incest scene ; Isabelle Huppert : the twin brothers and their mother

incest scene ; Isabelle Huppert : the twin brothers and their mother

The film opens with Pascale trying on a negligee in front of her bedroom mirror and calling for one of her twenty year-old sons, François, who appears wearing only his underpants and a t-shirt, to give her his opinion about how she looks. They are soon joined by his twin, Thierry, similarly dressed, who makes some jokingly crude and hurtful comments about his mother. From this first scene we understand immediately the difficult and disrespectful relationship that exists between Pascale and her sons. As we watch her prepare meals for them, which her sons always eat ravenously whilst criticising everything she says, it becomes apparent that Pascale has no parental control over them, but especially over Thierry's angry bullying behaviour. When she returns home from work one day to find her ex husband in the house with their sons, she becomes enraged and asks him to see them elsewhere, frustrated by the intrusion into her personal space which so undermines her authority. Filmed with slow static takes that perfectly capture the claustrophobic atmosphere within the rooms of the home, Private Property painfully portrays the intense emotional interactions between the twin brothers and their mother.Private Property shows the difficult job of a single mother, dependent on the financial support of her ex husband, struggling to make things good for her sons without the balance and support of another adult partner in the home. Her devotion to her sons has been her major focus for the ten years since the divorce until she begins to recognise the need to focus on her own life again. We learn that she is having a secret relationship with her neighbour, Jan, a cook who wants her to sell up the family home and move away with him to open up a B & B. She gradually builds the courage to tell her sons this plan, but they are so shocked at the prospect of a change to their lives that they completely forbid a sale of the house, which they remind her was bought by their father for them. Thierry meets with his father, Luc, to inform him of Pascale's plan and is reassured by him that she will not be allowed to sell the house. However, François reflects on the possibility of actually helping his mother and Jan in the B & B, revealing a difference between the brothers in their relationships with Pascale. Throughout the film we are shown scenes of the brothers playing table tennis and computer games or lounging in front of the TV whilst waiting for Pascale to feed them.Desperate for some adult support in regaining parental authority in the discussion about her future, Pascale invites her lover Jan to supper. He cooks the family a special meal and is rewarded by rudeness from Thierry and disinterest in eating his food. Soon after, Jan tells Pascale that she must sort out her relationship with her sons before he can see her again and she becomes more isolated than ever. The brothers start to argue more frequently between themselves, and with their mother, causing the family to finally disintegrate when Pascale leaves home in search of some space for herself, unable to cope with Thierry's behaviour.I will not describe the end scenes in any detail, except to say that they reveal the ultimate emotional vulnerability and immaturity of Thierry, whose anger finally causes great damage to the family. We come to understand that there has been a catastrophic failure in helping him to process the deep hurt and loss that he experienced as a result of his parents divorce and that he has continued to suffer as a result of their ongoing poor relationship. Perhaps appropriately for the subject matter, the film concludes without resolution.Relevance to the field of Mental HealthPrivate Property provides us with a window on the world of the post divorce family ten years from their break up and gives us an opportunity to reflect on the harm of continuing conflict between divorced parents over many years. The film is especially good at illustrating the damaging effects that an acrimonious divorce can have on older children, particularly when their divorced parents continue to undermine each other as they fight for the allegiance of their children. Because Luc has bought the farmhouse for his sons and ex wife, he remains essentially in control of the family, depriving Pascale of any freedom to move on. Her dilemma is very well performed by Huppert as the downtrodden, impoverished, exhausted single mother who is trying too hard to put her sons needs first, trapped by the role that she has played in creating their inconsiderate selfishness, whilst unable to realise her own desired future.