ICE MOTHER

Hana lives alone in a big villa with only weekly visits from her two belligerent sons and their families to look forward to. Complete with nagging and passive aggressive arguments between her children, these weekly dinners are a family tradition no one dares change. So Hana continues to live alone and selflessly care for her family until one day, while on a stroll with her grandson, Ivanek, she happens to rescue Brona, an affable ice swimmer with a hen for a best friend, from drowning. This encounter invigorates Hana and introduces her to a new hobby as well as unexpected romance.

As they struggle to assert themselves, Hana and Ivanek get the chance to truly bond with one another and with the people around them with the help of the warmth they encounter from Brona’s group of ice swimmers. Director Bohdan Sláma delivers a charming romantic drama, and a moving depiction of the complications that arise when a family cannot find an avenue for honest communication.

—Jule Rozite