Gaby Baby Doll (2014)

Gaby Baby Doll (2014). 1h 28m

“In spite of the title ,the movie has nothing to do with Tennessee Williams or Elia Kazan .u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eGaby cannot stay alone ; sheu0026#39;s afraid of the dark ,of her nightmares which come to haunt her at night .One can wonder,however, whether she spends the whole movie out in the sticks ,in an isolated house .When her boyfriend -who is and isnu0026#39;t all at once,she wants him only to keep her company- , leaves her (he wants to have sex with her and she gets on his nerves),sheu0026#39;s completely on her own .Sheu0026#39;s afraid of the daylight ,in those peaceful forests ,where danger might wait for her behind a bush ;at night when she gets back to her home, itu0026#39;s worse :may an intruder be in the place? So she goes to her one horse townu0026#39;s café where she picks up a man who believes itu0026#39;s his lucky day whereas he actually becomes some bodyguard who watches over her sleep .u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe feminists may not agree, claiming women are often depicted as cowards ,but the director is a woman ;besides the character portrayed by Lolita Chammah is throughly credible ;people afraid of everything do exist ,and not only women of course.Too bad the director did not try to explain this pathologic fear (unless the pointless short scene with the shrink counts)sometimes deep-rooted in childhood .u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eMen in the pub are no longer at hand ,because they know why Gabyu0026quot; wants u0026quot; them;so she has to find another protector ;as luck would have it she meets the biggest bearded misanthropist who has walked the earth who lives in a hut in front of a desirable castle ;heu0026#39;s the warden ,but he never enters the place.nHowever ,he might be the right choice,because he does not seem interested in sex ,which is fine with Gaby .u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eGaby is not alone anymore and she tries to follow the man (Benjamin Biolay ) here ,there and everywhere ;but his walks through the country look more like an assault course ;actually it seems that her companion wants to educate her,to help her dominate her misgivings …We would like to learn more from him,why he became such a hermit.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe answer is at the end ,but the average viewer has guessed it well before the u0026quot;unexpected u0026quot; conclusion ;this ending is really the easy way out.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThat said ,itu0026#39;s an original film, off the beaten track ;itu0026#39;s not one of those ponderous crude comedies which pullulate on the French scene.Itu0026#39;s not an in-depth psychological case study either.But itu0026#39;s often enjoyable,and the autumnal landscapes help all along the way.”