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Rose Plays Julie


Christine Molloy, Joe Lawlor | Ireland, UK | 2019 | 100m

Rose (Ann Skelly), an only child, has enjoyed a loving relationship with her adoptive parents but for as long as she can remember has wanted to know who her biological parents are and the facts of her birth. When, after years trying to trace her birth mother she finally finds her, it quickly becomes clear that her mother (Ellen - Orla Brady) has no wish to have any contact. Rose is shattered and decides to confront her.

Rose's arrival threatens the stability of the new life Ellen has painstakingly put together. Rose believes she has little to lose but fails to see she is on a collision course that will prove both violent and unsettling as dark forces gather and threaten to destroy her already fragile sense of identity.

"[T]here is no doubt about the chillingly accumulated potency and force of this movie, or the quality of the performances. It is a really powerful film and Brady’s final dialogue scene exerts a lethal grip." -Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

"Its emotional dilemmas, depictions of trauma, revenge and fractured family ties are handled with such skill and sense of purpose, it is truly exemplary film-making." -Martyn Conterio, CineVue

"Christine Malloy and Joe Lawlor’s film is one of the best screen depictions of the internal struggle of being adopted, perfectly realising a character’s permanent sense of existential displacement, and constant worries that she’s not living the life she was intended for. I was absolutely floored by this film..." -Alistair Ryder, Film Inquiry

Nominated - Best Film - London Film Festival

Cost $6.99
Ticket good for 3 days.

Watching here supports Film Movement and Carbon Arc.

Earlier Event: March 12
Softie
Later Event: March 19
Wojnarowicz