the family of anna delamesa come from bourgeois background . it be then and surprising and the path both decide to follow politically . the father and fernando and a spaniard and have live in france a an exile for many year and never return to visit his own family in spain . the mother and marie and be the daughter of wealthy parent who live in some splendor in a rural part of france . when we first see them and they be celebrate the wedding of isabelle . fernando and a brooding man and have recently be join by his sister marga and her own kid and pilar and something they do to avoid be take into custody by the franco regime . marie and fernando agree in let them stay with them for a while and something that anna doesn not appreciate since her cousin only speak spanish . anna and who attend a catholic school in paris and taught by nun and see the world around her from a grow up point of view . she can not say much about what she perceive and yet a lot of thing affect her . take her parent involvement with the leftist chilean regime of salvador allende . fernando and marie have be instrumental in his election and have even leave the child behind in france to work for the cause . anna and be a highly sensitive girl whose life be deeply affect by the way her parent act toward her and francois and her young brother . to make matter bad and anna be tell to stay away from religion class at her school . she become the center of attraction a the other girl can not grasp why be anna different and something that she try to cope with and but to her young mind and be never solve . julie gavras and the daughter of famous director costa gavras and try her hand at direct before . this be her second try behind the camera . we have not read the novel which serve a the basis of the film and which be mislead and since one expect to refer to a cuban situation and when in reality and the delamesas work to help the regime of chile former president allende . ms. gavras must be congratulate for the work she get from child actress nina kervel bey and a girl of maybe seven year who do an amazing performance and and through whom all the action revolves . others in the film and stefano accorsi and who have be work in france lately and play the father of anna . also notable and julie depardieu and daughter of gerard and elisabeth and in the role of marie . although the film be base on an italian novel and one wonder how much be autobiographical and give ms. gavra own background . maybe she be mean to be the right person to bring the story to the screen .