Photograph
Whitefalk Films – courtesy La Biennale di Venezia
#Venice76 – La Biennale di Venezia - Film Festival
Babyteeth – Shannon Murphy
When seriously ill teenager Milla Finlay falls in love with smalltime drug dealer Moses, it’s her parents’ worst nightmare. But as Milla’s first brush with love brings her a new lust for life, things get messy and traditional morals go out the window. Milla shows everyone in her orbit—her parents, Moses, a sensitive music teacher, a budding child violinist, and a disarmingly honest pregnant neighbor—how to live like you have nothing to lose. What might have been a disaster for the Finlay family instead leads to letting go and finding grace in the glorious chaos of life. Babyteeth joyously explores how good it is not to be dead and how far we will go for love.
Starring: Eliza Scanlen, Toby Wallace, Emily Barclay,
Eugene Gilfedder, Essie Davis, Ben Mendelsohn.
Toby Wallace and
Eliza Scanlen
photograph by Rupert Reid – courtesy La Biennale di Venezia
“My ambition was to find a cinematic language to match the
peculiar tone of irreverence and sentiment in Rita Kalnejais’ whip smart
script. I was inspired by the challenge of harmonising this duality of humour
and pain in every frame of the film. There could be nothing tentative in my
approach in order to authentically represent our protagonist Milla, who at 15
is at the precipice of feeling more alive than she’s ever felt, yet abruptly
facing her own mortality. The film language involves stylised disruptions
through text, music and breaking the fourth wall which allow us to shift and
move at Milla’s accelerated pace. She falls in love with Moses, who she sees as
an opportunity to push boundaries in an extreme way. As we dig deeper into
Milla’s parents lives we uncover the dysfunction and complicated tensions that
exist as this family face their worst nightmare. They are stripped back to
their rawest forms. I hope audiences have a visceral experience watching Babyteeth, one they feel deep in
their bones that allows them to ache for and celebrate their own relationships.”
Shannon Murphy
Director’s
statement
Photograph
Whitefalk Films – courtesy La Biennale di Venezia
Ben Mendelsohn and Essie Davis
Contessanally:
One of my favorite films so far – bring a hanky and don’t miss.
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