- Tech
-
-
Tech
The gadgets, platforms, and software that make your digital life possible. if it bleeps, clicks or blinks, you’ll find it here.
-
Categories
-
-
Latest
- Did Elon Musk just host PewDiePie’s meme review? Today 8:53 AM
- YouTube is fueling the rise in flat earth believers Monday 11:04 AM
- Scathing privacy report calls Facebook a ‘digital gangster’ Monday 10:50 AM
- Report: Google used shell companies to build data centers, obtain tax breaks Sunday 3:38 PM
- Facebook pushes back against moderators complaining about ‘Big Brother’ environment Saturday 12:46 PM
-
-
-
- Internet Culture
-
-
Internet Culture
There’s a community for everyone online.
-
Categories
-
-
Latest
- The ‘Well yes, but actually no’ meme is here to help you explain things Today 12:07 PM
- Man stages fake DUI trial to propose to girlfriend, and people are asking why Today 10:40 AM
- Did Elon Musk just host PewDiePie’s meme review? Today 8:53 AM
- The best memes of 2019 Today 7:00 AM
- ‘Fake plane challenge’ takes off on TikTok Monday 8:15 PM
-
-
-
- Streaming
-
-
Streaming
You’ve cut the cord—now what?
-
Categories
-
-
Latest
- Netflix lines up unnecessarily good cast for ‘Green Eggs and Ham’ Today 3:48 PM
- Netflix drops trailer for Mötley Crüe biopic ‘The Dirt’—and the cast is wild Today 3:41 PM
- Noah Cyrus cries on Instagram after Lil Xan’s baby announcement Today 2:26 PM
- How to watch Liverpool vs. Bayern Munich online for free Today 11:08 AM
- ‘Patriot Act’ volume 2 proves Hasan Minhaj is the next big star of the news-comedy genre Today 11:01 AM
-
-
-
- IRL
-
-
IRL
Where your off- and online identities collide.
-
Categories
-
-
Latest
- I worked with the migrant caravan—and Trump is the cause of his national emergency Today 11:09 AM
- Man stages fake DUI trial to propose to girlfriend, and people are asking why Today 10:40 AM
- Pose’s Indya Moore goes viral for arguing trans women have ‘biologically female’ penises Today 10:21 AM
- Audrey Kitching is a Myspace queen turned energy healer. Critics say she’s also a fraud Today 6:30 AM
- Major U.S. airlines will soon implement nonbinary gender options Monday 10:21 AM
-
-
-
- Social
-
-
Social
If it happens online, it’s here.
-
Categories
-
-
Latest
- Guerrilla artists turn John Oliver billboard ad into right-wing meme 10 Months Ago
- Netflix lines up unnecessarily good cast for ‘Green Eggs and Ham’ Today 3:48 PM
- Netflix drops trailer for Mötley Crüe biopic ‘The Dirt’—and the cast is wild Today 3:41 PM
- QAnon’s repetitive posts are alienating even his most ardent supporters Today 3:36 PM
- Noah Cyrus cries on Instagram after Lil Xan’s baby announcement Today 2:26 PM
-
-
-
- Bazaar
-
-
Bazaar
The Bazaar specializes in the stuff you don’t actually need…but you really, really want.
-
Categories
-
-
Latest
- Allow your wallet to be your spirit guide during this rad anime sale Today 10:43 AM
- 14 artsy cartoon mugs that’ll help make your days more creative Monday 12:15 PM
- Get your nerd on with ThinkGeek’s Funko Pop B2G1 sale Monday 3:00 AM
- Play all your NES games in high def with the Hyperkin RetroN HD Tuesday 8:39 AM
- The Introvert Activity Book is perfect for those who find solace in alone time Monday 11:30 AM
-
-
-
- More
- Search
See all Editor's Picks →
See all Popular →
Represented by Complex Media, Inc. for advertising sales.
