This one was a bit hard to watch but overall I’m really glad I did it. The way the mom so casually talked about how bride kidnapping season was happening and that she was making jokes about who would feed the pigs really emphasized how rampant the culture of it is. Truly harrowing stuff but not something I’d just casually recommend people watch.

This one was a bit hard to watch but overall I’m really glad I did it. The way the mom so casually talked about how bride kidnapping season was happening and that she was making jokes about who would feed the pigs really emphasized how rampant the culture of it is. Truly harrowing stuff but not something I’d just casually recommend people watch.

In a reality unfathomably different from our own, we see a culture where girls get kidnapped and married off at a very young age. The family we follow struggles with poverty, alcoholism and just a lot of fighting in general. It’s a hard watch and for various reasons I would have liked it to be a bit shorter. At times it felt a bit aimless and unstructured. Still, I do appreciate the exposure to other cultures that I had never even heard about.

In a reality unfathomably different from our own, we see a culture where girls get kidnapped and married off at a very young age. The family we follow struggles with poverty, alcoholism and just a lot of fighting in general. It’s a hard watch and for various reasons I would have liked it to be a bit shorter. At times it felt a bit aimless and unstructured. Still, I do appreciate the exposure to other cultures that I had never even heard about.

Really shows that reality can be even more distressing than a gaspar noé film.

Really shows that reality can be even more distressing than a gaspar noé film.

'Children of the Mist' ends with a slight time jump forward to a now-subdued and quieter Di, whose childish laughter and innocence have been wretched from her following the events of the film. The film drives home the harrowingly unglamorous reality of young women in traditional communities governed by the patriarchy with an iron grip. I found it extremely difficult and completely horrifying to watch at times, and struggled to comprehend the convictions of the subjects who hold such different ethical values to mine. The film presents difficult questions regarding the complex nature of documentary filmmaking, and it is interesting to discuss whether Diem involved herself too much or was instead too passive. All in all, Diem Ha Le has created a brilliant debut feature film with her empathetic and courageous touch, and her future work is definitely something to keep an eye out for.
- Liz Lene

Read Liz's full Melbourne International Film Festival Review here...
https://www.maketheswitch.com.au/article/review-children-of-the-mist-the-horrifying-tradition-of-bride-kidnapping

'Children of the Mist' ends with a slight time jump forward to a now-subdued and quieter Di, whose childish laughter and innocence have been wretched from her following the events of the film. The film drives home the harrowingly unglamorous reality of young women in traditional communities governed by the patriarchy with an iron grip. I found it extremely difficult and completely horrifying to watch at times, and struggled to comprehend the convictions of the subjects who hold such different ethical values to mine. The film presents difficult questions regarding the complex nature of documentary filmmaking, and it is interesting to discuss whether Diem involved herself too much or was instead too passive. All in all, Diem Ha Le has created a brilliant debut feature film with her empathetic and courageous touch, and her future work is definitely something to keep an eye out for.
- Liz Lene

Read Liz's full Melbourne International Film Festival Review here...
https://www.maketheswitch.com.au/article/review-children-of-the-mist-the-horrifying-tradition-of-bride-kidnapping