“Do you know what you want to be when you grow up?” is a question you get asked a lot when you’re 17. It’s a question that represents this phase of life and the ensuing emotional ambivalence. On one hand there’s something soothing about it, because it implies that there’s still enough time to find the answer. But it also leads to a situation of overwhelming pressure. The question is never asked in the film, but it is its leading theme. Like many coming of age films, the protagonist is a teen with questions that lead to a state of introspective isolation. Director Monja Art (FOREVER NOT ALONE) creates a gentle, summery love triangle. Paula (Elisabeth Wabitsch) is caught between Bovary and Proust’s definitions of love in French class, and in her private love life she finds herself trying to choose between shy Charlotte (Anaelle Dézsy) and extroverted Lilli (Alexandra Schmidt). Just like in class and in conversations among friends, the film’s greatest moments are in the finely observed scenes. A touch while getting beer shows attraction and understanding, unsent messages give a glimpse into Paula’s indecisive interior life, and pop cultural references represent contemporary youth. Monja Art delves into so many different aspects in Paula’s life that you might come out of the cinema feeling like a mixed up 17 year old.

Hardy Zaubitzer

Translation: Elinor Lewy