Konterr Brilliant and touching

Twilightfa Watch something else. There are very few redeeming qualities to this film.

Jenna Walter The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

Patience Watson One of those movie experiences that is so good it makes you realize you've been grading everything else on a curve.

The Movie Diorama Sure, children can watch this and be entertained by the cutesy animation. Just do not, I repeat, do not go into this thinking it has no substance. The first five minutes happen and I immediately said "well...we're going there are we?". Hit me like a tonne of bricks falling on my face. Essentially we follow a group of young children in a foster home as they create close bonds between them and learn to mature into adulthood. A coming-of-age drama at its most subtle, and it is with this subtlety that elevates this into a melancholic intimate experience. Child abuse, neglect, loneliness, sorrow and love. All these themes are explored through the perspective of children, and it is rather sad to watch. Witnessing these characters come to terms with their past was inspiring. No matter what obstacles life throws in your way, you can always move onwards and upwards. An outstandingly meaty narrative despite the tiny runtime of just 67 minutes. However it's not all doom and gloom. This feature will evoke happiness and bring a loving smile to your face by the end. Like I said, the subtle manner in which it addresses important issues like child abuse is what gives this film life. The colourful stop-motion animation (which I absolutely adored) and bountiful subplots are just ripples in what is a sensitive puddle. The balance between melodrama, family friendliness and humour was perfect, couldn't fault it. The small idiosyncrasies to each character gave them more personality, which I admired. I personally would've liked a longer runtime so we could see these characters interact more. Some more internal conflicts and backstory would've definitely enhanced the emotional investment. Though these are slight criticisms to what is a beautifully crafted animated story that more people definitely need to watch. Support these small films! Cinema needs them. It's just another reason why French cinema keeps on improving...

gizmomogwai Odd as it may sound, films with vegetables in their titles often turn me off; I heard of My Life as a Courgette (more commonly called a zucchini where I live in Canada) and saw Netflix marked it for ages 8-10, but had some time to kill and it was only 67 minutes on, so gave it a shot. Well, Netflix was a bit off on the 8-10. Adults will find a lot to admire in this little zucchini.Like this year's It by Andy Muschietti (yes, I will make the insane comparison), it is refreshing to see films are still being made where kids still talk like real kids; they're under 18 but they talk about sex (or draw a nude picture as we see here), whereas most modern Puritanical Hollywood movies will treat that as heresy. My Life as a Courgette also confronts the roughest subject matter fearlessly, and manages to pull at the heartstrings in the process. It may seem too easy to do that with a story about orphans, two getting adopted at the end, but it takes something special to make it feel unique- a great deal of maturity and thought went into crafting the emotions and getting them out in a genuine way. (Moonrise Kingdom also ended with adoption-by-cop following an orphan in love- its merits were also strong, though different). The animation goes with stop motion over the now-expected computer 3D, and also develops its own winning charm.

Ian (Flash Review)For being stop-action, clay animation, it was a very realistic-focused film. Nothing wildly creative or imaginative. The film starts off with a boy nicknamed Zucchini, whose mother is an abusive drunk. An incident occurs and he is sent to live in an orphanage. Much of the film consists of him finding his place with the other kids and his interactions with the house's bully and a new arrival kid. I think the director felt that with how real the characters and their situations are that it would be very relatable to many and an interesting perspective to relate to clay characters. It was a fun, colorful and honest look at life through clay.

MartinHafer "My Life as a Zucchini" was nominated for Best Animated Feature for the 2017 Academy Awards but lost to "Zootopia". It's a shame, as 2017 offered three very deserving films (I would also include "Kubo") and only one could take home the award. Perhaps my love for "My Life as a Zucchini" is influenced by my work as a social worker and therapist, as the story is a hopeful tale about children who have been shamefully abused by their parents...a common problem I had to deal with on the job.The story begins with a child stuck in the attic of a horrible home while his mother is downstairs getting drunk and violent. When she tries to enter the attic to beat the boy, he panics and slams down the trap door...and the mother falls to her death. Soon the child is being talked to be a very kind police officer, Raymond, and he's surprised to hear that the boy's mother just called him 'Zucchini' and that's the only name he knows. Fortunately for poor little Zucchini, the man is touched by this case and regularly visits him in the children's home where he is sent to live.As for the children's home, seven children reside in the place and they are given kindness and love. It's actually a pretty nice place, but your heart goes out to the children and the hell they've had to go through during their short lives. Most of the story is about Zucchini and how he adjusts to the place as well as his falling for a girl who arrives soon after him, Camille. And, fortunately, the picture, while VERY moving and sad, has a nice happy ending.This is a very, very special stop-motion film. While it's very artistic and well done it is something more...it's very sweet and has a depth to it you really don't expect in animation. The Swiss film is available in both the original French language version and an English dub (which is very good) on the same DVD. Perhaps other versions are also available, but on the DVD I saw these were the two language choices. Well worth seeing...but have a Kleenex or two handy just in case.