Rosetta

There's something genuinely religious in Rosetta's stark portrayal of unyielding resurrection.

a small miracle of a film, one that accomplishes so much with seemingly so little and feels all of a piece, not a moment wasted or misused

The camera follows right behind Rosetta as she stampedes her way through hardship after hardship, determined to get a fair shake. This puts the viewer in the shoes of Rosetta and we experience her pain firsthand.

Rosetta (is) a perpetual motion machine constantly racing away from a lens that will always catch up to her.

'An unflinching portrait of the dehumanizing effects of being forced to live hand-to-mouth with no real hope of escaping.'

Perhaps some of this would have been nominally interesting if Rosetta were slightly likable.

Fights and struggles to stay afloat literally and symbolically, just like its heroine.

The drama vividly conveys the stunted emotional and spiritual life of a teenager who has no time for anything except the struggle to survive.

Some viewers (including a few who walked out when I saw the movie) are going to find the subject too grim and the production too stark - but that's the idea.

a careful, painful film, but beautiful in its execution

This is a film made for purists of the cinema.

The directors jump into an impoverished, fast-moving life, and never attempt to put on the brakes for the sake of providing audience comfort.