With the last of the anti-COVID measures being lifted, shops being reopened and people being able to walk through their hometowns without wearing masks all the time, we have to question what this new normal is. The concept itself suggests, one the one hand, a way back to the way things were, but also a different kind of awareness on the other hand. While the former certainly seems true for many, the latter is rather vague, with many societies, politicians and companies returning to their status quo, often repeating the same formula that has made things worse to begin with. When Filipino director Jun Robles Lana started making his new feature “Your Mother's Son”, the news of the being infected or killed by the virus was one horror next to the reports of people being shot by then-president Duterte's henchmen. Infamous for his provocative approach to his subjects and themes, Lana wanted to tackle whether we have become somewhat complacent, accepting a new normal without having learned anything from the recent past.
Your Mother's Son is screening at Five Flavours
Even though the pandemic is over, Sarah (Sue Prado) is still struggling to make ends meet, tutoring online classes, managing a laundry business and also selling sweet treats to her neighbors. She lives together with her son Emman (Kokoy De Santos), who has just lost his job as a waiter, and does not feel particularly eager to search for a new one just yet. Meanwhile, Amy (Elora Españo) is helping her with her businesses, while also entertaining a merely sexual relationship with Emman, who regularly meets her at her home to sleep with her and do some drugs.
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However, he also sleeps with Sarah, who, despite presenting this image to the outside, is not his mother, but has rather given him a home when his parents neglected him many years ago. Whereas Sarah wants to keep up appearances, Emman wants to stop pretending ,even if that means leaving their home behind. After a heated argument, things change for their relationship, as Sarah invites Oliver (Miggy Jimenez), who is supposed to replace Emman as her lover, or at least this is his suspicion.
Normality is a facade in Lana's feature, which is made clear right from the start. As we get to know the true nature of the relationships between the characters, we are exposed to a network of exploitation, dependency and deception. It is an explosive dynamic, further heightened by, for example, the sex scenes which are passionate, yet always surrounded by the aura of manipulation and power, often adding a feral quality to them. At the same time, the characters have accepted this reality as their day-to-day-life, with even the newcomer Oliver perfectly fitting into the mold, until eventually the powder keg explodes in their faces. It is obvious violence has to be the consequence of the characters' actions, but there is something quite horrific about their inability (or perhaps even unwillingness) to stop this vicious circle.
Essentially, “Your Mother's Son” is an ensemble piece with many great performances. Sue Prado, Elora Españo and especially Kokoy De Santos each have their moments in the feature, highlighting their character's unique struggles and their approach to get by. De Santos has an incredibly difficult task of playing a duplicitous, envious man who has gotten used to being “the man of the house” and a lover to two women (without them knowing of his betrayal of course), that he now feels pressured into a corner and losing his status. Similar to the other people in the story, he has very little awareness of what is happening in the world outside the microcosm he has been living in for the past year, unable to recognize how it mirrors its violence and depravity. “We can't be ourselves”, he tells Sarah, without realizing how much he is actually deceiving himself with statements such as this.
“Your Mother's Son” is an uncomfortable drama about manipulation and deception with many references to Filipino politics and society. Jun Robles Lana directs an intense feature, visually and narratively, which will stay with its viewer for its dark and pessimistic tone.
