Everytime

Everytime directed by Sandra Wollner, cast: Brigit Minichmayr, Lotte Shirin Keiling — Austria, Germany — 2026 — 121 min.

Sandra Wollner, winner of the main prize of the Un Certain Regard section at the Cannes Film Festival, does not believe in the afterlife, but envies those who possess this grace of faith. According to the Austrian director, the images of loved ones remain with us and over time grow into the earthly world. Her latest film is a poignant and formally dazzling work, third after The Inconvenience of Birth (2020, special distinction in the New Horizons Competition). The protagonist of Everytime is teenage Jessie, who is preparing for a vacation trip with her mother Ella and younger sister. Just before the trip, she sneaks out to a party with her boyfriend Lux. The night ends in tragedy. A year later, Ella and Melli are clinging to their daily routine. They somehow cope, although the pain after the loss does not subside. When Lux shows up again, Ella can't even admit to herself that she blames him for her daughter's accident. He, in turn, cannot say how desperately he needs forgiveness. Driven by an impulse that is difficult to explain, Ella takes Lux and Melli on a previously canceled vacation in Tenerife. Under the Spanish sun, all three carefully tread an emotional minefield, as if in a half-sleep. We see a family by choice trying to live — perhaps because there is no way out, or maybe because it is the only way to survive. Masterfully showing the delicate nature of human bonds, Everytime will stay with you for a long time.

Sandra Lech, nowehoryzonty.pl