The lies and tenderness of a struggling single mother

06 September 2025, The Tablet

Single mother Jule (Ophélia Kolb) and family

METFILM

Mother love and the ties that bind

The Courageous
DIRECTOR: JASMIN GORDON

There is no one way to do “good enough” parenting, and in Jasmin Gordon’s nuanced and impressive debut feature, The Courageous, the Swiss American writer-director gives no simple guidelines. Single mother Jule (Ophélia Kolb) has three children aged around seven to 12. The eldest is Claire (Jasmine Kalisz Saurer); Loic (Paul Besnier), the middle child, has been given a diagnosis of Asperger’s; and Sami (Arthur Devaux) is the youngest.

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