Jumbo

...Merlant spins something potentially laughable into a rollercoaster — or at least, waltzer — ride of emotions.

Here’s a charming French film in which Noémie Merlant is overwhelmed with feelings of forbidden love and … no, it is not Portrait of a Lady on Fire.

Merlant loses herself in the role so intensely that it’s impossible not to empathize with her and Jumbo, as strange as the premise remains throughout.

...you'll simply absorb its glowing sense of wonder.

Writer and director Zoé Wittock, who makes her feature debut here, brings a wonderfully naïve, awestruck mood to the movie.