When a nurse takes a kid home for the weekend from the residence where works and he lives, she inadvertently changes the rest of his life.
Trigger warning: Child abuse and child neglect
Set in 1988 communist Romania, this short drama film takes a look at the hard truths of being born disabled in that environment and doesn’t flinch when things get rough. The film here takes an interesting approach in that it has animated sequences, live action sequences with a cast of actors, and sequences with the real Izidor. Written by Sarah Padbury and directed by David Kabbe, izidor is a short film with a lot of impact, reminding people of the lost children often put into housing “made” for them that are in fact there to hide them from public view, to allow the public to forget they exist. The film also shows that these children are all deserving of love and to be cared for by showing the dichotomy of life in the group home and life with a family who cares. This short film has a strong impact with a short run time to do so.
The film uses animated sequences for some of the past and to depict child abuse, possibly to do so without being too brutal. This animation is looking really dated, but giving the likely budget, it does what it aims to do, giving background to the story and doing so in a way that protects its young protagonists. After a few minutes, the viewer can get accustomed to the animation style and then just not worry about it, letting do its work and have its effect on them.
The acted segments of the films are done beautifully, letting each actor do what they do and giving them emotionally complex characters and situations to work with. The cast for the live action sequences is solid, giving performances that work within their story and environment. Writer Sarah Padbury plays the nurse, or nanny, who takes Izidor home with her, showing a performance that centers the film, gives love and compassion, a performance that is exactly what the film and her charge need. Playing Izidor as a child is Iosua Barbu who gives a strongly emotional performance that sells the whole film, giving the viewer a lot to feel and a lot to think about.
The film’s look, outside of the animated sequences, is made from the work of cinematographer Daniel Wyland who creates the “just right” images for the story and for the characters. His work is carefully edited by Christine Lojko Haslett, Mark Haslett, and Tony Leech. The whole of the film is brought together by this team and with the assistance of composer Jesper Ankarfeldt who adds just the right emotions with the music made for the film.
Overall, this film, which is produced by Izidor Ruckel, along with Sarah Padbury and David Kabbe, is one filled with dark material but also a lot of hope. This is a film that perhaps carries a lesson that some will learn and some will likely question, but it will not leave anyone untouched in one way or another. The child abuse scenes are hard to watch, so please keep that in mind when checking this one out.