'Sister' is the Swiss entry for both the Academy and Spirit Award nomination in the best foreign language film category. It's a very well-acted, bleak portrait of the relationship between a 12/13 year old boy, Simon, and his older caretaker, Louise, played by Léa Seydoux.
HUGE SPOILERS AHEAD. For a good part of the film, we're led to believe that Louise, is Simon's older sister, after Simon claims that their parents were killed in a car accident. Eventually, however, it's revealed that Louise is actually the child's mother.
Most of the plot takes place at a Swiss ski resort, where Simon mainly pilfers expensive skis and ski accessories from well-off, unsuspecting tourists and supports himself and his mother, by selling the items (principally to employees at the resort). Along the way, Simon befriends a British resort employee who helps him sell some of the stolen merchandise. On one occasion, a tourist catches Simon stealing from him and the child suffers a beating, resulting in a bloody nose and bruises on his body (do you really believe, no one at the resort would have called the police on their cell phone, when they saw an adult attack a young child?).
Louise makes it clear to Simon that she never wanted him and refuses to hardly parent him at all. The unloved boy is so desperate for affection that he offers her money, if she'll just cuddle him in bed. Meanwhile, Louise refuses to support the two, and for most of the film, selfishly takes money from the boy to support herself. She also seeks out abusive boyfriends, ignores the effect those relationships have on Simon and often leaves the child to his own devices.
It becomes rather clear that Simon's criminality is tied directly to Louise's neglect and extremely poor parenting. You'll have to suspend your disbelief quite a bit to believe that there are people as extreme as Louise. In real life, wouldn't a narcissist like Louise, simply make sure Simon goes to school, to keep him out of her hair? And if he ends up as a truant, the authorities would have no problem shipping him off to reform school. Yes I know she's supposed to be out of it, but it just seems a little too convenient, that no ever reports her and little Simon gets away with his pint size theft routine, for so long.
And also what exactly is director Usrula Meier's overall point? That without love, kids can end up with some really bad problems? Even before Simon poaches the watch, causing Louise to lose her job, we pretty much realize that Simon's downward spiral will not reverse course (in other words, we GET the point that this indeed, is a TRAGIC situation, way before the denouement). Yes, it's clever and dramatic to show the two going in opposite directions on the cable lift at film's end, symbolizing that Simon will not get the help he needs from his mother, but how about letting reality intrude into the story for a minute? The appropriate ending would be for some social workers to intervene and place the child in foster care or some kind of institutional setting. But this film is more about hitting us over the head about the 'tragedy' of this grim relationship, instead of establishing a proper verisimilitude.
'Sister's weak point is the rather one-note, simplistic portrait of the mother from hell. Are there people like that in real life? Maybe. But usually there's some kind of motive (is she a drug addict? Prostitute?)--it's all so sketchy. Why not find out a little bit more about her? Or is she so one-dimensional, that there's nothing more to learn?
What keeps us interested is how far Simon will sink into the morass of criminality. In that respect, Meier is more successful in fascinating us as voyeurs in a crime drama, than the more unexplained and obvious dissection of a broken relationship between mother and child.
HUGE SPOILERS AHEAD. For a good part of the film, we're led to believe that Louise, is Simon's older sister, after Simon claims that their parents were killed in a car accident. Eventually, however, it's revealed that Louise is actually the child's mother.
Most of the plot takes place at a Swiss ski resort, where Simon mainly pilfers expensive skis and ski accessories from well-off, unsuspecting tourists and supports himself and his mother, by selling the items (principally to employees at the resort). Along the way, Simon befriends a British resort employee who helps him sell some of the stolen merchandise. On one occasion, a tourist catches Simon stealing from him and the child suffers a beating, resulting in a bloody nose and bruises on his body (do you really believe, no one at the resort would have called the police on their cell phone, when they saw an adult attack a young child?).
Louise makes it clear to Simon that she never wanted him and refuses to hardly parent him at all. The unloved boy is so desperate for affection that he offers her money, if she'll just cuddle him in bed. Meanwhile, Louise refuses to support the two, and for most of the film, selfishly takes money from the boy to support herself. She also seeks out abusive boyfriends, ignores the effect those relationships have on Simon and often leaves the child to his own devices.
It becomes rather clear that Simon's criminality is tied directly to Louise's neglect and extremely poor parenting. You'll have to suspend your disbelief quite a bit to believe that there are people as extreme as Louise. In real life, wouldn't a narcissist like Louise, simply make sure Simon goes to school, to keep him out of her hair? And if he ends up as a truant, the authorities would have no problem shipping him off to reform school. Yes I know she's supposed to be out of it, but it just seems a little too convenient, that no ever reports her and little Simon gets away with his pint size theft routine, for so long.
And also what exactly is director Usrula Meier's overall point? That without love, kids can end up with some really bad problems? Even before Simon poaches the watch, causing Louise to lose her job, we pretty much realize that Simon's downward spiral will not reverse course (in other words, we GET the point that this indeed, is a TRAGIC situation, way before the denouement). Yes, it's clever and dramatic to show the two going in opposite directions on the cable lift at film's end, symbolizing that Simon will not get the help he needs from his mother, but how about letting reality intrude into the story for a minute? The appropriate ending would be for some social workers to intervene and place the child in foster care or some kind of institutional setting. But this film is more about hitting us over the head about the 'tragedy' of this grim relationship, instead of establishing a proper verisimilitude.
'Sister's weak point is the rather one-note, simplistic portrait of the mother from hell. Are there people like that in real life? Maybe. But usually there's some kind of motive (is she a drug addict? Prostitute?)--it's all so sketchy. Why not find out a little bit more about her? Or is she so one-dimensional, that there's nothing more to learn?
What keeps us interested is how far Simon will sink into the morass of criminality. In that respect, Meier is more successful in fascinating us as voyeurs in a crime drama, than the more unexplained and obvious dissection of a broken relationship between mother and child.