Nenette

Directed by Nicolas Philibert

Release Year: 2010
Running time: 70
Country: France
Language: French with English subtitles
Genres:
Subjects:
$16.47 - Classroom Rights
MSRP: $29.95
$349.00 - With PPR
$499.00 - With DSL
$499.00 - With DSL and PPR
MSRP: $599.00
Screening Request
Directed by: Nicolas Philibert
Cast: Nénette
Crew: Philippe Hersant

Nenette is an enchanting lady in her fortieth year, and the oldest resident of the Menagerie du Jardin des Plantes in Paris. She is also an orangutan. Famed documentarian Nicolas Philibert (To Be and to Have) sensitively captures her engaging personality in this "fascinating study" (San Francisco Chronicle) of life lived behind a zoo's walls.

Born in 1969 in Borneo and brought to France in 1972, Nenette has spent the vast majority of her life in captivity, but it has not been a bore. She has outlived three husbands, borne four children, and baffled zookeepers with her inscrutable mood swings. Philibert fixes his camera on her for the entire running time, revealing both a disdainful diva and a kind, mournful soul. Her enigmatic gaze begs for interpretation, raising serious questions about the morality of caging animals. Even her keepers speculate as to the thoughts percolating behind her aged brow.

NENETTE is an "absorbing, contemplative film" (The Guardian), and essential viewing for animal lovers the world over. It searches for the spirit of an orangutan, and finds it.

Reviews

“OUTSTANDING. Hypnotically captures the peculiar life of a 40-year-old orangutan living in a Paris zoo.”

- J.S. Marcus, The Wall Street Journal
 

“Remarkable!”

- Sight and Sound
 

“Surprisingly touching”

- New York Magazine
 

4 Stars

- The Boston Phoenix
 

Awards

Official Selection: Berlin International Film Festival, Edinburgh International Film Festival, Hot Docs, Canadian International Documentary Festival.

 

Trailer Embed Code

Download Trailer