“Jumbo” is about a shy young woman who experiences a sexual awakening when she falls in love with an amusement park ride — but more than that, Zoé Wittock’s feature directorial debut is about the importance of compassion. What could have been a derisive, voyeuristic take on an unusual phenomenon is instead a surprisingly moving story about learning to accept people for who they are, even if you don’t always understand them.
Jeanne (Noémie Merlant of “Portrait of a Lady on Fire”) works as a cleaner at a local theme park and lives with her boisterous mother, Margarette (Emmanuelle Bercot). While never explicitly stated, it’s suggested that Jeanne may fall somewhere on the autism spectrum. She has few personal connections, is uncomfortable in social situations, and her one passion is building mini mechanical replicas of the park’s rides. That is until she meets a new attraction, Move It, which she affectionately nicknames “Jumbo.”
Jeanne is an objectum sexual, or objectophile, which Wittock (and many of us) first learned about when a woman made headlines for marrying the Eiffel Tower. “At the time, I couldn’t really tell why I was so intrigued by it. It just made me laugh as much as it fascinated me. How and why would someone chose to live their lives that way?” the writer-director told us. “She initiated me to the notion of ‘Objectum sexuals,’ people in love with inanimate objects, and was just very open about her experience. Little by little, I started writing and understanding that this was really just about accepting who you were and owning up to it enough to share it with the world.”
And that’s exactly what Jeanne does in the course of the film. Even though we fear about how others will treat her when they learn about her sexuality, we root for Jeanne every step of the way. It’s a joy to see her discover herself and fight for her own happiness. “Jumbo” is a non-traditional romance, but one that’s bound to resonate with all sorts of viewers — after all, most of us have been giddy-in-love at one point or another — and open some minds, too.
“Jumbo” is now available on VOD.
