Hot Milk Review

Hot Milk is an adaptation of a novel by Deborah Levy and serves as the directorial debut for screenwriter Rebecca Lenkiewicz.

Rose (Fiona Shaw) and Sofia (Emma Mackey) are mother and daughter who move to the Spanish coast. They seek treatment for Rose’s chronic pain. However, Rose is a dominating mother and has made her daughter a permanent carer.

On paper, Hot Milk had great credentials. It was based on an acclaimed novel, nominated for the Golden Bear Prize at the Berlin International Film Festival, and was distributed by Mubi. Plus, it had a cast that featured Mackey, Shaw, and Vicky Krieps (Phantom Thread, Old). Sadly, Hot Milk ended up being a rare miss for all. The critical and audience reactions have been lacklustre.

Hot Milk had two great leads. Fiona Shaw has shown herself to be a force to be reckoned with, as shown in the TV shows Killing Eve and Fleabag, whilst Emma Mackey continues to rise. The core of this film was their relationship. Shaw’s Rose was a strong-willed Irish woman who stood up to people, as seen early in the film after a man argued with his partner. However, Rose was also capable of biting comments and belittling her daughter, despite Sofia being Rose’s only carer.

Mackey’s performance was similar to the one she gave in Emily. She was playing a meek woman, who in Hot Milk was beaten down by her mother. Rose would make a snide comment, leading Sofia to act passively-aggressively, such as blowing cigarette smoke on Rose’s freshly washed clothes. Sofia was a woman who had an anger boiling inside her, and it seemed like she was one insult or humiliation away from snapping and going Norman Bates on her mother. As a character, Sofia had three functions: absorbing abuse, snapping, and crying.

Hot Milk had themes of familial and generational trauma. Sofia suffered from her mother’s mental abuse and barely had any contact with her father. During Rose’s treatment, Dr. Gomez (Vincent Perez) asked her about family and forced her to relive her memories about her fractious family. Finally, there was Ingrid (Krieps), an older German woman Sofia became infatuated with. Ingrid told Sofia of a childhood incident that still haunted her as an adult.

Hot Milk had a sun-drenched, dream-like quality, but it moved at a leisurely pace. It felt longer than its 90-minute runtime. This distance, dreamy approach meant that engagement was difficult. It was more focused on themes and mood than characters and story. It was a real shame, considering Lenkiewicz’s screenwriting credits include Colette and She Said. Hot Milk‘s arty approach meant they struggled to make a lasting impression.

Hot Milk can be admired for its performances and some of the ideas, but it was a lacking and uninteresting experience. The actors carried this film.