Belle & Sebastian (2013)

• Year: 2013
• Released: 18 Dec 2013
• Country: France
• Adwords: 4 wins & 2 nominations
• IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3146360/
• Rotten Tomatoes: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/belle_sebastian
• Available in: 720p, 1080p,
• Language: French, German
• Genre: Adventure, Drama, Family
• Runtime: 104 min
• Writer: Juliette Sales, Fabien Suarez, Nicolas Vanier
• Director: Nicolas Vanier
• Cast: Félix Bossuet, Tchéky Karyo, Margaux Chatelier
• Keywords: world war ii, dog, based on children’s book, alps mountains, children in wartime,

6.8/10

Belle & Sebastian Storyline

In 1943, in the French Alps, the orphan Sébastien lives in a small village with his grandfather César, who is a shepherd, and his aunt Angélina, who is a baker. Sébastien misses his mother and believes she has traveled to America. He expects to get a watch with compass as a gift from her. The local Dr. Guillaume is a member of the Frech resistance that helps Jewish refugees to flee to Switzerland and the German Lieutenant Peter and troop are hunting down the resistance. When sheep are found slaughtered, César and the other residents believe that a stray dog that has been abused by his owner is the responsible and hunt it down. Sébastien finds the dog, gives the name of Belle to her and they become friends. But the animal is considered a beast by the inhabitants. Will Sébastien be capable to save Belle?

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Belle & Sebastian Movie Reviews

Beautiful story of a boy and his dog

“Belle et Sébastien” takes place during World War 2 in France and aside from all the war references we see how a little boy forms an unlikely bond with a feral dog. And this dog is easily the highlight of the movie. Quite a beautiful creature and it was great to watch it from start to finish. The film starts in a heartbreaking manner already with a small animal that lost its parents and gets you right in the mood for everything that is about to come. For me, the whole film was about the animals, especially the dog. The subplots with the doctor, the young woman, the grandfather etc. did not really touch me on an emotional level, just like the whole story about getting to the USA.

The part with the wild wolves was nicely done too. It was sort of expected that they are the ones responsible for the killing and honestly I wonder a bit why they use the “bête” as the scapegoat if they know there’s wild wolves around. Anyway, another highlight for em was the first meeting between the boy and the dog, where the dog still gives off an air of danger and yet you could already feel their connection. The most intense scene is possibly where the dog is injured and needs the injection to survive. Edge-of-seat stuff.

This is obviously a movie mostly aimed at younger audiences, so including all the World War background and Nazi references is a daring challenge, but the makers did a fine job as parents should not be worried to watch this movie with their children. I believe most of the younger audiences will not even remotely understand the historic aspect of chasing and deporting Jews and just enjoy watching Belle. And it is not just the dog: There is also ibexes, wolves, goats, eagles and many other wild animals from that mountainous area. I would say this film makes a truly great watch and is almost a must-see for dog owners. The scenery is absolutely stunning and I liked the film’s message against hunting. Apart from this moral, the film also depicts the danger of rumors, especially if those who are the victims cannot defend themselves for whatever reason, no matter if human or animal. This way a complete legend was started about an actually peaceful dog (that only attacks when being attacked) being a savage monster.

The one thing I did not like that much was how the boy was left alone with the dog in the end, not because the dog could pose any kind of danger, but because it was still a little boy somewhere in the mountains. Felt a bit odd to me. However, as I really enjoyed this movie, I want to end it on a positive note: The music, as in most French films these days, was very good once again. I definitely recommend seeing this one.

Great Family Entertainment

In 1943, in the French Alps, the orphan Sébastien (Félix Bossuet) lives in a small village with his grandfather César (Tchéky Karyo), who is a shepherd, and his aunt Angélina (Margaux Châtelier), who is a baker. Sébastien misses his mother and believes she has traveled to America. He expects to get a watch with compass as a gift from her. The local Dr. Guillaume (Dimitri Storoge) is a member of the Frech resistance that helps Jewish refugees to flee to Switzerland and the German Lieutenant Peter (Andreas Pietschmann) and troop are hunting down the resistance. When sheep are found slaughtered, César and the other residents believe that a stray dog that has been abused by his owner is the responsible and hunt it down. Sébastien finds the dog, gives the name of Belle to her and they become friends. But the animal is considered a beast by the inhabitants. Will Sébastien be capable to save Belle?

“Belle et Sébastien” is a great family entertainment, with a beautiful story of friendship. The needy Sébastien find his soul mate in a stray female dog and together they become friends during the World War II. The wonderful landscapes in the Alps are highlighted by the cinematography and the camera. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): “Belle e Sebástian” (“Belle and Sebástian”)

A nice family film

Belle and Sebastian was originally a novel by the French actress and writer, Cécile Aubry. The story was very popular and was made into a French live-action series in 1965. Oddly, it later was a Japanese anime in the 1980s and now is a French film. Although the story is quite popular in France, I’d never heard of it and I cannot compare this film in any way to the other projects. The anime, series or book could be a lot better or worse…I just don’t know.

This film is set during WWII in the French Alps. Sebastian is a 6 year- old boy who lives with his adopted grandfather and his niece. The boy is amazingly independent and resourceful—and as the film progresses you marvel at the kid’s courage and tenacity. Initially you see it when the men of the village go off in search of an animal that is killing sheep. They assume it’s a dog that has gone feral and they are determined to kill it. One day, Sebastian is walking in the hills and encounters the dog—and this Great Pyrenees doesn’t seem particularly aggressive and the boy stands there and calmly talks to it. When the boy sees the dog again later, he even gets the dog to allow him to pet him and soon the pair are friends. But, the men have vowed to kill this animal and when Grandpa sees the animal, Sebastian goes so far as to stand in front of the dog to shield it from the gun. This is a good thing because later, it turns out that it’s NOT this dog that is harming the sheep. Additionally, towards the end of the film, the dog turns out to be a serious blessing. But, what that is and how he helps saves some lives is something best seen by you.

Although this film has some Nazis in it, the film is appropriate for all ages. The violence is not too extreme and the film is similar in style to the old movie “Lassie Come Home”—charming and family-oriented entertainment. The star of Belle and Sebastian clearly is the location and the cinematography. It’s rare to ever see a film so beautiful and the film truly is breathtaking. Additionally, you really have to admire the cast and crew for working some pretty extreme conditions to bring us the movie. Well worth seeing—particularly if you are looking for something you won’t be ashamed to show your kids or mother!