Louba’s Ghost

Martine Dugowson, director of the critical and box office success Mina Tannenbaum (MJFF 1998), reconnects with her favorite actress, Elsa Zylberstein (Louba as an adult). Together they fuel the film’s powerful exploration of female rivalry. The film demonstrates how the betrayal of French Jews during the Nazi occupation continues to affect young lives. As an orphaned teenager, Louba is taken in by a kindly family in the French countryside and develops an unusually passionate relationship with her stepsister Jeanie. The erotic tension between the two girls progressively channels itself into a fierce attachment for a boy, the sultry, romantic Charlie. A lurid tale of love and betrayal ensues. Years later, as young adults living in contemporary Paris, the three cross paths again. Julia Levy-Boeken turns in a fine performance as the young Louba struggling to find herself in the shadow of her sexy non-Jewish stepsister.