Jumbo: An Unconventional Love Story Starring Noémie Merlant

Jumbo is a French film about how a young introvert girl (Jeanne) falls in love with a metal ride (tilt-a-whirl) at the amusement park. Noémie Merlant, known for her astonishing performance in Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019), inspired me to invest my time into this film.

Jumbo (2020)
Genres: Drama, Fantasy, Romance
Cast: Noémie Merlant, Emmanuelle Bercot

Jumbo 2020 Noémie Merlant Aesthetic Poster

Jeanne (Noémie Merlant) works as a janitor at the local amusement park. She is most likely to have no friends and lives with her divorced mother. As a hobby, she creates miniatures of various rides of the park. 

Jeanne's mother, Margarette (Emmanuelle Bercot), is quite different from her daughter. She is seductive and bold. She wants to see her daughter dating a guy. Yet, she knows that Jeanne isn't like normal girls. She eventually forces her to date Marc. Marc (Bastien Bouillon) is the manager of the park and overly interested in Jeanne.

Jeanne's lonesome shift usually begins after the end of the day, and she was happy in her solitude until she met the newly arrived ride "Move It" a.k.a. Jambo. Jambo is a regular tilt-a-whirl ride except he can talk, he responds to her in green and red lights, and that's how their endless conversation begins.

Don't we all love machines, directly or indirectly?
(The thing you're using to read this is also a machine.)

Jumbo is a bit weird love story, the romance of a machine and a girl isn't everyone's cup of tea. It's okay to love an object or a machine, but Jeanne's love was beyond the limits! It also shows the conflict between mother and daughter, the mother is having a hard time accepting her daughter. I liked the aesthetic cinematography, color shades, Noémie Merlant's nerd & hot avatar.

The oil bath romance scene reminded me of Under The Skin (2013).

Was Jumbo really talking to Jeanne?
The film is categorized as fantasy, so we cannot consider her conversation with Jumbo as her imagination or illness. Yes, Jumbo was actually talking to her.

Is Jumbo (2020) a French version of Her (2013)?
In Her, the protagonist falls in love with an AI (Artificial Intelligence). The director of Jumbo, Zoé Wittock, used a metal ride to portray the unconventional love story, but it is not as effective as Her (2013). You should watch Jumbo if you're a fan of Noémie Merlant.

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