Not to decry all of the CGI super furry animal animations we get on the release conveyer belt these days, but it’s always nice when something different comes along, and Charlotte appears to be just that.
Tahir Rana and Éric Warin’s animated drama tells the story of a young German-Jewish woman – voiced by Keira Knightley – in Berlin during the breakout of the Second World War. We called it an “evocative showcase for her life’s work” when it screened at TIFF 2021 (read our ★★★★ review here), while praising its “staggeringly impressive cast” that features the likes of Brenda Bleythyn, Jim Broadbent, Sam Claflin, Eddie Marsan, Helen McCrory, Sophie Okonedo and Mark Strong; check out the trailer here…
Charlotte is an animated drama that tells the true story of Charlotte Salomon, a young German-Jewish painter who comes of age in Berlin on the eve of the Second World War. Fiercely imaginative and deeply gifted, she dreams of becoming an artist. Her first love applauds her talent, which emboldens her resolve. But the world around her is changing quickly and dangerously, limiting her options and derailing her dream. When anti-Semitic policies inspire violent mobs, she leaves Berlin for the safety of the South of France. There she begins to paint again, and finds new love. But her work is interrupted, this time by a family tragedy that reveals an even darker secret. Believing that only the extraordinary will save her, she embarks on the monumental adventure of painting her life story.
Charlotte opens in select US cinemas on April 22nd, 2022.