Heaven is Burning (2023)
Director: Mika Gustafson
Cast: Bianca Delbravo, Marta Oldenburg, Dilvin Asaad
Premiere: 7/6/24
Punctuation: * * *
In one of the opening moments, a sister asks another how to begin a conflict with a plan in mind. The reply is stark and defiant: she removes her panties and uses them to wipe the blood from her nose. This image captures a thread running through the film—a light overarching plot built from a series of decisive, fleeting scenes that move between tension and tenderness, chaos and calm. The film aims to crystallize a specific moment in time, the spontaneity of each situation, whether unsettling or joyful, and then let that moment linger just long enough to feel real.
The story follows three sisters, aged 7, 12, and 15, who have learned to navigate the world largely on their own after their mother walks away for an extended period. They survive by relying on one another, each developing her own path through the day. The eldest sister becomes the de facto strategist, always looking out for the younger two and tackling the obstacles that appear along the way. A supermarket robbery, a social worker who arrives with news that the mother might not be as absent as hoped, and a host of small, intimate incidents all test their resolve. The trio’s performances anchor the film, and the camera follows them with a rare blend of immediacy and sensitivity, inviting audiences to see the world through their eyes. The director uses this trio as a gateway into a larger meditation on resilience, family, and the fragile, bright moments that define childhood under strain. As events unfold, the filmmaking itself seems to yield to the sisters’ perspective, turning ordinary settings into stage-like spaces where fear, courage, and camaraderie coexist in a single breath. The result is a portrait that feels both intimate and universal, a cinematic snapshot of endurance that lingers long after the credits roll.