‘I’m going to enjoy becoming part of a sky like this…’
Not to come over all Martin Scorsese or Ridley Scott, but mainstream cinema is a pretty vacuous place right now. I enjoy the distraction of the MCU as much as the next man, but I never come away from those movies having felt any kind of emotion. And that’s fine, I guess. That’s where they’re there for, after all. They are supposed to entertain. But when something as visceral, as human, as Babyteeth comes along, you remember what this art form is supposed to be for…
Milla (Eliza Scanlen) is seriously ill. But she’s a still teenager. So, despite her fragility due to chemotherapy, and despite her nausea, she still finds time to be bratty and rebellious as all good teenagers are wont to do. This situation is made even more precarious when local drug addict and bigger boy Moses (Toby Wallace) wanders into Milla’s life. Attempting to keep this burgeoning romance in check are Milla’s psychiatrist father (Ben Mendelsohn) and her anxious mother (Essie Davis).
A film about a dying child then. So, yeah. It’s pretty downbeat in places. It’s a tough watch it others. But damn if director Shannon Murphy doesn’t find some beauty in what is obviously a hideous situation. The whole cast are astonishing, but Scanlen truly knocks it out of the park. There should have been Oscar nominations knocking about for this film, and it’s truly a shame that nobody was honoured because the dysfunctional tableau of family life that is presented here is as touching and real as one could hope to find anywhere. Mendelsohn brings a touch of class to proceedings, but really everyone excels, spurred on by Murphy’s assured direction.
Babyteeth is one of those films that is just unarguably great. Subjectively. Objectively. Using any measure you can think of, this is a great movie. It’s on Netflix. Set aside an evening for a good cry and you’ll feel better come the end of the day. This is what cinema is for.