No. 47 (2021) MY ZOE. JUNE 12th.

 

Film No. 47 (2021)  June 12th.  11:00 AM  Cinema 5   LUNA,  Leederville. 

"But you were always the one to say, when there is no more hope, just keep on going" (Kathy, Isabelle's mother reminds her daughter of what is to be the philosophy Isabelle adopts in the weeks, months and years ahead).

MY ZOE unfolds as a piece of theatre. A play in Three Acts. But don't be put off by the mention of theatre on screen, director/writer and lead actor Julie Delpy has done an excellent job in crafting a good film. A many layered film that, in its third act delves into the world of science fiction; a science fiction we could easily believe, in these progressive times of medical breakthroughs.

Delpy has talked about what inspired her to make such a heartfelt film in terms of loss. She herself is a mother and has often thought about how she might cope if something should happen to a child of hers. What would be the added complications while suffering grief of the most horrendous kind? Then, not just how she would cope but would it be possible to repair that grief in a way, scientifically, that's never been done before?

Well, Delpy goes to work as an artist (writer, director and actor) to try to answer these questions in the thought provoking MY ZOE. And the three acts plus the clever postscript add up to a minor triumph, in my view.

Isabelle (Delpy) and James (Richard Armitage) are married but separated. Both are devoted to their only child, Zoe (Sophia Ally). Their love for their daughter is unconditional and we sense there is drama of the worst kind ahead and that their shared devotion to their only child will become a weapon particularly because Zoe is under Isabelle's roof when a medical emergency strikes. 

That sums up the first two acts of MY ZOE. The third has us travelling with grief stricken Isabelle to another land. Another land with the resources to help her to recover but we have to be flexible of mind here. Is what she does along with the help of Dr Tom Fischer (Daniel Bruhl) and wife Laura (Gemma Arterton) possible? But it matters little. The 4 minute postscript sums up the point of Isabelle's fight to ward off grief of the worst kind. I thoroughly enjoyed where the multi talented Delpy took me with MY ZOE.  10GUMS.