Womb (2010) - Benedek Fliegauf

While on vacation at an isolated beach property, Rebecca befriends Thomas.  While the two of them are very young, they have an instant connection but eventually their time together fades, as Rebecca leaves to live in Tokyo with her mother.  After 15-20 years pass, Rebecca and Thomas find themselves united, becoming instant lovers.  Tragedy strikes when Thomas is accidentally killed by a motorist which drives Rebecca to contemplate suicide.  She finds consolation in the idea of cloning Matt back to life but society as a whole hasn't fully accepted the idea of human cloning, which leads to Rebecca and her re-born son, Thomas, ostracized.  Benedek Fliegauf's Womb is the story of a cross-generational love that is as morally and emotionally complex as one could imagine.   Rebecca's character is desperate to get back the connection she had with Thomas, going to extreme lengths to do so.  Benedek Fliegauf is a skilled filmmaker, who creates a brooding atmosphere with his lens.  Using lots of extremely wide angles and long-distance shots, Fliegauf captures the isolation and sadness which follows Rebecca throughout nearly the entire film.  The setting of the film, a dreary seaside town, is a character in its own right, with the dark blue skies and mist-filled landscapes adding to the atmosphere while capturing our main protagonists point-of-view.  From a technical standpoint there really isn't much wrong with Womb but unfortunately the same can't be said for the narrative.  How Rebecca and Thomas meet as young children is an incredibly important piece, capturing this instant bond, yet I do think the filmmakers should have made them a little older.  I believe doing this would have created more of an emotional impact on the viewer as I myself had trouble believing the two of them could fall in love so quickly after rekindling such a young childhood romance.  The script just doesn't seem to have much to say, oddly enough relying too much on the visuals to say almost everything of merit.  The other main problem I had with Womb is that it just felt sluggish, making it hard for the viewer to connect on an emotional level for long stretches of the film.  Some of this certainly could be attributed to the taboo concept in general, but I did feel that the film hit lulls mainly in the middle.  Eva Green gives a great performance as Rebecca, a woman whose tortured by her past mistakes and what the future holds.  She deftly balances her desire for the lost love of her life with her maternal responsibilities, giving added depth to the character.   Benedek Fliegauf's Womb is a fascinating concept, exploring themes of love, bigotry, and maternity, and while it's far from perfect it's a unique and interesting film.
7/10

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