Privacy Policy Terms & Conditions Ethics
Latest
- Guerrilla artists turn John Oliver billboard ad into right-wing meme 10 Months Ago
- Netflix lines up unnecessarily good cast for ‘Green Eggs and Ham’ Today 3:48 PM
- Netflix drops trailer for Mötley Crüe biopic ‘The Dirt’—and the cast is wild Today 3:41 PM
- QAnon’s repetitive posts are alienating even his most ardent supporters Today 3:36 PM
- Noah Cyrus cries on Instagram after Lil Xan’s baby announcement Today 2:26 PM
- The ‘Well yes, but actually no’ meme is here to help you explain things Today 12:07 PM
- Judge orders Roger Stone to appear in court after his Instagram post Today 11:24 AM
- I worked with the migrant caravan—and Trump is the cause of his national emergency Today 11:09 AM
- How to watch Liverpool vs. Bayern Munich online for free Today 11:08 AM
- ‘Patriot Act’ volume 2 proves Hasan Minhaj is the next big star of the news-comedy genre Today 11:01 AM
- ‘Friends From College’ canceled after 2 seasons at Netflix Today 10:53 AM
- Allow your wallet to be your spirit guide during this rad anime sale Today 10:43 AM
- Man stages fake DUI trial to propose to girlfriend, and people are asking why Today 10:40 AM
- Bernie Sanders’ website full of 404s on launch day Today 10:23 AM
- Pose’s Indya Moore goes viral for arguing trans women have ‘biologically female’ penises Today 10:21 AM
‘Sunday’s Illness’ achingly captures a strained mother-daughter relationship
The Netflix drama is a stunning import.
Sunday’s Illness (La Enfermedad del Domingo) delivers a gut punch as the layers of the tension-ridden and raw relationship between a mother and daughter, reunited after decades apart, are peeled away in waves and snapshots. And in the hands of writer-director Ramón Salazar and its lead actresses, it turns into something beautiful that that manages to stun when you’ve put the puzzle pieces together.
Anabel (Susi Sánchez) and Chiara (Bárbara Lennie), the estranged mother and daughter at the center of Sunday’s Illness, constantly push and pull at one another even when they aren’t in each other’s orbit. Although Anabel has made a new life for herself—one where she’s married with a daughter and holds charity banquets—since leaving Chiara at age 8, there are still hints that Anabel is wearing a mask. Her wordless introduction, as she trips on her dress before making her way to the banquet, shows just a hint of the imperfection that she tries to stifle down.
And now, 35 years later, Chiara is back in her life with one request: that they spend 10 days together. Despite offers from Anabel’s husband Bernabé (Miguel Ángel Solá) and their lawyers, the daughter is unrelenting. Chiara doesn’t want money, even though she’s offered it to essentially disappear from Anabel’s life. Chiara will gladly sign any forms that give up any future claims she might make to property or wealth. They may have conflicting motivations for spending those 10 days together, but while they haven’t seen each other in decades they quickly recognize one another beyond any surface level.
“I see myself in her,” Anabel tells Bernabé after he asks if she’s sure that Chiara is her daughter.
Sunday’s Illness could have taken its concept into a number of directions with the backdrop—and impeccable cinematography—of an isolated house located on a wooded mountain that helps set the tone. Anabel and Chiara are almost completely isolated and alone in an area that gets no cell service. It could have easily turned into a horror movie or one of revenge.
The film instead goes down a more emotional and sometimes uncomfortable path, one that showcases both Sánchez and Lennie’s range as mother and daughter embark on something much more difficult. It’s a mystery as the audience—much like Anabel—is left wondering just what Chiara wants.
Time passes both slowly and swiftly as they’re forced to confront each other and 35 years of hurt, anger, confusion, and a relationship that 10 days together cannot replace. There are snapshots of what might have been between the two strewn in the film, whether it’s captured by a camera or transitioned with the sound of a shutter. In rare moments, we begin to see how they could heal if they had more than the 10 days they agreed upon.
There is too much baggage for that to last for long. Chiara and Anabel can help one another through understanding, but there’s still underlying mistrust and anger. By the end, marked with a stunning sequence that boasts little dialogue, the experience is profoundly life-changing. And like the snapshots we see, we’re left wondering what it might all say.
Sunday’s Illness (La Enfermedad del Domingo) is screening at Tribeca Film Festival and premieres on Netflix June 15.
Still not sure what to watch on Netflix? Here are our guides for the absolute best movies on Netflix, must-see Netflix original series and movies, and the comedy specials guaranteed to make you laugh.

Michelle Jaworski
Michelle Jaworski is a staff writer and the resident Game of Thrones expert at the Daily Dot. She covers entertainment, geek culture, and pop culture and has brought her knowledge to conventions like Con of Thrones. She is based in New Jersey.