Hungry Hearts begins with a scene that's ripped straight
out of an NBC sitcom. Mina (Alba Rohrwacher) is stuck in a cramped restaurant
bathroom with Jude (Adam Driver), a complete stranger who happens to have just
taken a nasty, smelly dump. The bathroom door won't open, and the two make
nervous small talk until help arrives, and when the stink dies down they
actually begin to connect. Did we just stumble into some kind of screwball
comedy or something? Not a chance. It's a classic case of misdirection; a way
of disarming you for a relentlessly unnerving horror that will be hard to shake
after the credits roll.
Mina and Jude's noxious "meet
cute" isn't the last they see of one another. On the contrary, they become
a couple and the next time we see them they are in the bedroom, coping with the
news that her job has transferred her. Will they be able to survive as a long
distance couple? Should they even try? These are the questions they would have
had to answer if a sudden pregnancy didn't make things clearer. They're married
soon after, although we see a few cracks in their relationship that suggest
they may not be the most perfect pairing. She's a strict vegan; really she's
strict about everything, while Jude is more open-minded. Those small
differences between them won't stay small for long.
The pregnancy causes problems much larger
than the occasional bout of morning sickness. Mina refuses to eat meat, or
really to ingest any kind of protein that the baby needs. The doctor warns that
the baby isn't growing fast enough, and the toll the pregnancy is taking on her
body is inescapable. She tells Jude, who is trying to take everything in
stride, that she had a vision she's carrying an indigo child, a New Age concept
that says certain children will have supernatural abilities. She rejects
traditional medicine; preferring to go to herbalists and alternative
practitioners. She tries for a water birth but the doctor insists she must have
a C-Section for her own safety. Mina fiercely fights against it, but ultimately
relents. She gives birth to a son, but the same problems remain.
Director and co-writer Saverio
Costanzo mounts the growing anxiety like a skilled craftsman, taking the very
idea of maternal instinct and giving it a paranoid edge. Mina becomes more
obsessive than ever; cutting the baby off from breast feeding early in order to
feed him organic food grown in her own makeshift garden. She fears eating
regular food will poison her little indigo child, and watches his every feeding
like a protective hawk. We, like Jude, can only watch with mounting concern
that his son’s health is in danger. It's through him that the film becomes
almost unbearably tense as Jude fights to make his opinion count for something.
But we always trust the mother to know what's best, don't we? Costanzo takes
the sacred gift of motherhood and twists it into something ugly and terrifying.
While that makes for a gripping, well-observed domestic thriller, the film is
at its best when both parents are on equal footing. Is Jude right to be so
worried, or is he going overboard? Are Mina's intentions as sinister as they
appear? Or is she just some fanatical about her child's diet, as some parents
are? Eventually, Mina becomes too disturbed to be considered seriously, while
Jude becomes the tragic hero fighting for his son's safety. The film misses
something vital with the loss of objectivity, and it doesn't really recover
until the shocking climax.
Shot in an intimate, moody style evocative
of Hitchock by way of the Dardennes, Hungry
Hearts gives plenty of room
for two incredible lead performances. There's a reason both Driver and
Rohrwacher walked away with top acting awards at Venice last year. Driver
continues to show his range goes well beyond comedy, as his Jude is the perfect
case of controlled anger and frustration. Rohrwacher, who will be completely
new to most audiences, gives a fascinating roller coaster performance as Mina,
who shifts in a blink from sweetly innocent to frighteningly caustic.
By the time Hungry Hearts reaches its surprising finish, you'll
wonder how a relationship that started out in such a light-hearted way ended in
such a troubling fashion. There aren't likely to be many more vegan horrors
around any time soon, so be sure to bring your health nut friends to this
one.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
