Alba Rosa

An elderly widow struggles to cope following the passing of her husband.

Based on a true story and with a duration of just over an hour, this feature is a deep commentary about grief and it is explored entirely through Grace's (Wright) perspective, an ageing woman who lost her husband in a rather dramatic manner. The devastating event has had a serious impact on Grace, who has isolated herself inside her house that she used to share with her husband. Alone in the large house and rarely socialising, she spends her days mainly watching television and doing housework. She is so reclusive that she avoids attempts by her friendly neighbour Jason (Hill) to reach out to her and is reserved even towards her son, Adam (Clee), who is trying to convince her to sell her home and carry on with her life. She does therapy sessions with Marie (Seymour), however she is reluctant to cooperate with her.

The screenplay pretty much observes how badly the loss has affected Grace, having turned her into a sad antisocial loner and the feeling of isolation is quite evident, with her spending a great deal of time alone inside her house. However, as time goes by, she makes efforts to makes things better, such as being more open with her therapist and spending time with her neighbours.

Since the story is told completely through Grace's point of view, Wright's performance is vital in order for the film to work and she succeeds at that outstandingly with her strong acting. The character that she brings to life is a person who is torn apart by the loss of her partner and does not know how to move on. Sad and rarely smiling, she chooses to isolate herself and by doing so, she is making the situation worse as she is preventing herself from receiving support from those who care about her. She also has trouble sleeping and appears to be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder as she has terrible memories of the day her husband lost his life, which are shown in brief but distressing flashbacks.

Hayley Grant's moody cinematography is a key feature in this film as it creates a dark, downbeat atmosphere that suits the themes.

Dimitris Makridis develops a dramatic score and the soundtrack includes two wonderful pieces, which are Gnossienne by Erik Satie and The Second Waltz by Dmitri Shostakovich and their presense adds significant value.

This feature explores loss, grief and isolation and it does so very dramatically, by analysing the life of a woman who has reached rick bottom and must overcome her demons if she is to pull through. Wright's magnificent performance is one of the strongest aspects, along with the soundtrack and the heavy themes.