Mother and Son is a 1997 Russian film directed by Aleksandr Sokurov, depicting the relationship between an old, dying mother and her young son. It was Sokurov's first internationally acclaimed feature film, and is the first part of a trilogy that has for its subject matter the study of the drama in human relationships. It is followed by Father and Son (2003), and by Two Brothers and a Sister, the final installment, which is in its preliminary filming stage.

Plot

The film opens on two human forms, which soon reveal themselves to be that of a young man and a frail, old woman. They recline in a silence penetrated only by whispers and indistinguishable noises. The young man is the son (Alexei Ananishnov) who is taking care of his exhausted, sick mother (Gudrun Geyer). Her illness is undefined and from time to time causes her great pain as she gasps for air. Her son combs her hair, feeds her, covers her with a coat, and takes her in his arms. She is totally dependent on him as he himself was once totally dependent on her. As the film progresses, the son carries his mother on a long journey, from her sick-bed to her death-bed. It is a circular motion, which travels a long walk through a dream-like landscape in the countryside, along winding dirt roads. At each of their brief stops on the journey is a moment of contemplation, caresses, and tender murmurs. These soft murmurs tell of the mother's love for her son when she was nurturing him and of the son's love for his mother as he opens for her the mysterious path to her death. They progress under the leaden and luminous ski of the Baltic, in totally isolated landscapes. From time to time, there is a far away train or a sail on the sea, emphasizing further their isolation from the rest of the world

They return to the house. The son tenderly lowers his mother into her bed, which now seems to resemble a coffin. Both know that the end is nearing, although he tries to reassure her to the contrary. He leaves her for a time and goes for a long, solitary walk. When he returns, his mother may have died.

Themes

"Mother and Son" (1997) is a love story, not of romantic love as in "Romeo and Juliette" or "Tristan and Isolde", but rather regarding the profound emotional and spiritual ties that exist between a mother and her son.

The theme of death and of a mother and son recalls the Christian

Christian

A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...

 Passion

Passion (Christianity)

The Passion is the Christian theological term used for the events and suffering – physical, spiritual, and mental – of Jesus in the hours before and including his trial and execution by crucifixion...

, only here with the roles reversed – a dying mother, rather than a dying son – which has been called a "reverse pietà

Pietà

The Pietà is a subject in Christian art depicting the Virgin Mary cradling the dead body of Jesus, most often found in sculpture. As such, it is a particular form of the Lamentation of Christ, a scene from the Passion of Christ found in cycles of the Life of Christ...

".

Cinematography

The cinematography of the film featured images distorted by filming through painted glass panes, mirrors, and special lenses, together with sounds of "whispering wind, crashing waves, and sea-gull cries", creating an elegiac mood. The dreamy landscapes have been compared to the work of Caspar David Friedrich

Caspar David Friedrich

Caspar David Friedrich was a 19th-century German Romantic landscape painter, generally considered the most important German artist of his generation. He is best known for his mid-period allegorical landscapes which typically feature contemplative figures silhouetted against night skies, morning...

.

The painterly cinematography has been compared to the work of Peter Greenaway

Peter Greenaway

Peter Greenaway, CBE is a British film director. His films are noted for the distinct influence of Renaissance and Baroque painting, and Flemish painting in particular...

 and Derek Jarman

Derek Jarman

Michael Derek Elworthy Jarman was an English film director, stage designer, diarist, artist, gardener and author.-Life:...

, and the distortions to Stan Brakhage

Stan Brakhage

James Stanley Brakhage , better known as Stan Brakhage, was an American non-narrative filmmaker who is considered to be one of the most important figures in 20th century experimental film....

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