Belle and Sebastian

Belle and Sebastian (Belle et Sébastien, 2013) is Nicolas Vanier's French adventure you can watch online on iFILM. High in the snow-covered Alps, in a border village the war is creeping toward, a six-year-old orphan named Sebastian roams the slopes alone with an old shepherd for family.

The villagers are terrified of a huge mountain dog. They blame her for their slaughtered sheep and call her nothing but the Beast. Sebastian sees something else entirely — he tames the animal, names her Belle, and the two become inseparable. Meanwhile the same mountain passes are being used to smuggle refugees toward Switzerland, past patrols, and the boy and his dog get pulled into the danger.

Vanier shot it on real terrain, with actual peaks instead of a soundstage and a trained Great Pyrenees in the frame. Félix Bossuet and Tchéky Karyo anchor the human side, but the dog walks off with the movie. It's calm, handsome family viewing with no cruelty and a lot of gorgeous Alpine scenery. Stream Belle and Sebastian (2013) online on iFILM.