355. Summer 1993 (Estiu 1993 ); movie review

SUMMER 1993 (ESTIU 1993)
CERT 12A
98 mins
BBFC advice: Contains infrequent strong language

How on earth do you get two small children to act so well that the audience feels as if it is watching a documentary rather than fiction?
Carla Simón has cracked it with Summer 1993 in which she recreates her own traumatic childhood.
Laia Artigas was just eight years old when she took on the role of Simón's alterego, Frida - whose Barcelona-based parents have both died from Aids and is sent to the countryside to be brought up by her uncle (David Verdaguer) and his partner (Bruna Cusí).
Her grief isn't as obvious as it might be among adults but the re-adjustment is tough and she faces the added complication of doctors carrying out tests to see if she has the virus.
Artigas is astonishing as Frida, a girl who needs love but whose actions test those closest to her.
This manifests itself in myriad episodes which even prompt her guardians to think she may be evil.
Nevertheless, they try to have empathy and, meanwhile, their younger daughter (Paula Robles) becomes both Frida's partner in crime and the victim of her pranks.
Many of the scenes, in the Catalan countryside, focus on Artigas and Robles and, as said, they are so natural that it was hard to detect they were acting.
Indeed, I have since read that they weren't. Simón has revealed that neither read the script and she merely gave them loose instruction and asked them to play.
That is how she captured both their innocence and their impishness.
Summer 93 is a superbly observed drama about how bereavement is faced by the very young as well as the more mature.
It also examines how a family reacts when a child is orphaned when they are grieving too and asks questions about how much latitude they should give.
But most of all it will be remembered for the contributions of the two youngsters. I doubt they will be equalled in 2018.

Reasons to watch: Astonishing performance such young children
Reasons to avoid: It is deliberately slow

Laughs: None
Jumps: None
Vomit: None
Nudity: None
Overall rating: 8.5/10

Director quote - Carla Simon: “I love to work with children. I'd say that sometimes I work better with them than with adults. I love it because they have so much truth in them."

The big question - How does a family handle an orphan?

Share this post