Anya S

@AnyaS May 12, 2025

Loved this intimate and very personal look at Jane Birkin by her daughter, Charlotte. For all Francophile fans of 60s French culture, Serge Gainsbourg, and their odd love story.

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heather c

@RT86080563 Jan 4, 2022

I saw this intimate documentary of Jane Birkin by her daughter Charlotte Gainsbourg at the NYFF in October 2021. It wasn't groundbreaking but I enjoyed learning more about this iconic French family. One highlight was seeing inside Serge Gainsbourg's house in Paris which Charlotte is turning into a museum.

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Charlotte Gainsbourg

Director

Jane Birkin

Self

Charlotte Gainsbourg

Self

Jo Attal

Self

Charlotte Gainsbourg

Writer

Mathieu Ageron

Producer

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Synopsis

In creating a documentary portrait of a parent, as actor Charlotte Gainsbourg does in her directorial debut, one could overly flatter the subject or iron out the tough creases. Gainsbourg avoids these traps in her film about her legendary mother, the singer and actress Jane Birkin. Consisting of several intimate conversations between parent and child, as well as footage of Birkin performing onstage, the result is a spare, loving window into the emotional lives of two women as they talk about subject matter that ranges from the delightful to the difficult: aging, dying, insomnia, celebrity, and their differing memories of their shared past, which includes Charlotte's father and Jane's husband, Serge Gainsbourg. Jane by Charlotte is an unexpected, imaginatively visualized work that affords intimate access to someone whom many of us only think we know.

Director: Charlotte Gainsbourg
Producer: Mathieu Ageron, Maxime Delauney, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Romain Rousseau
Screenwriter: Charlotte Gainsbourg, Charlotte Gainsbourg
Distributor: Utopia
Production Co: Nolita Cinema, Deadly Valentine, Jour2Fête
Genre: Documentary, Biography
Original Language: French (France)
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 18, 2022, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): May 6, 2022
Runtime: 1h 26m

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