A mother-son relationship is usually glorified and idealised across cultures. Anne-Sophie Bailly’s French film, Mon Inseparable (English title, My Everything) showcases a distinct, complex side of the bond, complete with its several inherent contradictions and ambiguities.
The film, which premiered recently in the Orizzonti (Horizons) section of the Venice Film Festival, is centred on a middle-aged Parisian single mother Mona (Laure Calamy) who has been looking after her grown up, differently abled son Joel (Charles Peccia Galletto), all by herself, ever since his birth. The “slow” Joel falls in love with his coworker in the special facility, Oceane (Jolie Froger), who is also differently abled. Life throws a major challenge at all of them when Oceane gets pregnant.
Sophie Bailly looks at several aspects of this tricky situation—its practical, human and ethical dimensions, and its repercussions on the individuals involved, their relationships and families. Her probe might lack depth and complexity and could feel cursory to some but is nonetheless teeming with a deep sense of empathy.
On the one hand is Mona, who had kept her own life on hold for a long while for the sake of Joel. Just when she had begun to unshackle herself from the chain of responsibilities, with a new relationship beginning to blossom, she is confronted with the necessity to put herself on the backseat yet again. It’s triggered by the overwhelming worry about whether Joel and Oceane will manage to take responsibility for and be able to take care of another life when they need constant monitoring and help themselves.
On the other hand, for Joel and Oceane, it’s all about claiming ownership of their own bodies, desires and assertion of their basic instinct and fundamental right to be together and have a family of their own. Why should the rest of the world decide things for them just because they are not like everyone else? Along with all these ideas is the unspoken concern about the health and well-being of their progeny. Will it make life more difficult for them and the rest? Or will it get better with the ringing of hope, renewal and happiness? Who is to say and predict what lies ahead?
These critical, intricate issues come to life thanks to the marvellous performances from the three lead players. Froger is dreamily sweet, basking in love and impending motherhood yet equally defiant in asserting that she wouldn’t terminate her pregnancy. Galletto has an endearing way about him while showing love for his mother by baking her tarts and gifting her flowers, only to lose it during a heated argument in a cafe by the sea. It’s a punch in the gut scene that coasts fabulously on the reciprocity Calamy shares with Galletto. She is a powerhouse performer, captivating enough to not have us take our eyes off her and heartbreaking as we witness her go through the meltdown.
Incidentally, both Froger and Galletto are differently abled in real life, which makes the dynamic among them, especially the intimacy between Calamy and Galletto, doubly special. However, much as the film bravely platforms and champions the complicated concerns of the differently abled, it essentially doesn’t rise above being the story of a single mother and gets told entirely from her perspective. But what it does have in abundance is emotional resonance.
My Everything is an unassuming, bittersweet film about the ties that bind us with enormous love and care but can also prove a constraint and throttle us. Mona and Joel, who have been dependent on each other, need to get off the parasitic mode of feeding off each other’s emotions. They both need to break free to find themselves and each other. Love, after all, is as much about detachment as it is about intimacy. And, ultimately, My Everything underscores the need to find liberation, while remaining deeply connected.