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| Images courtesy of Ukrainian Films USA |
Lighthearted and bright ensemble dramedy director Oleh Borschevskyi
first appeared on the Ukrainian film scene in 2011 via the anthological
romantic drama Lovers of Kyiv before moving into his own feature
filmmaking around 2017 with DZIDZIO Contrabass and the television series
A Kick from the Past. Circa 2022
with the unfolding of the Ukraine war, Borschevskyi more urgently returned to
the dramedy film scene with The Wicked Neighbors followed by the
Christmas romantic comedy December 31st Express released in
2024. Now two years later, Borschevskyi
is back with the anthological lighthearted tribute to motherhood and the bonds
of maternalism with Ну, Мам or Oh, Mom depending on the
translation.
Released theatrically on January 22nd in
Ukrainian cinemas before making its United States tour through Ukrainian Films
USA, the gentle natured ensemble cross-cutting venture speaks to a remarkable
sense of resilience and normalcy at a time when in the distant background
characters still find their ways in and out of the front. Mostly though it could be the best
international Mother’s Day film in some time with its adorable blend of mom/child
tales and what a real mother’s beauty looks like versus the version mass media
has been selling us for years. Oh and
for Western viewers curious enough to check it out, there’s some The Police:
Synchronicity shoutouts fans should appreciate.
Broken up into three disparate stories that occasionally
bump into each other in passing but never fully interact, we run into a family
involving a stern heavyset mother hen with her husband and son on the cusp of
direction a fashion product commercial when the idea of casting his mom rather
than a model in the part comes to fruition.
There’s a subplot involving a single mother trying to rekindle relations
with her young son uneasy about meeting her new potential beau, a
mother-daughter scouting river field trip that begins rebellious and full of
misadventure, and a devoted son caring for his ailing mother while trying to
rejuvenate some of her quality of life.
Moving around like an ensemble Hallmark film, the gentle romp eventually
comes together with each story finding a different form of resolve.
Never once discussing or displaying the war beyond one
interaction between a son going back to the front bidding his mom adieu, Oh,
Mom is not necessarily escapism as it is a cinematic return to normalcy in
the heart of Kyiv displaying the city and its iconography and luminousness at
its height. Mainly a love letter to
motherhood divided up in the same way other ensemble romantic dramedies have
been like Love Actually and the director’s own jump start with Lovers
of Kyiv, the film co-authored by Oleksandr Brahin and Yevhen Taller is
indeed in the Ukrainian language and country but nevertheless feels like a
Western Mother’s Day gift that is indeed saccharine schmaltzy but is nevertheless
precisely what Ukrainian viewers need most of all right now. While not exactly compelling or urgent compared
to some of the other recent Ukrainian films that have come and gone amid the
still ongoing war, Oh, Mom succeeds as a mom’s movie and the many shapes
motherhood takes.
Shot in crisp digital scope 2.35:1 by Stepan Klym with a
soft comfortable score by The Stronghold composer Vladlen Pupkov, Oh,
Mom looks fine and shows off the splendor of Kyiv while filtering out the
ongoing wartime elements. Currently screening
throughout Ukraine and touring the United States through Ukrainian Films USA,
acting throughout the film is decent but nothing special. Mostly a dose of warmheartedness like a cup
of hot chocolate, where the film does seem to leave a lasting impression
involves the soundtrack of needle drops including Skryabin’s adorable closing
track Mom which includes a music video worth checking out. Oh, Mom didn’t break the mold for
Ukrainian cinema or lighthearted dramedies but I found myself listening to that
song on the drive home wanting to give my own mom a hug. Mainly save it for Mother’s Day irrespective
of your native language.
--Andrew Kotwicki
