January 2, 2002 -- "À ma soeur!" (English title: "Fat Girl") is a hard-edged, coming-of-age story about two young girls in France that goes way beyond the usual casual sex of American films by adding some very shocking violence. It doesn't seem to be film that particularly promotes morality or immorality, nor does it specifically argue that promiscuity leads to violence (a conclusion implied in countless cheap horror films). It seems to be more of a cautionary tale about the sometimes deadly power of human sexuality.

During a summer vacation, 12-year-old Anaïs (played by Anaïs Reboux) dreams her girlish dreams of love, but obese and overshadowed by her beautiful 15-year-old sister Elena (played by Roxane Mesquida), she is forced into being a bystander. In one telling sequence, a young man, Fernando (played by Libero De Rienzo), invites Anaïs to sit with him at a cafe. Seeing this, Elena maneuvers Anaïs out of the way and sits next to him. Later, Fernando and Elena ride off in a fancy sports car while Anaïs must walk home alone.

Elena treats her sister horribly at times, calling her names and telling her that she is worthless. Elena also knows how to use her beauty to get what she wants from men, but the frequent presence of Anaïs is a hindrance to her. At other times, however, she shows great affection for Anaïs, although it is never the kind of affection that requires the least bit of sacrifice on her part. This apparent ambivalence in Elena's feelings towards her sister is puzzling.

Anaïs and Elena have different ideas of how to approach their first sexual encounter. Anaïs wants to love the first man she has sex with, while Elena simply wants to get the first sexual encounter out of the way as quickly as possible. With that in mind, she invites Fernando to her bed, but then has second thoughts. Anaïs, who shares a room, is forced to be an unhappy silent witness to Elena's sexual experimentation. It is just another reminder of the advantages her sister both enjoys and flaunts. Most of the film has to do with the dreams and experimentation of the two young girls. Anaïs, with no boyfriend of her own, uses her imagination to dream of what her first kiss will be like.

The shocking conclusion of the film is vastly different than the childish and playful events that lead up to it. The film starts out light, almost comic in tone, but it is deadly serious. Make no mistake about it. This is a sexually graphic, violent film. The sex and violence are not included to sell tickets, as they are in some American films. Graphic sex and violence are in the film for shock value, to underscore the basic theme of the movie, that sex and violence are sometimes intertwined. These are powerful forces, not child's play, as demonstrated in the film. The film is well-acted and well constructed by writer-director Catherine Breillat ("Romance"). Production values are solid. This film rates a B.

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