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Excellent but underrated film

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

The acting is good, and the firecracker script has some excellent ideas.

Olivier, Olivier (1992) was an interesting dramatic crime thriller from film maker Agnieszka Holland. I was impressed with her last film Europa Europa. So when I heard that she directed this movie, I went out and rented a copy. I was impressed by this story of a young boy who disappears. Several years later, an adolescent rapscallion is found who resembles the missing youth. Intrigued by this new found dilemma, he goes along with the charade and joins the family. Gradually, those around him realize that this teen is not the missing boy. It all comes to light when a local odd jobber admits to the molestation and murder of the boy. Not willing to shatter the mother's already fragile psyche. The kid plays along with his role as the long lost son and adapts his new role and family.Another impressive film from Ms. Holland. It was only a matter of time before she become a part of the Hollywood grind. A shame really because she made a handful of great films before being absorbed into the Hollywood studio system. French with English sub-titles.Highly recommended.

A lot of people say that a major flaw of this movie is the odd powers of the sister, and when I first saw this movie I thought exactly that. Now that it's been about a year, I think that these powers, and how they aren't explained or dealt with in any way is amazing story telling. I don't think this movie is meant to make perfect sense, some people just don't understand that life itself makes no sense. The supernatural powers help create a tone that is haunting and beautiful. It's the style of the movie that makes it great. Most movies are completely forgettable, but this one stays with you and is so sad and wonderful. Also see Jean de Florette.

Interesting and slightly odd film about a son who disappears from his French family. He has a somewhat Oedipal relationship with his mother, and the family is very dysfunctional. Years later, he returns, but questions are raised if he is the real young man. The family drama is good and well-acted, but contains some truly bizarre subplots, such as the daughter's ability to levitate objects. The film also leaves some major perplexing questions regarding the boy, which I will not reveal. Nevertheless, an interesting and different film.

Agnieszka Holland's "Olivier, Olivier" shares some things with Alfred Hitchcock's "Vertigo." Both are mysteries, both are suspenses, and both have deceptive scripts. In truly great mysteries, no matter how complex and intricate the plot may be, at the end one can go back, rethink. analyze and discover every plot element falls into place. All the clues and information which transpired are justified and neatly explained. Not so with the aforementioned. The first time viewers can be fooled into thinking every element is in place. But see it a number of times and one begins to discover deliberate false clues placed ino the action to throw off the viewer and manipulate his thinking. These clues are dishonest, for they are not internally justified, only an unfair device to "stack the deck"--to make the viewer think one way only to have a surprise element later on. But if the device use is a fake clue, this seriously undermines the work. These two films do just that; on first viewing they seem great. Watch it a few more times and note the "unfair play" these scripts have--all the pieces do not fall into place in the end, and indeed, they reveal themselves to be seriously flawed concepts. It is indeed a let down to make this discovery, but there it is. "Olivier, Olivier" is, like "Vertigo," a gem with a smooth surface and a cracked core.