Fugue (Agnieszka Smoczynska)

[Spinal]

IMDb

[Spinal]

Agnieszka Smoczynska is the director of The Lure and I don't really even know how to say her name, but she's becoming one of my favorites. This film doesn't really resemble her first feature at all, but it's good to know that she can be captivating even without a premise as outrageous as a killer mermaid musical. Gabriela Muskala wrote the screenplay and plays the lead role of a mother, Kinga, who returns to her family two years after a traumatic event put her into a dissociative fugue. Her parents are hoping she can re-assimilate with her family. However, her husband shows signs of having moved on, and it's really unclear if Kinga has much interest in her former life, even rejecting her old name for a new one. Smoczynska clearly inspires trust in her actors who give brave, honest performances, particularly Muskala who, despite being the author, doesn't go to pains to make Kinga too likable or pitiable. There's a reveal of information late in the film that might have been more powerful if we had seen it rather than heard the characters talk about it. But still, the ending is heartfelt and satisfying.