Ema

As "Ema" (2019 release from Chile; 107 min.) opens, we see a traffic light on fire, literally. As the camera scans back, we see a woman (Ema) walking away while she is holding a flamethrower. We then get to know Ema, a modern ballet dancer, and her husband Gaston, a troupe's choreographer. They argue back and forth about the fate of their 9 yr. Old child Polo, whom they had adopted but recently was taken away by (or turned in to?) the Children's Protection Services. What did Polo do exactly? At this point we are less than 10 min. Into the movie but to tell you more would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.

Couple of comments: this is the latest movie from Chilean director Pablo Lorrain. In fact it's his first movie since directing hos Hollywood debut in 2016 with the widely acclaimed "Jackie". For "Ema", he returns to Chile, and more specifically the Pacific Ocean town Valparaiso (itself a character and star in this film). The film is a fascinating mix of a family and relationship drama on the one hand, and more abstract observations on the other hand, topped off with a generous dose of reggaeton music and modern dancing. Beware: the movie features a LOT of nudity, so if that is an issue for you, I'd suggest you check out something else. The cast is for us Americans completely unknown, but kudos to Mariana Di Girolamo, who is just fantastic in the title role.

As noted in the film's end credits, the entire movie was filmed in Valparaiso in September of 2018. It premiered a year later at the 2019 Venice Film Festival. Then COVID messed up a theatrical release in the US. Now 3 years later after shooting, the movie had gotten a limited theatrical release in the US. It opened this weekend at my local arthouse theater here in Cincinnati, and I couldn't wait to see it. The early Saturday evening screening where I saw this at turned out to be a private screening. I literally was the only person in the theater. Never mind. If you are in the mood for a top notch foreign family and relationship drama, I'd readily suggest you check this out, be it in the theater (while you still can), on VOD, or on DVD/Blu-ray, and draw your own conclusion.