Mommy (15)
four stars
Dir: Xavier Dolan
With: Anne Dorval, Antoine-Olivier Pilon
Runtime: 135 minutes
FRENCH writer-director Xavier Dolan (Heartbeats) turns the grand old age of 26 tomorrow. With this tale of a mother's love for her desperately troubled son he is showing a talent and maturity well beyond his years. Winner of the Jury Prize at Cannes last year, Mommy is an intense, unsettling, often brilliant look at a parent at the end of their tether and a boy who cannot find his place in the world, no matter how hard he tries sometimes. Dazzling filmmaking, and a heartbreaker to boot.
Glasgow Film Theatre, March 20-April 2
Difret (12A)
four stars
Dir: Zeresenay Mehari
With: Meron Getnet, Tizita Hagare
Runtime: 99 minutes
HIRUT is walking from school one day in a village some three hours outside Addis Ababa when she is set upon by a group of men on horseback. One of them means to abduct her into marriage, claiming tradition as his justification. The 14-year-old's reaction to her plight was to put her at the centre of a real-life tussle between the rule of law and the weight of culture. Tizita Hagare is terrific as the teenager taking on the male establishment, but it is the performance of Meron Getnet as her lawyer which is the standout in a tale that is as enraging as it is enlightening.
Glasgow Film Theatre, March 20-22
A Second Chance (15)
two stars
Dir: Susanne Bier
With: Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Ulrich Thomsen
Runtime: 102 minutes
BEING the story of a Danish detective (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) who goes well beyond the call of duty in his bid to protect a vulnerable baby, Susanne Bier's drama certainly means well. But between an overwrought plot, some far-fetched twists and many a disturbing scene, it is hard to see who would want the emotional punishment which comes from sitting through this. This is another misfire from Bier after Serena, but as In a Better World shows, there are few directors better than her when it comes to hard-hitting emotional dramas. Here's hoping for a return to form soon.
Glasgow Film Theatre and Filmhouse, Edinburgh, from March 20
Alison Rowat
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