LA MATERNELLE (France/1933)

I've refrained to use the word "masterpiece" to characterize any of the wonderful films I've celebrated in this thread. I was saving the word for a film like this collaboration between Jean Benoit-Levy and Marie Epstein. This adaptation of a Prix Goncourt novel by Leon Frapie is a masterpiece. It's the best French film of the 1930s that wasn't directed by cinema gods Clair, Vigo and Renoir.

Madeleine Renaud (Grand Illusion) plays Rose, a young woman who gets a job as cleaning lady in a Montmartre nursery school after her fortunes take a downturn. Her natural sensitivity and dedication help her become an important part of the children's lives. Rose develops a particularly deep bond with Marie, a possessive girl traumatized by her mother's abandonment after a lover proposes they emigrate. Rose offers the affection-starved waif a home. Marie has a crisis when she learns that Rose has accepted a marriage proposal.

Benoit-Levy and Epstein used non-professional children from the neighborhood's schools and orphanages. They obviously spent a great deal of time and effort skillfully molding their performances. La Maternelle is both realistic and lyrical. There are expressionistic moments of intense beauty. The filmmakers' ability to depict events from the point of view of little Marie has never been surpassed. The use of quick montages to dramatize her interior states is highly effective. Renaud's performance, especially in scenes in which she interacts with the children, is a major reason why the film works so well.