Such a frustrating disappointment

If you don't like this, we can't be friends.

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

It isn't often that I enjoy movies based around children, but it was impossible for me to hate this one. French films have always had a sense of honesty that I value and Tomboy did not disappoint in that aspect. Taking a serious topic and putting it in the perfect of a child was genius. Almost everything about this movie was completely fulfilling. The story is so captivating that I found little time to focus on technical aspects of the film. The emotion was spectacular in a simple and childish way that reminds me of being younger. This movie would have been nearly perfect if the story had been properly finished. The ending was very unsatisfactory and left so much to be wanted for such an amazing film. Unfortunately because the ending was so hollow I can't give this movie an extremely high rating, but I definitely recommend it.

I find it interesting that there's not much room for mediocrity here. I see many 7-to-10 star reviews, but the two negative reviewers pulled out the one-star click as though this film were bottom-of-the-barrel. Even if I wasn't interested in the subject matter (which I am) or interested in watching people make an intelligent movie on a frugal budget (which I am), I think I'd be inclined to give the cast and crew the benefit of the doubt. There has been a prolonged and intelligent discussion on several websites as to this film's strengths and weaknesses, with concerns about the movie's direction conversed about thoughtfully and cogently. At any rate, potential viewers ought not be scared off by the inconsideration afforded this movie by a couple of reviewers. If anything, read those one-star reviews more thoroughly than the rest and note the spirit in which they were written, and also the lack of analysis. Then go watch TOMBOY if you haven't already. I'm an older guy who you'd think would be off watching science-fiction, action, or documentaries about 1970's rock bands. But TOMBOY caught my eye and certainly moved my heart and soul.

How it reminded me of my own childhood!! Laure obviously wants to belong to the group, even to be a leader and more importantly to be liked in this new environment. Sadly the simplest way to achieve this for her is to pretend to be a boy (she did not "intend" to do it but played a game facing the mistake of Lisa). Yes, she could have go play footballs a girl but most probably the boys would not allow her because she is a girl or exclude her if she wouldn't be good enough (when she starts playing she is still quite insecure but accepted) Lisa explains she wants to play but was "excluded". Laure enjoys "boy's stuff"because they simply are fun: driving a car; or practical: having short hair. But guess what, she is not expected to do so as a girl! I believe this movie has nothing to do with trans-gender. It is about how society since the childhood reduces girls (and boys) to a particular role or look and makes it difficult for them to have individual preferences. Neither am I convinced that Laure is "in love" with Lisa. It goes with her role play and it gives her some attention. Laure is going to enter in the puberty, she is still a child and there is at her age no visible difference between the body of a boy or a girl..which the movie really points out. Except this tiny one thing that she can still fake in her speedo. She even forgets it until she has to pie....The only way to "see" a difference is to take off her pants! She is even physically stronger. But she already has to fit into the box of what girls do and don't: wear a dress for example. Why??? I believe she pretends to be a boy because she knows that she can still do it, in a couple of year she will have to let behind her fake attribute (she puts the penis with her child teeth as a souvenir of her childhood) and become a woman. The image of her pregnant mother is reminding her of the real and only difference between genders. As I wrote, I personally was a Tomboy because I wanted to play the same games as boys. Remember the film takes place in France and you can ask the female player of the best french female football team (OL) but many still think that you need a penis to kick a ball there... Childhood is just the beginning of facing the sad reality: what you have between your legs is going to determine your rights and duties. Laure has the merit to defy the rule because she gets the opportunity...I feel sad of how she gets punish for it. I feel this movie is totally realistic. I hope and wish tit will open the eye on this kind of sexist behavior that adult unconsciously encourage. And BTW I found the 2 sisters acted brilliantly!

"Comedy just pokes at problems, rarely confronts them squarely. Drama is like a plate of meat and potatoes, comedy is rather the dessert, a bit like meringue." - Woody Allen.Whether we like to admit it or not, we all hunger for acceptance in this tumultuous world in one way or another. Film has been my primary source for coping with the unfortunate, and it has so far been a rather successful one. I've always found the best thing to be able to do in a film is to relate to an issue or immerse yourself so deep in the story you feel you are one of the characters and are not just watching them.Céline Sciamma's Tomboy could very well be that film for a young teenage girl who is tirelessly resisting normal teenage girl conventions. Instead of fighting to look like a "Bratz" or "Barbie" doll they are striving to be accepting by their male friends and couldn't care less about the latest trends, what the reality shows are depicting, etc.Our lead character is the shy but noble ten year old Laure (Zoé Héran) whose family has just moved to rural France over the summer. Upset and isolated, she introduces herself to the neighboring kids as "Mickael," and begins to interact with them in a more confident way on her part, becoming more involved with their games, doing male-orientated activities and things of different natures.Laure is very close with her younger sister, Jeanne (Malonn Lévana, who is cute as a button), who is mostly unaware of Laure's "Mickael" alter-ego. It isn't long before Laure also becomes close to Lisa (Jeanne Disson), a young girl who lives close to them and is singled out as the only girl in a group of several males. Lisa begins to take comfort in the idea that she has a boy she can finally connect with.The idea of tomboyish behavior and cross-dressing in the world of film is really not as new as some may believe. We saw this same sort of thing when Corey Haim fell in love with Nicole Eggert's beautiful cheerleader character in Just One of the Girls, a comedy I truly adored, and most recently, Amanda Bynes in She's the Man. This too is an idea that doesn't shy away from the sitcom-scene either. Case and point, the Zoey 101 episode "Girls Will Be Boys." All three of those characters in those examples dress up like the opposite sex to prove some sort of a point, while Laure does it because she truly feels comfortable in skin not her own.The true star here is Zoé Héran, who chooses one hell of an acting debut. She immerses herself into a character that is considerably deep and filled to the prim of poignancy and despair. She doesn't put on a spry, cutesy look for the camera as some child stars tend to bask in. She really doesn't care what you think of her character. She is directed by Céline Sciamma, whose previous film, Water Lilies, a film exploring the sexual awakenings of teenage girls. Sciamma is like the French Larry Clark, only more mild and driven more by close character examinations rather than constant exploiting. It goes without saying that both are fantastic in their own respected field.This is a surprising film, tender in its direction and genuine to its previous formula that relied heavily on humor. Never have we truly gotten into the drama that will inevitably loom over someone who does something like this. We see those who do this as people who want an answer or want to prove some sort of point. Laure doesn't want to prove a point, but this solely for personal acceptance and not immediate gratification.Starring: Zoé Héran, Malonn Lévana, Jeanne Disson, Sophie Cattani, and Mathieu Demy. Directed by: Céline Sciamma.