A Want in Her review: Intimate documentary delivers an important message

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In cinemas; Cert 15A

A Want in Her – Official Trailer

Personal and perceptive, Myrid Carten’s debut documentary ­feature tells of an Irish ­family with a tragic history. Myrid, a visual artist based in London, ­arrives home one day to help find her missing mother, Nuala.

These are dark days in the Carten clan. Nuala, a former ­social worker from Donegal, has been living with alcoholism for years. Sometimes she disappears for a day; sometimes, it’s more. But Myrid or her uncle Kevin usually receive a phone call to say Nuala has been found. That’s when the real problems start.

At home, by the fireplace, Myrid asks difficult questions of Nuala, who slowly reveals more about a life that spiralled out of control. As if that wasn’t enough, another sick relative, Danny, shows up unannounced.

Stories start in the home, and Myrid’s tale is among the most depressing we’ve encountered on the big screen this year. More of a stylised video essay than a straightforward documentary, A Want in Her provides an intimate yet somewhat muddled account of unresolved familial tensions in a house that’s been destroyed by addiction. An unusual film, but an important one.

Three stars