-Written by Kyle Bain.
Amaia (Laia Costa) has just become a mother for the first time–and she’s quickly understanding the incredible challenges that come with that responsibility. With her husband away for business, and her hands full with her newborn, she decides to move back in with her parents. Lullaby shows not only the difficulties of being a mother, but the challenges of dealing with your elderly parents as well. Amaia has so much on her plate; does she have the strength to survive?
The first forty-five minutes or so of Lullaby is focused solely on Amaia’s relationship with her newborn baby, and the way in which she addresses being a new mother. Constant tears, on both the parts of the baby and Amaia–and they become almost debilitating. I found myself rolling my eyes, cringing at the sound, even questioning whether or not this was a good film as a result of the content of the first half of the film. Then it suddenly hit me: this is the purpose of the film. Writer-Director Alauda Ruiz de Azúa wants to frustrate her audience, she wants to make this film as honest as possible. There’s no way to avoid a crying baby, a struggling mother, a family that’s being tested on the deepest level as a result of the situation in which they’ve found themselves.
Once I understood, once I had a chance to step back and look at the bigger picture I found this film quite charming. However, about halfway through the film, just as I was able to come to terms with its content, something changed.
Lullaby is a truly touching film, one full of emotion and hard-hitting drama. However, the initial storyline is abandoned around the halfway mark. The film is no longer about Amaia’s relationship with her daughter, but about her relationship with her elderly parents. I can understand that comparison, and I sort of understand why de Azúa chose to make this adjustment in the middle of the film. Though, I wasn’t a fan of the sudden switch. It took me a while to get on board with what Lullaby had to say, and by the time that occurred, that story existed no more. I don’t believe that the film needed a switch, that it needed added drama or intensity (it was all there from the start), and I feel that the secondary storyline only hinders Lullaby.
With that said, however, I do feel that even the less-than-ideal storyline is well developed. Lullaby almost plays out as two separate short films, each focusing on a different aspect of Amaia’s life and her struggles. The reason each aspect of the film is able to develop so effectively I attest to the set design. I found there to be an interesting relationship between the set and Amaia’s stories. The set is incredibly simplistic. It lacks any gusto, it does nothing to catch your eye–but that allows Amaia, her family, and their troubling stories to remain front and center. It seems like such a simple choice, or maybe not even a choice at all–but it works to juxtapose the rest of the film and heighten the drama present throughout the course of Lullaby.
What Lullaby does so well is create drama, something that can be extremely challenging. From the opening seconds (or forty minutes into the film if you’re dense like me) Lullaby creates something accessible–and while Amaia’s experiences are specific and pointed, I believe they lend themselves nicely to struggle in general. I truly wish that de Azúa had stuck to the original storyline, or even if she had cut the film in half. There are things that could have been done to make Lullaby more cohesive, and while I ultimately feel that the film is successful–it needs some work.
Written & Directed by Alauda Ruiz de Azúa.
Starring Laia Costa, Susi Sánchez, Ramón Barea, Mikel Bustamente, etc.
6.5/10 = WATCH IT FOR FREE
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