“Together, we were somewhere else, not in reality.” At 17, the age of the two protagonists of Caroline Deruas Peano's second feature, Stereo Girls [+leggi anche:
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But life can also be violent and cruel, with tragedy abruptly following joyful soap bubbles. What can be done then? This is the very simple and universal theme addressed by the filmmaker (who made her debut in 2016 at Locarno with Daydreams [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Caroline Deruas
scheda film]), who has chosen to tackle it in a daring way, combining offbeat realism, dreamlike imagery and music.

In their final year of high school in the 1990s, Charlotte (Léna Garrel) and Liza (Louiza Aura) are inseparable friends, dreaming from their seaside home in the South of France of moving to Paris and conquering the capital with the songs they compose (the former on the keyboard, the latter on vocals). They also have the usual teenage problems with their parents (Charlotte's father causes conflict, Liza's parents prioritise her studies) and love lives (Liza has a secret crush on her gym teacher, Charlotte prefers girls). But then the axe falls, completely unexpectedly: Liza dies suddenly from a blood clot in her brain. In the midst of her emotional turmoil, will Charlotte recover from this loss? Will she find her friend again in the invisible world of dreams? Can we love each other beyond death?

By adopting a deliberately pop and offbeat style, the director perfectly captures the naive excitement and illusions of adolescence (complete with slow motion shots and split screen), almost flirting with the idea of an over-the-top photo novel. The charm of this atmosphere gradually takes effect (and gets better and better), intensifying as it opens up to dreamlike escapades in a parallel universe worthy of Alice in Wonderland. It's a surprising (even disconcerting at first) ensemble that nevertheless never loses sight of down-to-earth existence and discreetly distils little philosophical lessons (notably from Merleau-Ponty and Spinoza) on transcending the perspective of consciousness and choosing joy in order to “succeed in being happy while remaining aware of the horror of this world”. Advice that fits like a glove to a film that is very endearing in its desire for freedom.

Stereo Girls was produced by French companies Les Films de la Capitaine and La Féline Films, and co-produced by Films de Force Majeure (France) and Possibles Media (Canada). Celluloid Dreams handles international sales.