Le Ballon Rouge

Several days ago while perusing my friends list here on LJ I happened upon an entry that mentioned, among other things, seeing a certain movie while in elementary school entitled The Red Balloon. I have no idea if this is still the case these days, but back in the prehistoric epoch of my early youth, The Red Balloon, a French film, was de rigueur cinema at Savage Elementary School each year, apparently since the film won an award for top educational film in '68, right at the meat of my primary school life. As the years went on, the movie became a fond memory, as well as a cautionary tale I could relate to. The movie is set in Paris, in the mid-50s. A young boy finds a big red balloon tangled in a streetlamp, frees it, and brings it home with him while coming home from school. His mother, for unknown reasons, does not allow the boy to keep the balloon in the house, and subsequently, releases it though an open window. It is then that the "magic" begins. The boy's red balloon becomes a fun part of his life, as well as a troublesome companion in the eyes of others. The boy and his balloon become a target for neighborhood bullies as well, this plays out predictably, but with a surprising conclusion.

I had not seen this film in decades, and pretty much forgotten about it. Having my memories jostled by the LJ post, I dove into the trusty intarwebs to find it, and voila, found a complete copy exactly as I had remembered it from my early youth. I've presented it here in three parts. If any of you remember this movie, let me know in the comments your take on it.

( Parts 2 and 3, as well as some other thoughts here... )