Hot Milk

Rebecca Lenkiewicz’s directorial debut is a sensorial adaptation of Deborah Levy’s eponymous novel, which looks at the interior life of a dutiful daughter and her fractured relationship with her difficult mother. Anthropology student Sofia travels with her mother Rose to a Spanish coastal town. They’re there to meet an unorthodox doctor, in the hope that he can diagnose Rose’s condition that has rendered her unable to walk. The relationship between the two is fraught with resentment, resulting from Rose’s prickly nature and years of co-dependency. While Rose attends sessions with the mysterious healer, Sofia encounters and falls for Ingrid, a German seamstress who is as intoxicating as she is puzzling. As she navigates the convolutions of Ingrid and Rose’s interior lives, Sofia begins to seek her own independence. Aided by a trio of stand-out performances, the acclaimed screenwriter of Ida and She Said makes her directorial debut with this adaptation of Levy’s Booker Prize-nominated novel. The result is an intriguing and exhilarating drama.