''Nénette'' is a 2010 French

documentary film A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

about a 40-year-old female

orangutan Orangutans are great apes native to the rainforests of Indonesia and Malaysia. They are now found only in parts of Borneo and Sumatra, but during the Pleistocene they ranged throughout Southeast Asia and South China. Classified in the genus ...

living in the

menagerie A menagerie is a collection of captive animals, frequently exotic, kept for display; or the place where such a collection is kept, a precursor to the modern zoo or zoological garden. The term was first used in 17th-century France, referring to ...

of the

Jardin des Plantes The Jardin des Plantes (, ), also known as the Jardin des Plantes de Paris () when distinguished from other ''jardins des plantes'' in other cities, is the main botanical garden in France. Jardin des Plantes is the official name in the present da ...

, (the

zoo A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility where animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for conservation purposes. The term ''zoological garden'' refers to zoology, ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

). The film, directed by Nicolas Philibert presents an intimate portrait of the

ape Apes (collectively Hominoidea ) are a superfamily of Old World simians native to sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia (though they were more widespread in Africa, most of Asia, and Europe in prehistory, and counting humans are found global ...

, originally from

Borneo Borneo () is the List of islands by area, third-largest island in the world, with an area of , and population of 23,053,723 (2020 national censuses). Situated at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, it is one of the Greater Sunda ...

, who has spent most of her life in captivity. In accord with the

Cinéma vérité Cinéma vérité (, , ) is a style of documentary filmmaking developed by Edgar Morin and Jean Rouch, inspired by Dziga Vertov's theory about '' Kino-Pravda''. It combines improvisation with use of the camera to unveil truth or highlight subje ...

style of Philibert's earlier works, the camera rests on Nénette and her son Tübo in their glass-fronted enclosure. We hear the conversations and see the reflections of the zoo visitors in the glass as they regard Nénette, a mother of four who has survived three mates.Nénette at the 53rd San Francisco International Film Festival
/ref>

Reception

Nenette has received positive reviews from critics, scoring 83% positive on Rotten Tomatoes, with an average score of 7.6/10. Some positive reviews have praised how the film is shot centred on Nenette and raises questions about her life and captivity. Total Film magazine awarded Nenette 4 stars with reviewer Tom Dawson saying "If the tea-drinking Nénette remains an enigmatic figure, Philibert makes fascinatingly clear how we humans project our own feelings and thoughts onto her". Other good reviews have come from Empire magazine and Sight & Sound.

References

External links

* 2010 films 2010s French-language films French documentary films Films about apes 2010 documentary films 2010s French films Films directed by Nicolas Philibert Films scored by Philippe Hersant Les Films du Losange films {{France-documentary-film-stub