Saturday, March 28, 2009

Mother of Mine

When World War II began to threaten Finland, the Swedes opened up their homes and took in 70,000 Finnish children until it was safe for them to go home. This is the backdrop of Mother of Mine, a premise that at once stills my heart to a low murmur, my head says No, don't go there. I did watch this stunning film then with lump in my throat and tears in my eyes, placed it high on the list of my favorite foreign films. This is a seamless and poignant story of lives coming together, lives that have come apart.

The story centers on Eero, a nine year old boy whose beloved father leaves to enter the war and never comes back. Eero and his mother are alone as Russia invades and she is forced to send him away for his safety. In a dim, depressing scene he boards a ship with other children and is carried away with two promises - to be returned as soon as the war is over and to be given a new bike in Sweden. The girls are promised dolls.

Some children are taken to facilities, but there is a home for Eero. His new home is by the sea. Pale green rolling hills, absent of trees or bush, and constant soft blue skies pair together filling the screen in nearly every scene . A farm house and low barns, all white and trimmed in green, connect to form a small cobblestone courtyard. There are geese and pigs and a humble couple who care for an elderly father. Willingly but cautiously they welcome this boy and begin to share their lives with young Eero, who misses his mother and doesn't speak their language.

Colors are prominent in this film: the perfect spring green of the grassy hills, the permanence of the blue sky, the staid white house with hopeful green accents, the dark blue car that cuts through this unchanging scene carrying child welfare managers, and the red mail box that stands alone at the bottom of the winding driveway. Here Eero waits to hear from his mother and the woman of the house, his new mother, retrieves letters that affect her present, dictate her future and dredge up her past.

1 comment:

  1. umm...I don't like war movies...the last one I saw made me cry for days...sooo much loss, sadness. i might have to pass on this one or just focus on the subtitles and never look at the TV screen.

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