Litigante
Directed by Franco Lolli

IN MINUTE detail, Litigante centres around Colombian single mother and leading lawyer Silvia (Carolina Sanin), who is juggling raising her young son (Antonio Martinez), taking care of her ill-tempered cancer-battling mother Leticia (Leticia Gomez) and dealing with a major corruption scandal at work.

When she meets and begins to fall for Abel (Vladimir Duran), a radio presenter and journalist, after a rocky start it is one too many balls to keep in the air and it seems she is heading for a nervous breakdown.

The constant battles with her chain-smoking mother, a former lawyer herself, who is refusing to have chemo and who continues to criticise her professional and personal middle-aged life choices, are taking their toll.

“You can’t stand me having a life,” Silvia reproaches her mother, who immediately retorts: “If it disturbs my peace and quiet, yes it bothers me.”

The problem lies in that neither of them pays attention to the other’s needs. Leticia is desperate to have some quality time at the end of her life, while Silvia just wants to be heard and appreciated and see her mother live as long as possible.

The scenes involving Leticia’s cancer treatment and slow deterioration are very hard to watch, as they are so true to life.

Neither Gomez nor Sanin have acted before, yet they give stunning and heartbreaking performances in this exploration of what it takes to be a modern mother, balancing others’  needs with your own.

Available on Curzon Home Cinema.