EMPTY NEST

Speciality Cinema, today, 6.30 p.m.

Marriage, family and relationships are the main themes of Empty Nest, Daniel Burman's (Motorcycle Diaries) film on the trials and tribulations of a couple going through a mid-life crisis.

The film looks both at the problems of married life and keeping relationships fresh and exciting, exploring issues such as commitment, negotiation and compromise, changing from reality to fantasy throughout.

The two central characters are Leonardo (played by Oscar Martinez) and his wife Martha ('All About My Mother's' Cecilia Roth) and is set in their hometown of Buenos Aires, before moving to the Dead Sea in Israel, where they stay with their youngest daughter Julia and son-in-law.

The opening scene reveals a microcosm of their conflicting lives, with Martha enjoying the company of her friends at a dinner party and Leonardo becoming bored and uncomfortable talking about his work as a playwright.

The plot continues in that vein, as the viewer learns more about the couple's relationship – despite being cultured, prosperous and having three children and many friends, they both start to question their happiness when Julia quite literally flies the nest (hence the name of the film), marrying and leaving the country.

The house has become empty as a result, with their offspring scattered across the world, and Leonardo and Martha have no more excuses for not addressing the little grievances and annoyances that have built up between them over the years.

They both deal with the issues in different ways – Martha seeks release by going back to study at university and surrounding herself by people, while Leonardo takes refuge in a fantasy world that becomes so real he cannot distinguish what is true.

Leonardo becomes obsessed with a dentist who examined his teeth and follows her around dreaming about having an affair with her. At one moment when he is pursuing her through a shopping mall it looks like a musical number might erupt as shoppers race up to the railings and look down at him and a corps of trench-coated dancers perform military moves in the background, but thankfully some form of perspective prevails and the film returns to normality.

The well-written script interweaves a number of different twists into the film, and 'Empty Nest' is a testament to Mr. Burman's maturity as a director.

The narrative maintains a sense of gravity throughout, but treats the difficult topic of infidelity with delicacy and a touch of playfulness.

This mischievous undertone is evident as the film traces Leonardo's obsession with freezing croissants, his choreography of a dance routine to help him chase a girl and pairs him with a sidekick to get him through some rough patches.

Whether portraying marital tensions or bliss, Mr. Burman's brilliantly captured moments are always tinged with humour.