Adapted from the book by Roland Perez, a lawyer well known from television, the film tells a rather incredible story, but above all a deeply human one. It takes us back to a France that no longer exists, with its customs, its stars, its popular references and that very particular relationship with the mother found in certain Jewish Pied-Noir families. All this is told without being heavy-handed, with plenty of humour and genuine tenderness.
The adaptation is particularly successful. The script is solid, the pace never falters and, quite unusually, you’re never bored for a second. The film moves steadily forward, shifting effortlessly from laughter to emotion, and strikes a perfect balance between family comedy and a more serious narrative.
Leïla Bekhti literally lights up the screen. You can sense she is completely immersed in this role of an overbearing, all-consuming, courageous and at times unbearable mother, yet entirely driven by the desire to save her son. She imbues the character with boundless energy and almost always avoids caricature, despite the exuberance of the role.
This, in fact, is where the film is at its strongest: in this story of total maternal love, which is at once magnificent, toxic, moving and, at times, frankly frightening. A mother convinced that she can free her son from his disability through willpower, faith, medicine, sheer determination, Sylvie Vartan or anything else that might give him a chance. This love is deeply moving precisely because it is unreasonable.
The film also works very well in its tragicomic vein. It never seeks to turn disability into a tear-jerking subject. Above all, it tells the story of a family, an era, a mother’s obsession and a child who must, at some point, become his own person.
The sets are excellent and the period reconstruction works very well. My only real criticism concerns certain hairstyles and make-up, which are at times a little too heavy-handed, almost theatrical. At times, one senses more of a desire to ‘capture the era’ than the era itself.
But that’s a minor detail given the overall enjoyment.
*My Mother, God and Sylvie Vartan* is an excellent, accessible film: funny, moving, generous and very well put together. A film that tells us something about France, about family, about difference and, above all, about that maternal love capable of saving everything — or devouring almost everything.
An absolute must-see.
And its success is richly deserved.
