Annette's Life

At just 19 years old, in 1942, Anne Beaumanoir had already experienced so much: involved in the clandestine communist youth movement, she had begun medical studies, secretly distributed parcels, saved Jewish children, changed her identity, lost her first love, and narrowly escaped death several times. Twelve years later, as a courier for the FLN (National Liberation Front), she was sentenced by France to 10 years in prison for terrorism, but fled to Algeria where she became the principal advisor to the Minister of Health under Ben Bella. Until the military coup, she went to Switzerland where she would head the neurophysiology and epileptology division of the Geneva University Hospital for 26 years. Through the eyes of Annette, witnesses, and rediscovered friends, this film recounts Algeria, France and its litany of buried tragedies, racism, and the fight for freedom and independence. Annette ultimately instills in us a necessary and difficult-to-define virtue: courage.

Directed by Denis Robert, Nina Robert, Annette's Life leans on a strong ensemble — Anne Beaumanoir, Charlélie Couture — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about documentary titles of 2018.