A Muslim housewife drinks vodka away from her family’s eyes while her daughter’s engagement ceremony is being prepared by her husband.
Written and directed by Zayn Alexandre, this short will be of limited interest for most audiences, but for folks who love a simple drama that is a snapshot into a woman’s life, one that is beautiful and opulent, but also sad and a bit depressing, this film is something worth finding and watching. Given its style and how it is filmed, the bigger the screen is likely the better here to better enter into this universe. The writing here works while being a bit gloomy and the direction works well with the writing, which isn’t much of a surprise given both are done by the same person of course.
The cast here is fairly small with Ghada Basma playing the mother and doing do sadly, beautifully well. She doesn’t say much, but her facial expressions, the nuances in how she moves, her body language, and more make her performance one of nuances and details. She is fantastic to watch go, even if the character seems so sad and possibly so for her daughter. She is central here with a few other people around her, but make not mistake, this is her film.
The cinematography here envelops Basma with work by Karim Kassem (and team), giving her room to be, even if that room is fairly small, hidden away from others and their potential judgment. The work here is sublime in spots and great for the rest of the film. This is one of those films with images that just pull you in and don’t let you go. The editing by lea Kanaan works well with the images and with the story, giving the film a mood and a dynamic that is just right.
While this may be a personal interpretation, Saint Rose comes off as the story of a woman who is a sad bird in a gilded cage that has stopped singing and just lives out of necessity or obligation. The film is sad and beautiful, it’s not for everyone, but it’s a strong story with very few words. This is a small bubble of masterpiece in a sad situation. As a film that will likely be difficult to catch at film festivals for most people, hopefully it will get a solid online release once it’s done with its festival run.