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The joint Jury Prize winner at Cannes (alongside Goodbye to Language, also screening at MIFF 2014), Mommy is the latest extraordinary work from prolific wunderkind Xavier Dolan.
In a near-future Quebecois suburb, Diane (Dolan regular Anne Dorval) is a trash-talking 50-something widow in stripper heels and sprayed-on jeans. Steve is her troubled teenage son, expelled from a care facility and into her custody over his violent, ADHD-fuelled outbursts. While mother and son attempt to negotiate their volatile but deeply heartfelt relationship, they attract the attention of Kyla, a stammering, introverted neighbour who inserts herself into the household and provides much-needed support.
The latest film from 25-year-old Dolan (Tom at the Farm, MIFF 2014; Laurence Anyways, MIFF 2012), Mommy is shot in a selfie-like 1:1 aspect ratio that draws viewers right to the centre of the threesome's intimate and explosive dynamic.
"Difficult and disorienting and thrilling and grand." – Vanity Fair