“A moving depiction of being able to let go of the past while moving forward to an uncertain future.”

The act of homecoming can be relieving or daunting, depending on how one feels about both the physical and psychological process of returning to a place that played an important role in their past. Many adults describe the often difficult emotions that emerge when venturing into the places that defined their upbringing, acknowledging the memories that emerge in the process – the spectral reminders of a past that no longer exists – which may be desirable for those who would prefer to keep certain parts of their lives as mere memories. Mikel Gurrea is evidently fascinated by this idea, as it is the primary concept that fuels Saints, his subtle meditation on the thorny relationship between past and present, in which he touches on some uncomfortable themes in presenting different sides of a familiar subject. Set in the Sants neighbourhood of Barcelona, the film is centred around Lali, who has spent most of her adult life drifting between places, avoiding responsibilities wherever she can. However, this comes to a halt when she has to return home. She becomes the primary caregiver for her terminally ill mother, who is desperately fighting to survive despite being in the last chapter of her life. Built around the difficult process of reconciling the past and the present, Saints is a challenging film which contains some beautifully poetic ideas that are seamlessly woven into the fabric of the story. The film is as much about death as it is the act of living, while it avoids becoming too sentimental in a deft balancing act between tones and ideas that immediately establishes Gurrea as someone to watch going forward.

Saints moves between various concepts, functioning primarily as a character study that follows a young woman who is trying not to draw too much attention (often without success), and who avoids addressing her responsibilities as much as possible. However, there’s another key idea around which most of the film is constructed, that of family. Much like homecoming, the process of reconnecting with family after some time apart can be daunting, especially after a period of estrangement. Yet there are certain situations where past grudges need to be set aside in order to work through more pressing issues. Lali returns home out of obligation to a mother with whom she has had a difficult relationship, because the duty to help her through this difficult transition far outweighs whatever petty grievances she has about their shared past. Every relationship takes some work, and involves compromise and sacrifice from both sides, and considering Lali is the one who has been forced to uproot herself, she clearly recognises the gravity of the situation. Saints is a film about family in many different ways, not only the mother-daughter dynamic that starts and ends the film, but also the subtle inclusion of certain sub-plots, such as the protagonist’s adventures with a ragtag group of local criminals whose modus operandi is pillaging long-abandoned graves and stealing religious artefacts. With these characters Lali finds a secondary family, a chosen clan that gives her the validation she desperately craves while also enabling her appetite for self-destruction rather than mending it, something that is reflected in her contentious relationship with her mother. The obvious comparison ultimately guides most of the story.

There are certain subjects that tend to come pre-packaged with expectations regarding how the core emotions will be explored, and the story of a daughter trying to reconnect with her mother in the final stage of their relationship definitely required some restraint to avoid becoming too overwhelming. Gurrea doesn’t seem interested in following a predictable path, although there are certain unavoidable qualities of this story that had to be included, relating to the often difficult bond between Lali and her mother. This bond reflects many similarly themed stories of adversarial relationships between parents who did their best and children who believe that they can blame all their shortcomings on their upbringing, without realising that many of those flaws emerged from within. Neither of the two central characters (nor any that weave in and out of the periphery) are by any means perfect, which the film makes sure to communicate above everything else, and which ultimately does form much of what makes Saints so poignant. The director places a lot of faith in his cast, tasking them with finding the truth beneath these characters, and the results are unquestionably strong. Victoria Luengo has been steadily establishing herself as an exciting performer, with her ability to play so many different emotions while remaining genuine throughout, and Gurrea puts her enviable talent to good use while developing Lali. It’s a performance that says much in the subtler and more nuanced moments, where holding her gaze for a beat too long or a minor gesture can communicate something indescribable and intangible. Many of the strengths of this film come through in the subtle character-based decisions, and bring forward impactful emotions that manage to be resonant and profound without veering towards the saccharine, not an easy feat with such intimidating subject matter.

By the time we reach the haunting final moments of Saints, the film’s fundamental message becomes clear: in many cases life does not have a particular destination, outside of the one great inevitability that we’ll all have to face at some point. Therefore it’s less about finding the fastest way to get somewhere that we may never actually reach, and more about becoming comfortable on the journey, since that is often what matters the most. Using the premise of a young woman returning to the life she had left behind, the film remarks on how home (whether you define it as a literal place or through the people you associate it with) can contain uncomfortable traces of the past. This leads many people to seek out chosen families, where the most meaningful relationships are formed with people who start as strangers. From this, the film builds itself around exploring a complex protagonist whose isolation from the outside world is the reason she can’t feel the sense of belonging that she quietly craves, seeking some form of sanctuary in an increasingly hostile environment. Through exploring the complicated dynamic between Lali and those around her, Saints creates a deeply moving examination of the challenges that come with navigating the liminal space between life and death, watching a loved one slowly fade away while also attempting to make amends, knowing that there will always be unresolved issues. Whether through showing the protagonist’s attempts to plunder the past as a means to avoid facing the present, or through addressing the more difficult themes directly, Saints proves to be a well-crafted, subtle affair. The film is working with some difficult emotions that form the basis for a moving depiction of being able to let go of the past while moving forward to an uncertain future, all delivered with precision and an abundance of meaning.