MADRE

Spain/France, 2020, 128 minutes, Colour.

Marta Nieto, Jules Porier, Alex Brendemuehl, Anne Consigny, Frederic Pierrot.

Directed by Roderigo Sorogoyen.

Madre is a Spanish/French production. The story is both Spanish and French. The film had many award nominations and many wins, especially for the performance of Marta Nieto as Best Actress. She has a brooding, grieving screen presence.

The film is an amplification of a short film made by the director, also called Madre. Some of the short film serves as a prologue to this feature. And the prologue focuses on Elena, a young mother whose child disappears. Grieving for her and her husband, and her husband leaving.

10 years later, and the scene shifts from Spain to the coast of France near the border. Elena is working at a restaurant, managing, customers including tourists in the summer season, a boyfriend. But, she spends a lot of time walking along the beach, brooding. These scenes serve as something of a chorus to the action, the vastness of the sand, the vastness of the sea, her being alone figure, isolated, but searching.

Amongst the tourists for the season is a French family, living in something of a château on the outskirts of the town. They have a young teenage son, the equivalent of age of /elena’s lost son. The rest of the plot does fulfil some expectations, Elena will fascinated by the boy, following him, his being dissatisfied at home with his own parents, coming back to her, the forming something of a bond, substitute mother and son, to the dissatisfaction of his parents, Elena’s confrontation with his father.

And, there is an interlude where Elena’s husband comes to visit her again, reliving the past, failures, little hope for the future.

But, as expected, there is no final resolution, leaving the audience to reflect on Elena and her grief and yearning for a child, the dissatisfactions of the young man, the consequences for the future.

1. The title? The director’s amplifying his previous short film? Using it is a prologue?
2. The mother themes, the focus on Elena, her own son, his death? Her relationship with Jean? Jean and his own mother and his place in the family?
3. Spanish story, French story, the coast near the border? The visuals of the coast, the beach, the town, the restaurant, the mansions and grounds, the countryside? The musical score?
4. The prologue, Elena and her husband, the relationship, her son, his disappearance? The impact on each?
5. 10 years later, Elena and her still grieving, older, from Spain to France, working at the restaurant, managing, the customers, having a boyfriend? Her ordinary way of life, dealing with customers? So much of her time walking along the beach, grieving, hoping?
6. The holidaymakers, the family, the parents, affluence, style, Jean, the other members of the family, the staff? Their way of life, expectations?
7. Jean, his age, his range of friends, the holiday? The encounter with Elena? Her following him, his seeing it, the effect, the impact on her, imagination and hopes?
8. His visit to the restaurant, his feeling that Elena was stalking him, their talking, bonding, the effect on her, the effect on him?
9. The visit to the house, polite welcome, awkward situations, the reactions, the mother, the father and his discussion with Elena?
10. The narrative exploring what was happening to each of them, Elena and her needs, indulging her fantasy and hopes? The effect on Jean, accepted, potential alternate mother figure?
11. The visit from her husband, the talk, some reconciliation or not?
12. The resolution, the clarity the situation, Elena and her motivations, the consequences?