35-year-old Aga stands in a snow-dusted field with her teenage brother, Milosz at the beginning of the new documentary SILENT LOVE. Before her, is a pile of their recently deceased mother’s belongings that Aga is about to set fire to. The frosty setting is the perfect visual metaphor for what is happening and the hope and humanity that somehow survives in the midst of bleak despair. Marek Kozakiewicz’s quiet documentary follows a triad of souls in search of family and support amidst stifling circumstances is at once harrowing and reassuring.

Aga has left her girlfriend Maja in Germany to return home to the small Polish village of her youth after her mother dies of lung cancer. Left behind is teenage brother Milosz who is now, essentially an orphan. Aga’s goal is to adopt her younger brother and continue raising him. The problem is that there is an increasingly anti-queer sentiment rising in the local community that could make rescuing naive Milosz from the foster care system impossible. The balancing act begins. Aga must return home to raise her brother, push through the red tape in order to adopt him, and maintain her relationship with the woman that she loves.

What I loved about Kozakiewicz’s approach is the non-intrusive nature of it all. We view quietly as an audience to painful moments of loss and grieving coupled with intimate moments of sibling humor and support. Then there are the awkward moments of easing Milosz into the idea that his sister loves a woman, but also the community is saying that Gay is bad. We watch as Milosz is guided through traditional courting dances at school, systemically forced to adhere to a heteronormative structure. These moments are contrasted with the new family that is developing at home filled with growth and honesty. Balancing the heavy narratives with a breezy tone, Agata Cierniak and Anna Garncarczyk edit the doc with a light hand and deft touch for holding a moment.

Aga visits Maja in Germany in hopes of convincing her to join her and her brother back in Poland. The hope is that, despite the encroaching hate, Aga can help Milosz during this devastating time of mourning while at the same time navigating social and political perils while building a brighter future.

Supported by a brilliant team of documentarians though, this is Kozakiewicz’s piece. His easy approach to difficult material makes it immediately accessible. We are asked to focus on the immediate subject of a family struggle rather than the broad political implications. We are guided to see humanity in the dilemma rather than the broad strokes of world politics. This is why SILENT LOVE works so well and is so very moving. We are asked to consider three people in search of a brighter future against all odds. It is this story that keeps us in rapt attention until the end.

SILENT LOVE is a lovely, heartfelt, and compassionate look at one of the myriad stories of humanity muddling through difficulty with a relentless hope of better things to come.

7 out of 10