Naissance des Pieuvres
| Water Lilies | |
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French theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Céline Sciamma |
| Produced by |
Bénédicte Couvreur Jérôme Dopffer |
| Written by | Céline Sciamma |
| Starring | Pauline Acquart Louise Blachère Adèle Haenel |
| Music by | Jean-Baptiste de Laubier (as Para One) |
| Cinematography | Crystel Fournier |
| Edited by | Julien Lacheray |
| Distributed by | Haut et Court |
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Release date
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Running time
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85 minutes |
| Country | France |
| Language | French |
| Budget | €1.7 million |
| Box office | $544,509 |
Water Lilies (French: Naissance des Pieuvres; meaning "birth of the octopuses") is a 2007 French drama film and the debut as a screenwriter and director of Céline Sciamma.
The film tracks the sexual awakenings of three 15-year-old female friends in a middle class suburb of Paris over the course of a single summer. Finding privacy in the solitude of the swimming pool locker room, blossoming teens Marie (Pauline Acquart), Anne (Louise Blachère) and Floriane (Adèle Haenel) come to learn the true meaning of arousal and the power of sexual attraction.
Marie seems to be physically and emotionally attracted to Floriane. Both Floriane and Anne are members of a synchronised swimming team, The Stade Franas Swimmers. Marie expresses an interest in joining the team in order to become closer to Floriane, whom the other girls regard as a "slut". Floriane exhibits her protectiveness for and caring attitude towards Marie when the former gives the latter a medal she was awarded.
When Marie sees Anne at a later point in time, Anne is resentful towards Marie for ignoring her. Marie tells Anne that she was just spending time at her cousin's. Anne accepts this explanation. The next day, Anne speaks to a young man upon whom she has a crush, François. Meanwhile, Floriane confesses to Marie that she has not yet had sex, despite what everyone else on the swim team seems to think. Floriane tells Marie that the rest of the young women on the team make up rumours because they do not like her. In fact, Floriane does not have many female friends.
Floriane tells Marie that one day, she was practicing in the water and the swimming instructor showed her his penis under the water. When Floriane asks Marie if she has any similar stories to tell, Marie is quiet and Floriane tells her that she is very lucky. When they go to Floriane's place, they spend time together lying on Floriane's bed holding hands. After a swim practice, Marie feels affronted when she sees Floriane kissing François. Floriane tells Marie that she is afraid of what will happen if Francois discovers that she is really not a slut and is hesitant about the prospect of having sex.
Floriane and Marie spends the night at a nightclub, where Floriane attempts to find an older man in order to lose her virginity before François discovers that she's a virgin. Floriane then finds a man and kisses him in his car, but is interrupted by Marie. Floriane thanks Marie for the interruption, and later tells Marie that she wants Marie to be her 'first', but Marie rejects Floriane. Later that day, Marie meets Anne at a shopping mall, where Anne shoplifts a necklace. When the two eat lunch at McDonald's, Marie tells Anne that she is immature, then leaves the eating establishment. When Anne enters the male swimming pool locker room after her confrontation with Marie, she gives François the necklace, which he then gives to Floriane. She confesses to Marie that François wants to see her tonight when her parents are not at home. Marie then states that she will do what Floriane had asked her to do earlier. In bed, it seems as if Marie accomplished the goal.
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