Redefining the Sense of Womanhood and Confidence – BRAZILIAN PRESS // O maior jornal brasileiro fora do Brasil
By Roger Costa
ROSE
It is a hard task to survive after losing a loved one. For 78-year-old Rose, accepting the loss of her husband is a tragic burden. When we first see her, they are celebrating life itself during a Jewish party, and she seems very lively, healthy and surrounded by love. We also learn during this event, that her husband is not well and he doesn’t want to ruin the night and spares her from the truth. Her doctor-son knows about it and confirms he will be part of the medical team during his treatment.
His sudden illness and death have turned Rose’s life, routine and sense of pride upside down to the point she won’t answer the phone, she is unable to perform self care, including washing herself at times, she declines her children’s efforts to help, and won’t leave the house.
One day, she resists to her daughter’s call for a coffee in a shop nearby and that’s the moment of liberation, the moment she finds motivation and experiences a sense of meaning again. She is immediately connected to the place, its cozy and inviting atmosphere, and the charming bartender. She tastes pleasure for life again.
Then, the same daughter takes her for a dinner party, which seems to be inspired by the aesthetic of Luis Bunuel, where self-assurance and confidence escalate for Rose. Curious and naive, she observes a group of intellectuals hosted by a similarly aging writer and the circumstances only benefit for her self-liberation. Until that moment, Rose was still only a “widow” as she describes herself at the table, but the key turns when she realizes she belongs even though now she is alone in the world.
It is the first step into womanhood for an aging woman who had spent her entire life in the shadows of her husband, and now struggles to accept her feminine desires and human needs. This is a moment of transformation, a moment of setting up her wings to fly and conquer her independence away. At the same instance, her grown-up children are also facing transformations and challenges of their own. The daughter believes she isn’t able to start a family; her doctor son gives love a chance, and the youngest is in trouble with the law.
Looking at these interactions among family, friends and supportive random people, giving Rose a chance to move on, director Aurelie Saada takes a deeply affecting approach to the themes of grieving and overcoming, explored through an elderly woman’s self-realization. Her lenses are passionate about her characters, creating a relatable and tender atmosphere.
Award-winning veteran actress Françoise Fabian is magnificent as Rose, delivering an incredible mixture of comedy, drama and sensuality that feels fresh and (considering her character’s age) groundbreaking.
Winner of the Variety Piazza Grande Award at Locarno, it is a sensitive, thoughtful and humane look at a woman’s ability to unexpectedly redefine herself at an advanced stage of her life.
(A Cohen Media Group Release. Now Playing at Quad Cinema, 34 West 13th Street, Manhattan. Go to https://quadcinema.com/ for details)
