X
  • 1997
  • Not Rated
  • Strand Releasing
  • 1 h 43 m
  • 1997
  • Not Rated
  • Strand Releasing
  • 1 h 43 m

Summary Teenage siblings Nenette and Boni were raised apart as a result of their parents' divorce. Their mother, who doted on her son Boni, has died. He works for an interesting couple as a pizza baker, and is surprised and enraged when his younger sister, having run away from boarding school, suddenly turns up. There's a problem that they must ...

Directed By: Claire Denis

Written By: Jean-Pol Fargeau, Claire Denis

  • 1997
  • Not Rated
  • Strand Releasing
  • 1 h 43 m
  • 1997
  • Not Rated
  • Strand Releasing
  • 1 h 43 m

Nenette and Boni

Metascore Generally Favorable Based on 10 Critic Reviews
70
User Score Available after 4 ratings
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Summary Teenage siblings Nenette and Boni were raised apart as a result of their parents' divorce. Their mother, who doted on her son Boni, has died. He works for an interesting couple as a pizza baker, and is surprised and enraged when his younger sister, having run away from boarding school, suddenly turns up. There's a problem that they must ...

Directed By: Claire Denis

Written By: Jean-Pol Fargeau, Claire Denis

Where to Watch

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Critic Reviews

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Metascore
Generally Favorable Based on 10 Critic Reviews
70
70% Positive
7 Reviews
30% Mixed
3 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

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

Critic Reviews

 View All
Metascore
Generally Favorable Based on 10 Critic Reviews
70
70% Positive
7 Reviews
30% Mixed
3 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews
88
It's a powerful depth charge of a film about reinvented family values. In Denis's hands, this urgent, loving brother and sister act is lyrical, exhilarating, flecked with mystery. [24 Oct 1997, p.C6]
By Jay Carr FULL REVIEW
88
A sibling drama of unsentimental urban grit and swooning lyricism, Nénette and Boni meditates on the myriad permutations of love and sensuality, from familial longings to food fetishes.
By Bill Weber FULL REVIEW
80
Claire Denis comes up with her emotionally richest pic to date in Nenette and Boni, a multilayered look at unformed teen emotions and the mysterious, almost invisible ties that bind siblings.
By Derek Elley FULL REVIEW
75
Claire Denis, born in French Africa, is a director who seems drawn to stories about characters who want to build families out of unconventional elements. With Nenette et Boni, she makes a more delicate film. She feels affection for the characters, especially Boni, and is very familiar with them. Maybe that's why she feels free to tell the story so indirectly.
By Roger Ebert FULL REVIEW
70
If the film's easygoing, catch-it-while-you-can approach yields some unexpected nuggets, it also makes for lopsided storytelling. But when Nenette et Boni is studying the faces and following the moods of its likable if terribly confused title characters, it captures the stubborn spirit of youth itself.
By Stephen Holden FULL REVIEW
60
There are odd, rather contrived fantasy scenes here which sit uneasily with the generally downbeat naturalism of the rest of the film; and since the script seems determined to tease rather than inform, it's a little hard in the end to fathom exactly what director and co-writer Denis is really getting at. The performances, however, are good, and the music appealing.
FULL REVIEW
40
Honestly, if it weren't for Denis' striking visual sense, the producers could make a small fortune marketing Nénette and Boni as a sleep aid. Granted, Colin and Houri are both delightful actors. The bond they create between these onscreen siblings is terrifically realized and fully developed, but it's far too little to sustain a film in which virtually nothing happens, despite the fact that it all looks so very good.
By Marc Savlov FULL REVIEW

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Details

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Production Company Dacia Films, La Sept Cinéma, Canal+, Centre national du cinéma et de l'image animée (CNC), IMA Productions
Release Date Sep 19, 1997
Duration 1 h 43 m
Rating Not Rated
Genres
Website http://inter.pyramidefilms.com/pyramidefilms-international-catalogue/nenette-et-boni.html
View All Details

Awards

Locarno International Film Festival
• 5 Wins & 5 Nominations
Namur International Festival of French-Speaking Film
• 1 Win & 2 Nominations
Film Independent Spirit Awards
• 1 Nomination

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