X
  • 2018
  • Not Rated
  • Film Movement
  • 1 h 50 m
  • 2018
  • Not Rated
  • Film Movement
  • 1 h 50 m

Summary Paris, 1941: Joseph and Maurice are the sons of Roman, the local barber. At 10 and 12, the boys have so little understanding of the persecution of Jews that Joseph thinks nothing of swapping his yellow star for a bag of marbles. Despite their naiveté, Roman knows that their best chance to escape the Nazi roundup is to flee on their own t...

Directed By: Christian Duguay

Written By: Joseph Joffo, Alexandra Geismar, Jonathan Allouche, Benoît Guichard, Laurent Zeitoun, Christian Duguay

  • 2018
  • Not Rated
  • Film Movement
  • 1 h 50 m
  • 2018
  • Not Rated
  • Film Movement
  • 1 h 50 m

A Bag of Marbles

Metascore Mixed or Average Based on 7 Critic Reviews
55
User Score Generally Favorable Based on 4 User Ratings
7.5
My Score
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Where to Watch

Summary Paris, 1941: Joseph and Maurice are the sons of Roman, the local barber. At 10 and 12, the boys have so little understanding of the persecution of Jews that Joseph thinks nothing of swapping his yellow star for a bag of marbles. Despite their naiveté, Roman knows that their best chance to escape the Nazi roundup is to flee on their own t...

Directed By: Christian Duguay

Written By: Joseph Joffo, Alexandra Geismar, Jonathan Allouche, Benoît Guichard, Laurent Zeitoun, Christian Duguay

Where to Watch

Top Cast

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Critic Reviews

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Metascore
Mixed or Average Based on 7 Critic Reviews
55
43% Positive
3 Reviews
57% Mixed
4 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews

Critic Reviews

 View All
Metascore
Mixed or Average Based on 7 Critic Reviews
55
43% Positive
3 Reviews
57% Mixed
4 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews
88
Mar 23, 2018
The great value of Christian Duguay’s A Bag of Marbles is the degree to which it makes such a barbaric and bewildering chapter in human history comprehensible for young audiences.
By Matt Fagerholm FULL REVIEW
75
Apr 12, 2018
This isn’t the first film to try to deal with the horrors of the Holocaust from a child’s perspective, but it’s tricky material, and this one succeeds because it is direct and forthright.
By Walter Addiego FULL REVIEW
70
Mar 22, 2018
Despite the hardships endured by the characters, nearly every shot seems dappled with nostalgia. The music score is sentimental, with shimmering pianos and trembling strings. But the writing and its attendant characterizations have an undeniable integrity, the particular historical detail offered by the story is not common in films about this era, and the lead performers are moving.
By Glenn Kenny FULL REVIEW
60
Mar 29, 2018
For those ready to view it on its own terms, its gentle focus on family and persistence should go down easy.
By John DeFore FULL REVIEW
60
Mar 22, 2018
Even when the chips are down, every boy’s adorable beret looks box-fresh. It’s the boys themselves, however, who often cut through the Camembert to deliver a shot of honest, imperilled feeling.
By Guy Lodge FULL REVIEW
40
Mar 22, 2018
Director Christian Duguay is much more comfortable handling the sledgehammer superficialities of near-miss action and prankish boyhood than the complicated, turbulent emotions surrounding children imperiled during wartime.
By Robert Abele FULL REVIEW
40
Mar 22, 2018
There’s a chintzy silver lining tacked onto every potentially dark cloud in the cloying French World War II drama A Bag of Marbles, a pseudo-inspiring adaptation of Jewish World War II survivor Joseph Joffo’s partly fictionalized memoir.
By Simon Abrams FULL REVIEW

User Reviews

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User Score
Generally Favorable Based on 4 User Ratings
7.5
75% Positive
3 Ratings
25% Mixed
1 Rating
0% Negative
0 Ratings

User Reviews

 View All
User Score
Generally Favorable Based on 4 User Ratings
7.5
75% Positive
3 Ratings
25% Mixed
1 Rating
0% Negative
0 Ratings

There are no user reviews yet. Be the first to add a review.

Details

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Production Company Quad, Main Journey, Gaumont, TF1 Films Production, Forecast Pictures, IDL Films, La Compagnie Cinématographique, Panache Productions, Proximus, Okko Productions, Cinémage 9 Développement, Indéfilms Initiative, Apidev 3, Canal+, Ciné+, TF1, Téléfilm Canada, Société de Développement des Entreprises Culturelles (SODEC), Région Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, Centre national du cinéma et de l'image animée (CNC), Angoa-Agicoa, Fondation pour la Mémoire de la Shoah
Release Date Mar 23, 2018
Duration 1 h 50 m
Rating Not Rated
Genres
Website http://www.gaumont.fr/fr/film/Un-sac-de-billes.html
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Awards

Philadelphia Jewish Film Festival
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
Cinémental - Festival des films francophones au Manitoba
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
Barcelona-Sant Jordi International Film Festival
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination

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