Lou, a good student at school, is quite concerned about the homeless people she encounters all over Paris. She loves hanging out in the Gare Austerlitz, where she observes an enigmatic young woman who attracts her attention. She has written essays for her class, and with the encouragement of her Lycee teacher she decides to explore a world that is alien to her. Coming from a household in which her mother suffers from depression, getting to know Nora, who prefers to be called "No" presents a challenge for this middle class girl.As it turns out, No, is at first flattered and confused by Lou, a girl so different from her, a good source for getting a drink, or a meal when she is down and out. Lou pleads with her parents to let her friend move with them. The parents are reluctant, at first, but decide to go along. Lou secretly watches Lucas, a classmate, who is popular with girls. He is a the product of divorced parents living alone in a huge apartment. With the arrival of No, Lucas takes an interest in Lou. Things go bad after No shows she is heavily involved with drugs and the kind of life her friend Lou gets to know through her, but realizes she does not fit in that sordid world.Zabou Breitman, the director, shows her immense talent in taking us to uncharted territory in this story which involves two opposite characters that meet under extenuating circumstances. On the one hand we have a good soul, Lou who shows an extreme amount of compassion for those that are down on their luck, and juxtaposes her to the jaded No, who is beyond help. The path No has taken by living freely and not making an effort to take the wonderful opportunity Lou offers her. Ms. Breitman, who co-wrote the adaptation of a novel by Delphine De Vigan, with Agnes De Sacy, also participates in the film as the mother of Lou. She gets intense performances from the sweet Nina Rodriguez, seen as Lou as well as Julie-Marie Parmentier, playing the hard edged No. Antonin Chalon returns to work with a director he has been closely associated with.

... make beautiful films. Alas, if this were true then Audrey Hepburn would have directed at least a dozen masterpieces but the good news is that SOMETIMES it is true - Valeria Bruni Tedeschi for example albeit with only two films to her credit so far - and never more so than in the case of Zabou Breitman, a truly beautiful lady both externally and internally, a gifted actress and a sensitive and outstanding director; it may well be that like Orson Welles before her she may never eclipse her first film as director, the magnificent Se Souvenirs des belles choses but in No et Moi she comes within touching distance. This one will never get within a mile of a Multiplex and indeed may be lucky to get a decent Art house release but that is the exhibitor's loss and I urge anyone to run not walk to any cinema with sufficient taste to screen this gem. Like Danielle Thompson, another outstanding French filmmaker, who collaborates with her son on her screenplays then features him in prominent roles, Zabou has found a role for her own son, Antonin Chalon in at least four of her films and he pops up yet again to form part of a non-sexual menage a trois with Nina Rodriguez and Julie-Marie Parmentier in this non-exploitative take on homelessness in the 21st century. More than just a fine actress Zabou has compassion spilling out of her veins and coaxes exceptional performances out of young actors - think of an incandescent Isabelle Carre in Se Souveninirs des belles choses - and if you don't believe me just see what she has wrought from Nina Rodriguez and 30 year old Julie-Marie Parmentier who is utterly convincing as a nineteen year old vagrant. Rodriguez in particular has a wonderfully melancholic expression for most of the first half of the movie and then - in the manner of Ariane Ascarides - lights up the air for miles around when she has something to smile about. Just as with Se Souvenirs des belles choses I am unable to locate a Thesaurus that can do justice to another lovely gift from Zabou to film-goers.

Zabou Breitman, the demanding director of such poignant human dramas as «Beautiful Memories» (2001) and «Someone I Loved» (2009) seems a far cry from Zabou, the funny girl of such undemanding comedies as "Les cigognes n'en font qu'à leur tête" (1989) or "Promotion canapé" (1990). And yet she is the same person. Simply, when she was a comedian what we saw was her persona, not her personality. What we see now in the four features she has directed in a decade is Zabou Breitman's true colors. As a person, she is an intelligent, sympathetic, profound human being and as an artist, she has a knack both for capturing reality and inspire emotion. All these qualities are of course present in «No et moi», her latest directorial effort and although no crowds actually flocked to see it, her new film is as good as her former ones. What may account for this relative public failure may be the unappealing theme of homelessness. That is a pity, for I am certain the people who have overcome their fear have liked «No et moi», which in no way insists on the squalor of the situation. The real subject is in fact the friendship formed between No, the homeless one, and Lou, the thirteen-year-old gifted but lonely girl and how the former, although at bay, helps the latter to assert herself. Not the standard feel good movie for sure but nor is «No et moi» the heavy-handed depressing social melodrama you could dread. Not sordid, as I put it before, the movie nonetheless candidly depicts the hardships a destitute has to go through (the constant struggle for survival, finding a place where to spend the night, finding food, begging, going to the soup kitchen...). Filmed in real locations (the Winter Paris Streets, the Gare d'Austerlitz, a real soup kitchen, etc.) with real homeless people but one ( Julie-Marie Parmentier as the insecure but aggressive No looks more genuine than them though!), «No et moi» could not ring more true. The same thing applies to the school scenes which are definitely not the caricatures of reality they are in most films. The students' reactions and the teachers' attitudes are realistic and having been a teacher myself I recognized myself in the French teacher for example. In addition to this welcome realism you get what Zabou Breitman does wonderfully, instilling emotion. The wild desperation of No, the loneliness of friendless misunderstood little Lou are subtly rendered and touch the audience without resorting to cheap tear-jerking tricks. Julie-Marie Parmentier gives an amazing performance as the eccentric, fast-talking, provocative No. This comes as no surprise coming from an actress who is at ease with excessive characters ( the murderous sister in "Les blessures assassines" ; the ravaged junkie in "La ville est tranquille"). To counterbalance this over-the-top character the director needed her exact opposite, a quiet, well-bred, serious-minded little girl with a slightly sad look. And young Nina Fernandez is just that. The perfect Lou Bertignac. She makes you believe she is as good as gold to such an extent that her rebellion in the second part of the film is all the more striking and unexpected. Another great turn is given by Antonin Chalon (Zabou Breitman's teenage son) as the joking and friendly dunce who becomes Lou and No's friend. He is so cool and funny that you can't resist his charm. Well-directed and acted, realistic and sensitive, "No et moi" is an excellent adaptation of Delphine de Vigan's best-seller of the same name. At the same time faithful to the spirit of the novel and consistent with Zabou Breitman's other works, it is a must-see. If you missed it on the big screen, you can make up your loss by watching it on TV or buying the DVD or the blu-Ray when it is released.