In Maggie Gyllenhaal’s compelling directorial debut, Olivia Colman plays a scientist seeking tranquility on a Greek island. An introduction to a young mother and daughter evoking memories of her motherhood.
Who doesn’t know it: Just when you think you can relax on a perfect beach—a comfy beach chair, a cool cocktail, a good book—a rowdy group of people loom out of nowhere. At worst they are led by two screaming children.
in a the missing daughter The face of Leda (Olivia Colman) says a lot when a huge American family arrives on a deserted Greek beach. When that family also asked her to move home moments later, her answer was a resounding “no.” It is Leda who strongly defines her territory: she eats alone, drinks alone, lives alone. Visitors are only welcome in that area on its terms.
In this film adaptation of Elena Ferrante’s book of the same name, director Maggie Gyllenhaal slowly releases an excerpt of information about Leda. She’s clearly a workaholic, but she nevertheless took some time to recover on a romantic Greek island. Although she is not necessarily open to new relationships, she develops an unhealthy obsession with a tumultuous family that disrupts her peace.
She is especially fascinated by young mother Nina (Dakota Johnson) and her young daughter. Their band evokes memories of Lida’s motherhood, leading to flashbacks of her younger days (where she played Jesse Buckley). Lida became a mother in her early twenties, and that doesn’t seem to be going well with her bright future at university. But Lida ignores prevailing social norms and chooses her career over motherhood.
So Lida describes herself in the middle of the film as an “abnormal mother”. Not everyone is born with it, she says, and children can also be a “devastating responsibility.” It makes Leda an endlessly interesting cinematic character, forever elusive behind that mask of apathy. She is impatient, unable to adapt, and at times unsympathetic. All the more smart to inflict on Coleman for the role, who always adds something natural to her characters. After, among other things Favorite (Yorgos Lanthimos, 2018) in the father (Florian Zeller, 2020) This is the thousandth direct hit in a short time for the British actress.
But the missing daughter He especially cleverly gets rid of the one-sided notion of natural maternal instinct, and the tea and biscuits that go with it. Sometimes it’s just a hassle to be a mother. Gyllenhaal portrays it all cleverly, without espousing a moral point of view. that makes the missing daughter For one of the brightest and most accurate debut films in years.
the missing daughter It will be available on Netflix from December 31.
