It happens that there are times in life when all problems arise at once.. This is something Alex and Noémie could think of, the protagonists of the first feature-length work by Belgian director Ann Sirot. Madly in life It shows us, So, to a couple in their thirties who are about to make a relevant decision: have a child. To the usual doubts and conflicts (is the time right?), adds another inconvenience. Suddenly, Alex's mother, Suzanne, starts to have very strange behaviors. At first, These behaviors are attributed to simple oversights or extravagances., but, as time goes by, Alex and Noémie begin to realize that there is something more here. After a visit to the gynecologist, Alex discovers that his mother suffers “semantic dementia”, a neurodegenerative disorder that seems to lead her to suffer a kind of regression to her childhood, along with notable memory losses. All of this forces Alex to take care of his mother and welcome her into his home.. But this will complicate his coexistence with Noémie, who sees his plans frustrated.
With a remarkable sense of humor, Ann Sirot delves into the problems of degenerative diseases to build a beautiful human landscape. Unlike other productions that have addressed these issues, Madly in life does not draw blood from the wound, but rather tries to cure it by taking viewers along the path of understanding and affection as remedies for certain vital and existential dramas.. But, as the director tells us in this interview, That hidden humor that paves the way for us does not mean that things here are not taken seriously..
The story is based on a real event. Could you tell us what the genesis of the film was??
Yeah, the film is based on real events, personal, and reflects what we have learned or deduced after living this experience ourselves that we tell in the film. It was a very intense adventure with different moments, and what we wanted was to share it with the public, both the most difficult moments, like the happiest moments in this story.
The film shows the characters at a crossroads. Just at the moment when they are considering taking the step to parenthood, His mother gets sick and Alex has to take her in, which is a big problem for your plans. This is a conflict that previous generations perhaps assumed more easily.. However, For the younger generations it seems like a big conflict that paralyzes their lives. what has happened? What is the difference between previous generations and current ones??
Yeah, there may be a difference, but, In fact, that experience in which a child has to take care of his parents is a moment in life that is universal. No matter the age or generation, It's a complicated time. The problem is that in Belgium and France parents are not usually cared for much and are usually taken to retirement centers.. Good though, With this Covid, children have preferred to stay with their parents in their homes. But, as i say, It is an important moment in life. It doesn't matter if you have to put him in a care facility or you have to hire someone to take care of him. In this particular case, What happens is that it is normal for you to take care of your parents when they are of a certain age., when they are seventy or eighty-five years old, but what happened is that we had to take care of our father when he was 60 years, which is a relatively young age. For us it was a turning point in our adult lives., but it was what had to be done.
In relation to this, one of the themes of the film is the passage to maturity. Not to the maturity of age, but to an inner maturity. Don't we become mature until we take care of our parents, until we take your place?
Yeah, I agree. The moment one takes care of one's father is the moment of a kind of obligatory emancipation. We have been trying to emancipate ourselves all our lives, but this step, when you have to take care of your parents, it is mandatory, you have no choice.
Suzanne's character is very important in the film. We could say that it is the one that reveals what is hidden in the couple.. It is the catalyst for your problems. How did you build that character??
That can be shared between Suzanne's personality and her illness.. In fact, his illness crystallizes his reactions to everything, but, and this is accentuated by the disease, reveals the artistic nature of each of the characters. For example, In Alex's case, She wants him to pick up his guitar again., make music and things like that. The disease forces others to reveal that artistic part that we all carry inside. This is shown when Alex enters Suzanne's world., when he agrees to set up the exhibition they are doing with Thelma's drawings and that artistic part of his son appears.
Would you say that Suzanne's problem exposes the somewhat frivolous part of the couple's problems??
Couple problems are problems that any couple can have.. But, in the end, The problem is not Suzanne's illness itself., but the reaction he has regarding the illness. The disease is experienced differently, depending on the characters. Alex is the mother's biological son and that makes him very close to the disease. Noémie, instead, take more distance. So, It is difficult to find the balance between these two ways of perceiving it.. In fact, One of the problems they have is that Alex becomes very burdensome in the face of the situation they are experiencing.. That reaction can be understood, but the problem is that it crushes all the happiness he has.
Apart from this great conflict of the disease, There are small themes that are exposed below the story. One of those issues is exposed when it is discovered that Suzanne has a large financial debt to pay., which jeopardizes your retirement. With this “the system” appears on the scene., the order that controls our lives.
Yeah, This family problem is transferred to society because it is a moment in life to which we are not very accustomed.. It is something that is at the heart of our lives, at the center of what human beings live. In fact, If we wanted to make this film it is to invite everyone to reflect on the issue together.. To return to the topic of Suzanne revealing the artistic side of people, in these types of diseases, so that they can overcome well, you have to be demanding. This requirement is shown in the fact that solutions must be “invented”. That process is, in himself, an invitation to creation. Or at least an everyday creation, how to manage in life to solve small problems, find tricks to get out of any situation.
The film deals with a dramatic issue, but you approach it with humor. Nowadays there is a danger that there will always be someone who will interpret that you are frivolizing with these issues.. Now it is very fashionable to point out the one who, for whatever, It is interpreted that he is frivolizing with a problem. Have you not feared at some point that your film would fall into that misinterpretation??
Well, at the moment, these misinterpretations have not occurred, but it is that, even though it is a movie that makes us laugh, we take the issue very seriously. That's why we don't worry much about those misinterpretations., because laughter is linked to that kind of happiness in which the disease seems to immerse you. It's not that we laugh at the sick woman, we laugh at what he does. There were very funny moments, and that is part of this adventure. In the end, Suzanne is a very transgressive character because she allows herself things that, in the social framework, They are not allowed because we prohibit everything. In fact, We have a framework of life that is very small because of the barriers we put up for ourselves.. Suzanne allows them to open their eyes to everything that can be done and that we prohibit ourselves because of the social framework.
To finish, I wanted you to tell us how the idea of turning the couple's bedroom into that metaphorical space came about..
Yeah, as Suzanne already proposes creation, What we thought was to show that creation through the images of the film. So, We set out to apply that creative process to the image. We think, why can't we do it? In the room they are in when they go to see the gynecologist, For example, just put a color to understand that we are there. It's as if Suzanne herself said: bueno, why can't it be done like this? (laughter) When her son gets angry with her because she bought another car just to change the color, that is precisely said, why can't it be done like this?
