Set Me Free 1999

Set Me Free 1999

Set Me Free 1999
Emporte-moi (original title)
1h 34min | Drama, Romance | 28 July 1999 (France)

Storyline:

Canadian/Swiss/French production that tells the tale of Hannah, a tomboyish 13 year-old hitting puberty in 1963. An unhappy and uncomfortable family life leads Hannah to seek escapism in the world of cinema. Specifically, she repeatedly watches and appears enthralled by Nana (Anna Karina), the character from Jean-Luc Godard’s “Vivre sa vie” (1962) about a Parisian woman’s descent into prostitution. Her confusion surrounding what is real leads to a crush for her female teacher and her actively pursuing what it’s like to be a prostitute for an evening.

User review:

Hanna (Karine Vanasse) is a Canadian teenager in the early sixties.And she shapes her own identity. Her parents escape from their responsibilities: her father prefers playing chess to working; and her mother is a depressive woman (several suicide attempts). That’s why she decides of leading her own life. But Reality is stronger than she expected: Life bites hard…

Emporte-moi is partly an autobiographical movie. Léa Pool presents an interesting analysis of the familial relationship and adolescence. Well, this melancholy movie is very touching. Even the scene of the abandoned dog moved. Anyway, the acting is quite perfect and right. Karine Vanasse is magic, Miki Manojlovic surprising in comparison with his performance in “Underground”.We can just regret the underemployment of Pascales Bussières, which is paradoxical given the closed relationship between Hanna and her mother.

Director: Léa Pool
Writers: Nancy Huston (screenplay collaboration), Monique H. Messier (screenplay collaboration)
Stars: Karine Vanasse, Pascale Bussières, Predrag ‘Miki’ Manojlovic
Country: Canada | Switzerland | France
Language: French
Release Date: 28 July 1999 (France)
Also Known As: Set Me Free