Saturday 7 May 2016

Mia Madre


Margherita Buy is directing a film about a factory in turmoil with workers rising against management but is battling to take control of the project. Meanwhile her mother is in hospital facing lengthy tests and Margherita is battling that relationship too. To top it off, Margherita's daughter is holidaying with her father from whom Margherita is either separated or divorced and Margherita finds it difficult to control that relationship as well.

In fact, Margherita has battles everywhere; her American star can't remember his lines and her brother's hospital meals for their mother always seem to trump her own.

This Italian mostly Italian language film has been widely praised but I found it difficult to get into. 'Mia Madre' was nearly 40 minutes in before I realised some scenes were in flashback and the narrative wasn't strictly linear. The various bearded men in the cast looked similar to me and I had difficulty sorting one from another.

The second half was stronger and funnier than the first but by then the film had largely lost me.

★✭

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