Based on My Mother, G‑d, and Sylvie Vartan, Ken Scott brings Roland Perez’s story in Once Upon My Mother to the screen in this heartwarming adaptation.

When the Miami, New York, and Atlanta Jewish Film Festivals selected Once Upon My Mother as their Opening Night film, it came with high expectations—much like last year’s selection of Midas Man. Did the film live up to these expectations? Yes, to some extent. It works as both an adaptation and a biopic of Roland Perez (Jonathan Cohen) and his relationship with his mother, Esther (Leïla Bekhti).

When Esther gave birth to Roland in 1963, he was the youngest of six children in the family. Unfortunately, he was also born with a deformity: clubfoot. This meant he would be prevented from standing unless he wore a brace. Esther opted to go against all medical advice and promised Roland that he would walk like everyone else. Was this the smart thing to do? Of course not. She should have listened to the doctors. Roland would eventually walk, but Esther’s stubbornness delayed this by several years. It also meant keeping him out of school, which drew the attention of Social Services.

There are two halves to watching Once Upon My Mother. The first half focuses on Esther and her fight to get Roland to walk. During the second half, which becomes tragic, we see Roland fighting to have his independence. Let me tell you: Esther can come off as overbearing and manipulative, but at no point does it ever feel like we’re watching a trope. His father, Maklouf (Lionel Dray), is present, but same extent as Esther. Roland later meets future wife Litzie (Joséphine Japy) after starting law school. While he think he does not have a chance with her, it is Esther who makes things happen.

Roland never opened up about his clubfoot until after his mother passed away. However, his mother told Roland’s story to a friend, who then shared it with Sylvie Vartan. It was Roland’s story to tell, and one can see how anybody would be upset if someone else told their story—least of all to a celebrity who unknowingly played a role in their life. It was in her honor that he wrote his book, published in 2021. Esther never gave up on him, and it shows throughout Once Upon My Mother.

Once Upon My Mother runs 102 minutes, and because it’s based on a book, it spans several decades (1960s–2010s). This means it’s constrained by many of the same problems that plague biopics. Once Roland reaches adulthood, portrayed by Cohen on screen, he doesn’t really age. This more or less makes it impossible to tell how much time has passed. I get wanting to adapt as much of the book as possible, but this is why life-spanning biopics or book adaptations can be problematic. That being said, focusing on a narrower timeframe, as biopics ought to do, would not have served this story.

The only time we can tell how much time has passed is when Roland is portrayed by different actors as a child. As for authentic representation, they didn’t cast a Jewish woman as Esther in Once Upon My Mother, but a French Muslim actress. It’s an official French-Canadian film, but they should have at least tried to cast a Sephardic Jewish woman in the role. I can say this with 100% certainty: they definitely fooled me, because I thought she was a Jewish actress from the first moment she appeared on screen. This speaks to a larger problem when it comes to casting Jewish women.

Once Upon My Mother is a film that will resonate with anyone who has faced obstacles, familial or otherwise, even if it doesn’t entirely escape the challenges inherent in life-spanning adaptations.

DIRECTOR/SCREENWRITER: Ken Scott
CAST: Leïla Bekhti, Jonathan Cohen, Joséphine Japy, Lionel Dray, with the participation of Jeanne Balibar, with the exceptional participation of Sylvie Vartan, Naïm Naji, Milo Machado-Graner, Anne Le Ny

Once Upon My Mother holds its Southeast US premiere during the 2026 Miami Jewish Film Festival. Upcoming festival screenings include the New York Jewish Film Festival and the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival. Menemsha Films will release the film in the US at a later date. Grade: 3.5/5

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