Au Revoir, Les Enfants

A delicately rendered and exceptionally moving reminiscence of a boyhood friendship cut short by war. Louis Malle's semi-autobiographical film is set in January, 1944, during the German Occupation of France. Julien (Gaspard Manesse) is a privileged, precocious 12-year old with a doting mother and a superior attitude. Sent away to a provincial Catholic boarding school, he easily outclasses his loutish schoolmates until the arrival of Bonnet (Raphael Fejto), who is cultivated, literate, and oddly circumspect about revealing his background. At first, Julien hopes to expose and humiliate his rival, but their common interests lead to an uneasy alliance and finally frien...