Madre

Greetings again from the darkness. Filmmaker Rodrigo Sorogoyen begins his film with a long, slow pan shot across a deserted beach until we see the waves rhythmically rolling in and out. It appears to be a most peaceful setting, but instead it's actually the set up for one of the most intense and emotionally shattering short films ever.

Marta Nieto and her mother Blanca Apilanez are hanging around the apartment on what's a typical day for them. When Marta's answers a call, an unimaginable horror unfolds via cell phone. On the other end is her 6 year old son. He's on holiday with his father, Marta's ex. Only her son tells her, as his cell phone battery is dying, that dad left him and now he's alone on a beach ... he thinks it's France, but could be Spain.

Marta and her mother juggle cell phones as they try to track down the father, while keeping the young boy as calm as possible. It's a captivating and stunning performance by Marta Nieto, and a brilliant piece of filmmaking from Mr. Sorogoyen. It may be the most unsettling 19 minutes of movie I've seen, and if it had gone any longer, it might have become truly unbearable.

A woman goes through her daily routine until she receives a call from her 6 year old son. What transpires as an affectionate conversation between mother and son turns into a nightmare as the reality of the situation unfolds. A sterling story with topnotch acting especially by lead actress Marta Nieto as the hysteric mother who tries to keep her sanity together as the mounting horror engulfing her life escalates with each painful second. A tense and gripping thriller that's all too real, this is perhaps the best short ever made.

I found this short film to be very engaging, particularly due to the fact that it's seemingly all shot in one take, as the two actors seamlessly moved through different rooms. The decision to shoot everything in real-time and keep everything present contributed significantly to the mounting tension and suspense in the film. I do have to agree with the opinion of another reviewer here regarding the conclusion. While I wasn't looking for a tidy, pat wrap-up, the suddenness of one character just dashing out the door just seemed too abrupt to me. I'm looking forward to seeing the 2019 feature film by director Sorogoyen that was inspired by this short, if I can find it. If you have the opportunity, I highly recommend watching this short film as it expertly constructs a gradual, almost frantic, sense of suspense.

Sorogoyen is one of the best and most mature directors working out there right now and 'Madre ('Mother')' is another bulletproof reson to validate this affirmation. He does an incredible work with this powerful short that promises to stay in your memory long enough. A short film can be incredibly tricky for what may involve or should to really accomplish its target, but this one is really good. The acting is raw and real. The tension is actually shocking. It was adapted into a motion picture later, but even if that was a really good and sensitive film it never lives up to the unrestrained promises this short left. One of the best Spanish productions, period.