If there is one illusion that has persisted through the centuries without losing its allure, it is that of marriage. The promise of an unbreakable bond between two unique individuals, destined to recognize and coexist within the same current, has the air of a fable. However, life rarely follows the idealized script. Love, that chaotic and unpredictable force, resists all attempts at formal containment. Vinicius de Moraes, a master of translating emotions, understood the volatility of this flame: if it cannot be eternal, it can at least burn as long as there is devotion. Fernando Pessoa, with his disillusioned gaze, preferred to call it ridiculous, a delusion that exposes humanity to its deepest vulnerability.
But if anyone has stripped love of its romantic reverence, it is Machado de Assis. His sharp sarcasm would perfectly suit the trajectory of Stella and Gustav, the couple at the center of “Let Go”, a film by Swedish director Josephine Bornebusch. As an unspoken disciple of Ingmar Bergman, she examines marital bonds through a lens that demystifies their sanctity. Love and marriage have never been synonymous, and the protagonists’ story illustrates this contradiction. If the former is a spontaneous force, the latter is a human construct, more a product of artifice than essence. If only it were merely a pact of souls, but in the end, there is always the legal element, the contract, the imposition of rules attempting to confine what, by nature, resists definition.
In fiction or reality, the formation of a family rarely follows a linear path. The ideal might suggest a chance meeting, a gradual bonding between two whole individuals, emotionally prepared to build something together. But the real world imposes detours, shortcuts, and obligations that upend any romantic logic. The legal system tries to intervene, shaping bonds, filling gaps left by circumstance. And if “Let Go” highlights anything, it is the inevitable collision between individual desire and societal convention. Stella, imperfect as we all are, struggles to fit into an ideal of motherhood and marriage that never materializes. And it is precisely this doomed pursuit that defines her.
The collapse of her marriage unfolds with painful irony: Gustav, a therapist specializing in marital crises, decides to leave his own. Stella, overwhelmed by her anxieties and carrying a weighty secret, watches her emotional foundation crumble. Bornebusch, who not only directs but also stars and writes the screenplay, crafts a female portrait without concessions, devoid of melodramatic indulgences. Her approach echoes Bergman, but without the need to mimic him. If anything distinguishes her narrative, it is her ability to explore despair without resorting to easy catharsis. After all, love may be infinite while it lasts. But when it ends, it leaves traces that linger far beyond its initial flame.
Film: Let Go
Director: Josephine Bornebusch
Year: 2024
Genres: Drama/Comedy
Rating: 8/10