Celine Sciamma follows-up her ambitious “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” with a scaled-down, pandemic-shot, fairy tale tackling mother-daughter bonds. “Petite Maman” is very much ingrained in our present-day world, but Sciamma adds magical realism to her highly personal tale. The setup is simple; Nelly, an 8-year-old girl who just lost her grandmother, sees her mother embarking on the difficult process of sorting out and removing her cherished childhood objects at grandma’s house. During this time of mourning, she also begins to notice her mom’s depression creeping back up. Meanwhile, while exploring the nearby woods, Nelly encounters a neighbor her own age, with whom she finds she has a remarkable amount in common. To say more would ruin the surprises that are in store in Sciamma’s beautifully constructed movie about grief, memory, and the ties that bind. Clocking in at just 72 minutes, it’s a peculiar jewel of a movie, filled moments of sheer transcendence. [B+]
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