Klaus Härö's Mother of Mine (2005) touches on a subject which is rarely discussed nowadays (even in Finland): during World War II tens of thousands of Finnish children were sent to Sweden to avoid the conflict by living with a surrogate family. In Härö's film, a 9-year-old boy's mother sends him to Sweden after his father dies. Initially he hates the surrogate the members of which are just as broken and vulnerable as he is. Eventually their wounds begin to heal and they bond.
The screenplay is magnificent because it handles the subject and characters thoroughly and honestly. Problems concerning coming of age, language and family are explored and observed in an unforgettably poignant way. The screenplay is simply top-notch in all aspects. Härö's form is stunning yet again - especially his cinematography is simply impeccable. The only gripe I had with this film is rather minor: the last 20 minutes had a few weird formal choices that could have been done better. However, that is still a really tiny problem in a fantastic film.
Klaus Härö's Mother of Mine is Finnish (albeit a co-production with Swedes) cinema at its best. Forget Kaurismäki: it doesn't get a lot better than this.
Score: 10 out of 10
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