recommended

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

There's a more than satisfactory amount of boom-boom in the movie's trim running time.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Gabrielle is a film I'm not going to automatically connect with as much as a film about a social outcast, a sarcastic freak or independent thinker. I have little experience with people with intellectual disabilities; truthfully, I can often understand how people can sometimes become frustrated in caring for them. Gabrielle merely stood out to me as an "I should see that" as winner of the Canadian Screen Award for Best Picture and Canada's submission for the Foreign Language Oscar. I can appreciate this is more sophisticated than the '90s drama The Other Sister. Both deal with the taboo issue of sex and people with disabilities. I have a lot of sympathy with the position of both films, and think Gabrielle articulated it well, with Mélissa Désormeaux- Poulin of Incendies fame giving it voice. The male protagonist's mother is repelled by the idea, and while she's the closest thing to the film's villain, she's not a mere strawman. Lots of people think like her. It's not beyond the realm of reasonable debate.That said, the emphasis on music is another fail to connect with me. The fact that the film has no real ending, just a musical concert, really felt weak, along the lines of "That was a cheap TV movie." Which is a shame, because much of it was fairly well-structured leading up to this. Forty years ago, we would have considered this "one of the greatest Canadian films of all time." The fact that we're now churning out these films of better quality with a degree of regularity is a sign of progress.

Its all about love, true love that is not seeking for perfection but for the depth of the heart. If you're doing, do that with all your spirit. Sing, treat, teach, guide and love, give to your fellow man, always from the bottom of your heart. A marvelous saying, a fabulous film. I suppose that it wouldn't have been the same without the main character of Gabrielle Marion-Rivard, acting herself, illuminating the screen with her wonderful laughter in happy moments as in sad ones. To end my review, I love so much the songs, music and lyrics, that integrates in the film beautifully. Recommended especially to the sensitive between us, who can see the beauty of being different.

French Canadian movie about a young woman with Williams syndrome. It was also the Canada's entry for the 86th American Academy Awards, but it did not find a place in the final nominee list. A great potential tale which speaks about an innocent love story in the cruel world.22 year-old Gabrielle with Williams syndrome is good at music and one of the leading choirs who are preparing for an event. She comes to know her, fellow choir member Martin and fall in love. But, before the relationship going to be thicken get opposed by their parents. The reason won't convince them, so they decide to prove and that is the story this beautiful movie explores with great intensity.''I think it's great, everything you've done for your sister. But you have to stop hiding behind her.''This is one of the awesome movie that I saw from the Canada. Unbelievable performances the character Gabrielle and Martin. This movie should have been at the Oscars, but the simplicity of the story might be the reason than the rest of the powerful execution for not making thus far. The real winners are these two lead characters, who made the movie into a splendid piece of art. It makes so sad for not widely noticed, could have been appreciated everywhere if it was a Hollywood product. So what I say is dub this movie and spread it because I don't want movie goer to miss this wonderful flick.There are many things to learn from it, especially music was another highlight. Both, 'Ordinary' and 'The Passenger' tracks are my favorite. So two more songs to put into my movie song collection, though it was not composed specially for the movie, but I liked it. Anyway, a movie not to be missed if you like the dramas with emotionally appealing concepts.

This movie was about a man and a woman who experienced a handicap in their lives and when they meet each other they fall in-love with one another. The parents of these two adults were somewhat opposed to the idea of their children getting involved which is probably considered to be the tension within this French/Canadian movie. This movie is not a Hollywood movie. It is kind of on the border of being an X-rated movie because of the sexual content, and the inferred discussion around the content. Is sexuality at times mental illness? Is sexuality as private as a hallucination is to an individual experiencing it, or are they completely split? In the movie "Girl, Interrupted" it seems that sexuality is a component of a person's mental illness, if the context dictates such. For example, if an individual is considered mentally ill, then symptoms of mental illness can include sexuality. In this movie, the viewer is left with a bad taste in ones mouth, just like when watching Schindler's List when the small girl in the red dress runs through a scene and then later on the red dress is found in a heaped pile. The implications of such a profound slice shocks any audience to the point of despair. The effect of sexual privacy and it being openly exploited in this movie has the same effect of placing the movie audience in a very uncomfortable position. Perhaps this is the intention of the film-maker - to invoke a reaction from the audience, like Michael Moore often tried to do in his movies.