Uncomfortably intimate and occasionally difficult viewing, The Fading Light is a disarmingly honest portrayal of an Irish family in crisis.
The plot, such as it is, concerns how three siblings, two sisters and a brother, who has mental health issues, deal with their mother’s death following a long and protracted illness.
Yeah. I know. Phew! Already I’d be running a mile. It sounds like it could be a gut wrenching, over-blown middle-aged mum flick, to be watched while drinking white wine and snacking on prescription meds hoping to feel something (anything).
And yet, the frankness of the camera work, the modesty and lack of vanity of the performances and the relentless mood of silent desperation all add up to an astonishing piece of film-making.
Written and directed by Irishman Ivan Kavanagh the film boasts strong performances, particularly from Bibbi Larrson as the mother and Patrick O’Donnell as the mentally handicapped Peter.
The film is best understood as a study, rather than a story. A microscopic view of tiny little lives — a run down suburban Petri dish of characters who are afforded no dignity, neither in life nor in death.
Admirable for the emotional weight it carries, and the director’s clear cinematic vision, it is nevertheless difficult to recommend for casual viewing.
But cinephiles should take note.
Brian Herron.
Here’s the trailer:
