Entranced

The Red Balloon: a film I remember discovering on TV as a child. It was made in 1956.
Later I watched it with Jack and Ruth. Later still, it became a real favourite for Eben, who watched it over and over again when he was about 3.
We've just replaced our defunct DVD player, and today Richard put on The Red Balloon for Luca, while Ruth was out doing some last-minute shopping. He was spellbound, it was lovely. As there's very little speech, there are many opportunities to share comments and interpretations.  However, the story unfolds so clearly that it's wonderfully easy for a child just to get lost in it. It's a tough story too, in its way.
I know many Blippers will be familiar with The Red Balloon. For anyone who wants some info, there's a good Wikipedia entry here, and it's easy enough to find somewhere to stream it too:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Red_Balloon
On the DVD is a second film made by the same director, Albert Lamorisse, in 1953. It's called Crin Blanc (White Mane).  It's set in the Camargue, and is both beautiful and heart-rending.  Eben came to love that one too, but it's a bit too soon to try it out with Luca. It pulls no punches, just as many traditional fairytales pull no punches (unlike their Disney versions).