Cast: Itziar Aizpuru, Mariasun Pagoaga, José Ramón Argoitia
One might easily assume that a film about septuagenarian lesbian adulteresses is trying a bit too hard to shock; but Garano and Goenaga have in fact created a moving and subtle exploration into the timelessness of passion. Axun is a sullen and trampled wife who lives with her growling, childless patriarch Juan Mari. When her estranged daughter’s bastard ex-husband, Mikel, winds up in a coma after a car accident, Axun uses this barely feasible excuse to escape her cold, agrarian farm house. Axun finds little respite in the hospital, however, as she is immediately confronted by Maite – a ballsy lesbian who is throwing a birthday party for her comatose brother who shares a room with Mikel. After a few frosty encounters, Axun and Maite realise that they were best friends (and almost slightly more) as children. Maite has moved on, travelling the world, composing music, and liberating herself from her rural shackles; but it may be too late for Axun to do the same.
This beautiful and nuanced film is a stunning example of the criminally under-exposed world of Basque cinema. The film studies its subjects with patience and respect, but there is a ferocity and anger simmering beneath the surface. The film is kind and measured, but somehow always seems on the verge of erupting into madness and rage. The central performances, as a pairing, are equalled at this festival only by Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams in ‘Blue Valentine’. Itziar Aizpuru and Mariasun Pagoaga bring a charming vivacity and innocence to the potentially bizarre subject matter.
One might easily assume that a film about septuagenarian lesbian adulteresses is trying a bit too hard to shock; but Garano and Goenaga have in fact created a moving and subtle exploration into the timelessness of passion. Axun is a sullen and trampled wife who lives with her growling, childless patriarch Juan Mari. When her estranged daughter’s bastard ex-husband, Mikel, winds up in a coma after a car accident, Axun uses this barely feasible excuse to escape her cold, agrarian farm house. Axun finds little respite in the hospital, however, as she is immediately confronted by Maite – a ballsy lesbian who is throwing a birthday party for her comatose brother who shares a room with Mikel. After a few frosty encounters, Axun and Maite realise that they were best friends (and almost slightly more) as children. Maite has moved on, travelling the world, composing music, and liberating herself from her rural shackles; but it may be too late for Axun to do the same.
This beautiful and nuanced film is a stunning example of the criminally under-exposed world of Basque cinema. The film studies its subjects with patience and respect, but there is a ferocity and anger simmering beneath the surface. The film is kind and measured, but somehow always seems on the verge of erupting into madness and rage. The central performances, as a pairing, are equalled at this festival only by Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams in ‘Blue Valentine’. Itziar Aizpuru and Mariasun Pagoaga bring a charming vivacity and innocence to the potentially bizarre subject matter.
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