Klaus Haro's Mother of Mine is a bittersweet drama about a Finnish war child’s childhood in Skane, Sweden. Eero is sent to Sweden to protect him during WWII and the consequences haunt him and his mother throughout his adulthood. The film portrays that same alienation of a stranger in a strange land as seen in Sweet Land.
Mother of Mine is filled with amazing performances. Eero (Toni Majanuemi) is cold and lonely, and hard to reach yet still exhibits the innocence of youth. Signe Jonsso (Maria Lundqvist) performs well beyond her character. She is resentful of Eero and hides her secret why, but when she opens up is a loving mother without blinking. Michael Nyquist’s Hjalmar is a friendly father and male role model for Eero. He is a friend before father and humanizes the unusual situation. Majaana Maijala’s Kirsti, Eero’s Finnish mother, is stiff and seems directionless with a role that does not encompass the entire story.
Haro sets the story in obvious set pieces, and amazing landscapes. Skane, Sweden is surreally beautiful with too green grass, and a seascape that draws the eye in. Everywhere in the town, and in Finland the set pieces seem painted like a school plays that, if not for the actors’ phenomenal performance, would seem amateurish.
In conclusion, Mother of Mine is a schizophrenic movie. The performances and the story are breathtaking but the environment seems less. It is a tearjerker, but it lacks a solid punch all the way through.