FAMILY LIFE

Two of Chile's finest filmmakers come together for a delightfully strange, heartfelt look at mid-30s ennui and the lies we tell ourselves about what makes us happy.

Bruno and Consuelo are in a rut. Well into their thirties and all-too familiar with the endless worry and stolen attention that comes with having a young child, they decide to head overseas for a few months, leaving behind Bruno's feckless cousin Martin to look after their apartment. But Martin is a man who's also looking for direction, and after a chance encounter with single mother Pachi leads to a lie about his ownership of the place, he decides to adopt Bruno and Consuelo's life as his own.

Chilean young guns Cristián Jiménez (Bonsai, MIFF 2012) and Alicia Scherson unite in Family Life, a nuanced, wry and perceptively poignant take on, well, family life – as well as masculinity, mental illness, love, ageing and a whole lot more besides. Based on a short story by literary phenom Alejandro Zambra and shot largely in Scherson's own apartment, Family Life is a tightly coiled, kitchen-sink dramedy whose unfurling intimacies are almost too close to home.

'Beguiling … by turns strange, caustic and most importantly funny, with a standout lead performance.' – The Playlist