THE STORY – The Roussier family lives in a fragile equilibrium around the younger sister, Bertille, who suffers from a severe disability with an unclear diagnosis. Her parents, Madeleine and Gilles, and her sister Marion, each of them tries their best to deal with the doubts and needs surrounding this extraordinary child who could die at any moment. What does the future hold for this couple, and for Marion whose responsibilities made her grow up too fast? When a new diagnosis is unveiled, horizons open up…
THE CAST – Mélanie Laurent, Angelina Woreth, Pierre-Yves Cardinal, Sarah Pachoud & Félix Kysyl
THE TEAM – Joséphine Japy (Director/Writer) & Olivier Torres (Writer)
THE RUNNING TIME – 96 Minutes
With “The Wonderers “(original title: “Qui brille au combat”), actor-turned-director Joséphine Japy makes a quiet but confident debut. Drawing on her own life and her relationship with a younger sister affected by a rare genetic disorder, Japy crafts an intimate family drama grounded not in melodrama or moral instruction, but in observation, care, and emotional clarity.
At the film’s heart is Marion (Angélina Woreth), a teenager on the brink of adulthood, dealing with the usual growing pains – school, crushes, the future – while shouldering a much heavier burden at home. Her younger sister, Bertille, played with striking physical sensitivity by Sarah Pachoud, lives with an undiagnosed condition that renders her entirely dependent, prone to long silences interrupted by sudden, volatile outbursts. Their parents (Pierre-Yves Cardinal and Mélanie Laurent) try to hold the household together, improvising a kind of fragile normalcy. The family’s apartment becomes its own character: cluttered, chaotic, sometimes a site of despair, and still, a refuge.
What sets “The Wonderers “apart is its refusal to sentimentalize. Japy resists easy catharsis or overt moral framing. Instead, her direction favors quiet empathy, holding close to the characters without exploiting them. There are no soaring strings, no editorializing glances, just the texture of life as it is. Even Bertille, who in lesser hands might have been reduced to a metaphor or plot device, remains her own presence: unpredictable, unknowable, at times angelic, at others wild, but never less than fully real.
Occasionally, the film loses its footing. A subplot involving Marion’s relationship with an older man feels thematically adrift and occupies more space than it earns. As the film reaches its conclusion, its narrative threads begin to fray; there’s a sense of indecision, as if the story hesitates to commit to any single direction. Still, even this feels emotionally honest—a reflection of the uncertain future Marion faces.
Director Japy’s restraint is her strength. She does not attempt to make a grand statement about disability, suffering, or resilience. She simply shows what it means to live alongside uncertainty and to live within limits. There are moments of levity, like when Bertille steals food from a stranger’s plate in a restaurant and returns to the family table beaming, and moments of quiet devastation. Together, they form a portrait of a family navigating the impossible with grace, clumsiness, and perseverance.
The French title translates to “those who shine in battle, “a phrase that might suggest something lofty or heroic. This debut marks Joséphine Japy as a filmmaker with a delicate touch and a keen eye for the complexities of family life. It reminds us that true courage often lies in the everyday struggles we rarely see—shining quietly but no less brightly in the battles fought behind closed doors.
