Amanda

All France is calling _Amanda_ the film of the year, when actually it's just a series of clichés strung together like fake pearls. Yet one more film (think _About A Boy_, _Big Daddy_, _Gifted_...) about a young man forced to grow up quickly, and take care of a child after a tragedy. Sadly, French wunderkind Vincent Lacoste has never been cuter but is out of his league here as the brother who has to fill his sister's pants after her sudden death. The film is meant to be a tear jerker, but his unconvincing performance and cringe-worthy crying made me cry from pain and not sadness. [spoiler] I'm also a little offended at the way the sister dies. After the Charlie Hebdo office shootings and the massacre at the Bataclan, choosing a mass terrorist shooting in a park made me feel like I was being held emotionally hostage. 'If you don't appreciate our film, it means the terrorists win,' is too facile a premise for a film that doesn't work to justify it. [/spoiler]