Northwest Film Forum

At the height of the AIDS crisis, a divorcee finds herself pining for the innocence of youth and first love. Cue the cheesy music? Except the director is the unassailable Agnes Varda, and the star is Jane Birkin, acting alongside her daughter Charlotte Gainsbourg, playing her teenage self. An odd love triangle blossoms between boy (Varda’s son, Mathieu Demy), girl (Gainsbourg), and the girl’s mother (Birkin). In the hands of any other, this would be maudlin, but Varga makes the story sing. Her brilliant direction spotlights the naturalistic performances of Birkin and the two teens, who display talents beyond their years. Melancholy, remembrance, loneliness all play their roles, and the potency of love is front and center, though deftly handled. The film brings to mind an old quote of Sidney Lumet: “Melodrama is a much maligned genre. And I hope we can bring it back into fashion. I always think of melodrama as the thing we are all capable of that’s swept under the rug.” In truth, this is a melodrama, but in some cases - and Kung Fu Master certainly qualifies - that is not such a bad thing.