Sundance Film Festival 2025 – Plenty of films deal with parent/child relationships. The subject matter isn’t anything new. However, the short film We’re Not Done Yet offers a fresh take on a familiar topic. A son named Alex (Joseph Longo) harbors jealousy because his 70-year-old mother, Bettina (Barbara Sukowa), starts living her life as she wants to live it. This includes wine, chocolate, dating, and maybe even adopting a child.

Directed by Longo and Sofia Camargo, the film offers quite the dynamic between mother and son. Initially, they do quite a bit together, including daily yoga. Their relationship strains when Betinna starts dating Doug (Danny Mastrogiorgio). She even invites him over late at night, drawing a cranky response from Alex. He just wants to sleep because he works early the next day. The parent/child dynamics are somewhat flipped here. The more Bettina lives, the more Alex acts like a strict parent. Both Sukowa and Longo do a good job in the lead roles. That said, Sukowa really makes this film. Her eccentric character is all kinds of quirky. Sukowa does a great job performing such a free-spirited character.

This film certainly contains its share of laughs. Though mother and son do have their problems, the two have plenty of absurd and funny moments together. This is especially true when Betinna leaves her son on the side of the road, because he keeps complaining about her recent life choices.

Yet, while the film has a comedic tone, it does edge a more serious truth and subject matter. Does Alex not want his mom to live her life the way she wants to live it? Does he expect her never to date again, stay up late, and converse, while eating chocolate and sipping wine? It’s tough to blame Betinna for erupting at her son when she’s so critical of her lifestyle. That said, at one point, he discovers that she’s been filling out adoption forms. She justifies it by stating that taking in a cat would make her feel old, while dogs poop everywhere. It’s these moments that work so well,

I’d love to see more adventures between Alex and Betinna, so I hope this short film becomes a full-length. We’re Not Done Yet is an endearing work about a complicated mother and son dynamic. This is a film that also celebrates living life and doing what you want, no matter your age.