66 minutes / Color
Release: 2005
Copyright: 2005
Eighteen, single, and living at home, Christina is about to have a baby. Her mother, Mary, was herself a sixteen-year-old single mother when Christina was born. Over a period of four years, this raw and unusually intimate documentary follows the two women as they struggle with their respective roles as daughter, mother, and grandmother while doing their best to raise Christina's son, Cristian.
Despite their best intentions and obvious love for Cristian, Mary's depression and the shadow of the abuse she experienced as a child, coupled with Christina's volatile behavior as she copes with becoming an adult, lead them into a series of confrontations that challenge their complex dependency on each other.
Best friends, sisters, mother and daughter, jealous rivals — will their intense but fragile relationship be able to survive the escalating conflicts triggered by Cristian's arrival? And what will be the impact on the little boy who is the focus of both their love?
This is a revealing, heartrending portrait of two generations of young, single mothers, living in the shadow of abuse and abandonment, as they confront the question of what it means to be a good mother.
"An unflinchingly honest and respectful portrayal of a family's struggle. This film is a wonderful teaching tool for educational, mental health and social services professionals and students. THE MOTHERS' TRIANGLE is a stimulating film that will provoke discussion and learning. The complexities of each person's hopes and struggles make easy answers and quick solutions impossible, yet there is throughout the film a yearning hopefulness that is captivating. I was deeply moved."—Shani Dowd, LCSW
"THE MOTHERS' TRIANGLE is perceptive, provocative, and poignant"—Carol Rubin, Director, Parent Child Home Program, Newton Community Service Center
"A unique and in-depth view into a family's struggles around teenage pregnancy. This film provides invaluable insights into the dynamics of competing loyalties and relationships that occur in many families. Takes us beyond what we could ever gain from texbook vignettes. A wonderful training tool for any human service professional working with 'multi-stressed' families."—Ian Edwards, LICSW, Wayside Youth and Family
"A bitter and riveting portrait. Free of the customary sentiment, it chronicles the unhealthy codependency between mother and daughter."—Video Librarian
"An excellent documentary. Highly recommended for all libraries and for coursework and discussion on family dynamics including complex problems related to teenage pregnancy as well as consequences of sexual and physical abuse."—Educational Media Reviews Online
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Examines the experiences of single mothers in South Korea, where there remains a strong social taboo against single parenthood.
Paik Yeonah | 2013 | 52 minutes | Color | English; Korean | English subtitles
