Build a movie plot around this: What year is this movie set in? 1958
Answer:
One of the tensions of this film set in France, is between the film's present (1958) and the past (1946). This tension is introduced when Marie (Marie Herry) mentions the scary children. Soon thereafter a child dies at the orphanage; resulting in it being closed down, save for a single orphan. Alluded to early in the movie, things have gone terribly wrong in the past at the orphanage. The film leaves unresolved what happened in the past. This is because it was nothing unusual. An overworked, under resourced institution in the shadow of World War II that was inundated with 300 children, was unable to cope. Franchard poses the question, "How many do you think we could save?" This tension is not what drives the film; it provides context but not momentum.The introduction of the character Anna (Virginie Ledoyen) starts the build up of this tension. What she sees and hears at the orphanage drives her to look and pry. She is primed for this by a brief, single sentence exchange with Marie, the orphan who is leaving the grounds. Anna is reinforced in her prying by her exchanges with Judith (Lou Doillon) who also sees and hears things unaccountable by normal means, despite the daily drug routine enforced by Helenka (Dorina Lazar) the cook and only other staff member on the grounds full time. Helenka does not appear to hear or see anything out of the ordinary and discourages Anna in her prying as does Franchard (Catriona MacColl) the director of the orphanage. This discouragement is simply that - discouragement. Franchard and Helenka do not resort to subterfuge or violence to prevent Anna's nosing about. They see the past as a painful and sorrowful thing best left in the past. They show no sign of hiding anything criminal or otherwise odious. For them, leaving the past alone is about moving on and forgetting the misery that was unavoidable.Judith, Franchard, and Helenka, were all present at the orphanage in 1946. The latter two discourage Anna; the former encourages Anna and assists in her looking about. This sets up...