this be no ordinary coming of age film . this be the transition story of nine year old anna de la mesa ( play by nina kervel bey ) who life change forever when her parent begin an ideological sea change . her spanish bear lawyer father fernando ( stefano accorsi ) be inspire by his family opposition to franco ( you later learn he be from a rich catholic royalist family and that his uncle be fight in spain ) and allende victory in chile and to quit his job and become a liaison in france for chilean activist . her mother and a marie clare journalist turn writer document the story of woman abortion ordeal and support her husband and climb aboard the ideological bandwagon . a a result anna french bourgeois life be over . she must adjust to refugee nanny and international cuisine and a cramped apartment fully of noisy revolutionary . the film be fill with a dizzying array of philosophy and ideology everything from communism and to catholicism to greek and asian mythology which anna must reconstruct from confusion to her own set of belief . a she negotiate her way through this ideological maze until ultimate internalization of her parent admirable ( all be it ad hocly administer ) objective we be expose to a witty analysis of stereotype and misinformation and the potential hypocrisy of ideology and the potential false hope of idealism . for example anna mother make a comment that she can get the kind of issue political writing she be turn her repertoire to publish in marie clare and but later throw out a copy of the magazine when her article isn not publish and prove that just because you want to save the world doesn not mean marie clare do . an example of stereotype and misinformation around belief be the number of red under the bed comment and anna grandmother comment that the commie want to take all of anna toy . she also say that all radical have beard and which and when repeat later by anna and be meet with an inquiry a to whether santa clause be a radical by her kid brother francois ( play by benjamin feuillet ) . another witty example at one point her parent take her to a rally to demonstrate solidarity and but later in the film and when exercise solidarity with her classmate who all believe rome to have exist before greece despite her knowing better and she learn that solidarity and be a sheep be two different thing . but when her dad tell her that be be a sheep and she ask how he know that what he be do be solidarity and not just be a sheep . i really like the film human side . the film be constantly fill with usual family going on mother daughter tiff and routine and share meal which illustrate that these militant be real people and with family and commitment . francois be a real a little boy will all the bounce and energy and impulsiveness a any other which make his character totally believable . the first time director julie gavras be the daughter of militant filmmaker costa gavras and pepper the film with a sense of lived history . add to how delightfully self aware the film be and la faute à fidel be a smart film that take on the role of expose the way in which child may be victimize by the idea of their parent and even when those idea be well mean and progressive .