Stop-motion animation usually triggers a specific kind of nostalgia. You think of Wallace and Gromit’s goofy grins or the spooky, tactile magic of a Henry Selick film. But then there’s My Life as a Courgette (originally Ma vie de Courgette). It’s different. It’s a 66-minute gut-punch that somehow manages to be one of the most life-affirming things you’ll ever watch.
Honestly, it’s a bit of a miracle this movie exists in the form it does.
Directed by Claude Barras and written by Céline Sciamma—who later blew everyone away with Portrait of a Lady on Fire—the film takes a subject that sounds absolutely miserable on paper and turns it into something beautiful. We’re talking about a young boy named Icare, who prefers to be called "Courgette." He accidentally causes the death of his alcoholic mother. That is the literal starting point. It’s heavy. It’s dark. Yet, the movie never feels like it's wallowing in trauma just for the sake of it.
The Raw Reality Behind My Life as a Courgette
A lot of people go into this expecting a standard "kids' movie" because of the bright colors and the big-eyed puppets. They’re usually surprised. The film is based on the novel Autobiographie d'une courgette by Gilles Paris. While the book is a bit more jagged and harsh, the movie softens the edges just enough to let the light in without lying about how hard life can be for kids in the foster system.
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Most animated features try to hide the "seams" of life. This one leans into them.
The character designs are deliberate. Courgette has blue hair and giant, expressive eyes that look like they’ve seen way too much for a nine-year-old. When he gets sent to the Fontaines foster home, he meets a cast of kids who are all carrying their own specific, heavy shadows. There’s Simon, who acts out because he’s trying to process his parents’ struggles with addiction and incarceration. There’s Ahmed, Alice, and Béatrice. They aren't just background characters; they are a collective portrait of resilience.
What makes My Life as a Courgette stand out in the 2010s animation landscape is its refusal to use a traditional villain. There is no "evil stepmother" or "cruel orphanage director." Even the police officer, Raymond, is a deeply kind man who is just trying to navigate a broken situation. The "villain" is simply the weight of circumstance.
Why the Animation Style Actually Matters
If you’ve ever seen the behind-the-scenes footage of the production in Geneva, you know how painstakingly slow this process was. Stop-motion is a grind. But for this specific story, it was the only way to go.
Computer-generated imagery (CGI) often feels too smooth, too perfect. It creates a barrier. With stop-motion, you can see the texture of the clothes. You can almost feel the clay. This tactile quality grounds the story in reality. When Courgette holds the empty beer can that belonged to his mother—the only thing he has left of her—the physical presence of that object on screen matters.
It’s about the "imperfection."
Claude Barras has mentioned in various interviews that he wanted the puppets to look "hand-made" to reflect the vulnerability of the children. They are fragile. They are molded by their environments.
The Sciamma Connection and Emotional Depth
You can really feel Céline Sciamma’s fingerprints on the script. She has this incredible knack for writing dialogue for children that doesn’t sound like an adult trying to "act young." It’s sparse. It’s direct.
When the kids talk about why they are at the foster home, they don't use flowery language. They say things as they are. This honesty is what makes the bond between Courgette and Camille—the new girl who arrives later—so moving. They aren't falling in "Disney love." They are finding someone who understands the specific silence of a house that isn't yours.
The Impact of the Soundtrack
Sophie Hunger’s score deserves its own shout-out. It’s understated. It uses simple melodies that mirror the simplicity of the children’s perspectives. It doesn't tell you how to feel with soaring strings or dramatic crescendos. It just sits there with you in the room.
Why It Still Matters for Modern Audiences
In a world where we are constantly bombarded with high-octane, loud, frantic entertainment, My Life as a Courgette is a quiet room. It deals with foster care, neglect, and the search for a chosen family with a level of maturity that most live-action "prestige" dramas fail to reach.
It was nominated for Best Animated Feature at the 89th Academy Awards. It lost to Zootopia. Now, Zootopia is a great movie, don't get me wrong. But Zootopia is a product. My Life as a Courgette is a poem.
One of the biggest misconceptions is that this movie is "depressing." I’d argue the opposite. It’s a movie about the fact that even if you start in a hole, you can climb out if someone hands you a ladder. It’s about the kindness of strangers and the way kids can heal each other just by existing together.
Navigating the Different Versions
If you’re going to watch it, you have a choice: the original French or the English dub.
Usually, purists say you have to go with the original. The French cast, including Gaspard Schlatter and Sixtine Murat, brings a very specific, soft cadence to the roles. However, the English dub is surprisingly solid. It features Will Forte, Nick Offerman, and Ellen Page (now Elliot Page). They did a great job of keeping the tone grounded rather than turning it into a cartoonish performance.
But honestly? Watch it in French if you can. The rhythm of the language fits the visual style perfectly.
Practical Steps for Watching and Discussing
If you're planning to introduce this film to your family or a classroom, or even if you're just watching it for the first time, here is how to get the most out of it:
- Check the Age Rating: In most regions, it’s rated PG-13 or the equivalent. While it's an "animated movie," it deals with alcoholism, death, and suggestive themes of abuse (handled very delicately). It’s best for kids 10 and up, or younger kids with an adult there to explain things.
- Don't Skip the Credits: The ending of the film provides a sense of closure that is rare in cinema. It’s a soft landing after a rough flight.
- Look for the Small Details: Notice the kite Courgette flies at the beginning. Pay attention to how the weather changes as the children begin to form their own community.
- Research the Medium: If the visual style interests you, look up the "making of" videos. Seeing the scale of the sets compared to the animators' hands puts the emotional weight of the project into a new perspective.
- Compare with the Source Material: If you’re a reader, pick up Gilles Paris’s Autobiographie d'une courgette. It provides a much deeper, darker look into the internal monologue of Courgette that the movie hints at through visual cues.
The real power of My Life as a Courgette is that it doesn't try to fix everything with magic. There’s no fairy godmother. There’s just a police officer who cares, a teacher who listens, and a group of kids who decide that their past doesn't have to be their entire story. It’s a short film, but it stays in your head for a very, very long time.