UK Jewish Film Festival: Once Upon My Mother

Celebrating a mother’s love in its most profound form — as Jewish tradition dictates — Once Upon My Mother, based on Roland Perez’s bestselling autobiographical novel, is an absolute gem of a film. Big-hearted and colourful, this is an emotional-yet-funny portrayal of excessive parental love, spanning decades. France, 1963. Heartbroken to learn that Roland, her sixth child, was born with a clubfoot, Esther Perez, a Jewish immigrant from Morocco, refuses to accept her son’s disability, instead looking for alternative methods — as well as praying for a miracle — that would cure him. Esther remains utterly devoted to her son even after her prayers have been answered, and well into Roland’s adulthood. Accompanied by a nostalgia-inducing soundtrack of French pop classics — including some by Jewish icon, Sylvie Vartan (who also appears in the film) — Once Upon My Mother, with its indomitable heroine, is a larger-than-life, not-to-be-missed, cinematic experience. [Advised Cert 15]