Willow

Milcho Manchevski : 2019
Vrba

Three Macedonian women have to contend with control over their bodies, tradition, loyalty, pregnancy and adoption. They have not set out to change the world or society, but their struggle to become mothers makes them unlikely heroines. The three bittersweet stories, one medieval, two contemporary, mirror and contrast one another, exploring themes of love, trust and motherhood. Set in the Middle Ages, a young couple is trying all possible superstitious rituals to conceive, combining them with Christian prayers. Finally, they enlist the help of a local wise woman. She agrees, but on one condition: that they give her the firstborn child, assuring them they will have many more. In the second story, in present-day Skopje, a taxi driver and a supermarket cashier try everything that today's medicine has to offer in order to have a child, but nothing works until after IVF, the girl suddenly becomes pregnant with twins. But the ultrasound shows that one of the babies will be mentally and physically handicapped. The husband is vehemently against abortion, while the wife tries to convince him that the other child's life will be ruined if she has them both. In the final story, the sister of the heroine from the previous story and her husband adopt a boy who is conspicuously quiet and withdrawn, perhaps even autistic. They shower him with love, understanding and gifts, but one day he suddenly goes missing. Milcho Manchevski's feature premiered in the Official Selection at Rome Film Festival 2019.