I'm Glad My Mother Is Alive

2011

I'm Glad My Mother Is Alive

Critics Consensus

No consensus yet.

92%

TOMATOMETER

Total Count: 13

54%

Audience Score

User Ratings: 253
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Movie Info

Based on a true story, I'm Glad That My Mother is Alive explores childhood trauma and its dire consequences on adult life. Given up for adoption as a toddler, troubled teenager Thomas becomes obsessed with tracking down his birth mother. After years of searching Thomas finds her single, with a small child, living in a nearby suburb and introduces himself. Traumatized by years of emptiness and longing for his mother, he starts an ambiguous relationship with her (part courtship, part obsession) which slowly drives him to an act of madness. -- (C) Strand

Cast

Vincent Rottiers
as Thomas Jouvet
Sophie Cattani
as Julie Martino
Christine Citti
as Annie Jouvet
Yves Verhoeven
as Yves Jouvet
Maxime Renard
as Thomas
Olivier Guéritée
as Patrick/François (17 Years Old)
Ludo Harlay
as Patrick/François (9 Years Old)
Gabin Lefebvre
as Tommy
Gabin Lefebure
as Tommy
Quentin Gonzalez
as Frédéric
Quentin Gonzales
as Frédéric
Chantal Banlier
as Chantal Duronnet, the Neighbor
Thomas Momplot
as Mathieu
Sabrina Ouazani
as Cashier in Cinema
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Critic Reviews for I'm Glad My Mother Is Alive

All Critics (13) | Top Critics (7) | Fresh (12) | Rotten (1)

  • Sophie Cattani as Julie takes us with her over several borders, and Vincent Rottiers as the latter-day Thomas is complete in his inchoate anger at fate.

    Jun 19, 2013 | Full Review…

    Stanley Kauffmann

    The New Republic
    Top Critic

  • The narrative easily goes back and forth in time; despite its Oedipal subtext, it avoids exploitation. Stellar performances by Rottiers and Cattani help keep the movie on track.

    Sep 2, 2011 | Rating: 3/4 | Full Review…

    V.A. Musetto

    New York Post
    Top Critic

  • Miller gets points for using a bit of narrative sketchiness to good effect...

    Sep 2, 2011 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…

    Joe Dziemianowicz

    New York Daily News
    Top Critic

  • One of the film's strengths is its detached, even-handed view of someone whose turbulence and fits of rage are ultimately inexplicable, as is often the case in real life.

    Sep 1, 2011 | Rating: 4/5

    Stephen Holden

    New York Times
    Top Critic

  • Rottiers is excellent at embodying someone who projects vulnerability most when he's attempting strength, and who continually, heartbreakingly searches his mother for signs of attachment or regrets that fail to surface.

    Sep 1, 2011 | Rating: B

    Alison Willmore

    AV Club
    Top Critic

  • Focuses, unsurprisingly, on family ties, although the kind you'll find here are more likely to choke than comfort.

    Aug 31, 2011 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review…

    Sam Adams

    Time Out
    Top Critic
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Audience Reviews for I'm Glad My Mother Is Alive

  • Sep 04, 2011
    Based on a true story, "I'm Glad My Mother Is Alive" is an unsettling character study about Thomas(Vincent Rottiers) who we first meet as a young adult. He is recalling past memories, first as far back as he can at the age of 5 to the only memories he has of his birth mother, Julie(Sophie Cattani), who when confronted by social services, gives up him and his younger brother Patrick to a caring couple, Annie(Christine Citti) and Yves(Yves Verhoeven), who cannot have children of their own. By the age of 12(Maxime Renard), Thomas is starting to ask questions about his birth mother, especially after an exhausting swim with his father.(The moral of the story is to never try and keep up with the youngsters.) He is also getting into fights at school and is about to be sentenced to boarding school. A lot of that comes from his being conflicted with the love he has for his birth mother versus the possible reality of who Julie really is which frightens him. Some might say this adds up to a variation on the whore/madonna complex but it is not really that simple since she was still a teenager when she had Thomas and is still trying to figure things out. On the other hand, Patrick, now known as Francois, does not recall Julie at all and adjusts easier. In the end, there are no easy answers and no easy way of assigning blame.
    Walter M Super Reviewer
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