THE WHORE'S SON

Directed by Michael Sturminger

At the age of three, Ozren only has to watch his mother while she‘s sleeping to know that she’s the most beautiful woman in the world. A queen.

At the age of nine, he doesn’t understand why people swear at him on the street, calling him a whore’s son, a sonofabitch: his mother works as a waitress and that’s the only reason she’s hardly ever at home in the evening.

At the age of 16 Ozren knows. He’s learnt a lot. About money from his mother, about God from his Auntie Ljiljana, about the world from his Uncle Ante and about whores from Pepi.

Now he’s determined to clear up the mystery surrounding his mother.

Austria / 86 min. / in German and Croatian with English & Spanish subtitles

“Both sweet and tragic... There is a stark beauty and sad honesty to director Michael Sturminger’s work."
Capone, AIN'T IT COOL NEWS

“The film fearlessly plumbs the depths of this intense mother-son relationship, and also explores the ways in which role models affect children's lives."
Laura Kern, THE NEW YORK TIMES

“Michael Sturminger has crafted a quiet character study, well acted and fluently shot by cinematographer Jürgen Jürges, a Fassbinder alum."
Tom Beer, TIMEOUT NY

“Cool! Terrific! Richly textured!"
Jay Weissberg, VARIETY

“Oedipus gets a new workout in Michael Sturminger’s visually intriguing film! Curiously touching!"
NEW YORK MAGAZINE

“Visually evocative!"
Elizabeth Weitzman, NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

“Strong performances!"
Ken Fox, TV GUIDE

2006 Tiburon International Film Festival
Max Ophüls Film Festival
Brussells Film Festival
Moscow Film Festival
Sao Paulo Film Festival
Tallinn Film Festival