le ballon rouge …

February 26, 2010

my almost three year old has become obsessed with the short film made in 1956, the red balloon, by albert lamorisse.

i’m sure you remember watching as a kid. it’s about a young boy living in paris, he finds a red balloon on his way to school one morning. the balloon, with a life all its own, then follows the boy through the streets of paris and the two form a quick bond.

we got the book from the library, and immediately ezra was enthralled with the story. he was very concerned about the boy and his balloon. he would yell out, “oh no! he can’t reach his balloon!” and such.

so, after i saw it in our instant netflix, i thought i’d show it to him. and, ever since he begs to watch it everyday. although, everytime when he knows the boys are about to come pop the balloon, he runs and hides and asks if it’s over. then, comes back for the happy ending and immediately asks to watch it again.

it’s interesting how some children handle dissappointment. there was a disscussion over on ohdeedoh, about this movie.

he did talk about it a lot afterwards and told me it was sad that they popped his red balloon. but, he still loves it and still continues to want to watch it. [during the first scene, he yells, “look! there’s paris! his papy is proud!] plus, i do think kids need to learn about dissappointment sometime. of course i wouldn’t force him to watch it if he didn’t want to. he even pretends he’s pascal with a red ballon and his little lunch box “briefcase.” it’s quite entertaining.

all in all, i think it’s a magical little movie, and it does have a happy ending. plus, did you know it won an oscar back in the day?

so, what are your thoughts?

3 thoughts on “le ballon rouge …

  1. we like to party...

    i love that little film. It was, and still is, one of my favorites growing up.
    I'm looking for it on netflix right now- my daughter LOVES (is obsessed) with balloons and I think she'll love this video. I forgot about it. Thanks.

    Reply
  2. CraftyRachel

    My toddler son loves balloons, and we thought the simple theme of a red balloon in Paris (one of his first international trips) would be great for his first birthday party. It worked well, but he is still too young to understand the movie (we haven't watched it yet – he's barely 1 1/2).

    What I remember most about it, from watching it as a kid, is the color scheme (the stark red balloon against gray Paris) and the ending, when Pascal gets to soar above the city with all those colorful balloons. I hadn't remembered the bullying and the popping of the balloon until I watched it again a few months ago. I suppose this could be a simple tale to begin a discussion with a youngster about bullying or loss or helping others (as the balloons do).

    Reply

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