Babyteeth (2019) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

During her birthday celebration, Milla and Moses attempt to have sex for the first time. Overwhelmed by her unbearable pain from the terminal illness, she desperately asks Moses to smother her to end her suffering. Moses cannot go through with it, unable to kill the person he loves. Later that night, she quietly walks outside to gaze at the sky, symbolizing her acceptance of death, and passes away peacefully in her sleep.

• assisted death
• mercy killing
• final request
• terminal illness
• pain

Henry and Anna initially resist Moses due to his age and apparent drug use, but they eventually allow the relationship because Milla is terminally ill and they want her to experience happiness and love before she dies. When Henry confronts Moses about abandoning Milla, he ultimately invites him to stay with the family, recognizing that Milla's joy matters more than their concerns.

Foreshadowing: Earlier scenes show Anna's visible discomfort with Moses, establishing her initial opposition before she learns to accept him.

• parents
• acceptance
• terminal illness
• relationship
• Henry
• Anna

After her birthday party, Milla and Moses share an intimate moment where she asks him to kill her, but he cannot do it. She later walks outside to look at the sky in acceptance of her fate. The next morning, Moses wakes to find her dead in her bed. When Anna discovers the body, Moses tells her Milla was already gone when he checked on her.

• death
• ending
• final scene
• Milla
• Moses

Milla discovers that her father Henry has been signing Moses's drug prescriptions, essentially enabling his drug use. This betrayal hits hard because Milla had trusted her parents to maintain boundaries while she pursued her relationship with Moses. She confronts her parents and pushes Moses away, feeling that her father has compromised his integrity and crossed a line.

• prescriptions
• betrayal
• Henry
• trust
• drugs

Moses is a small-time drug dealer who was kicked out of his home. He has a younger brother named Isaac and a mother who eventually rejects him when he tries to visit. Without stable housing, he drifts until Milla offers him shelter and money in exchange for help. His relationship with his family remains fractured throughout the film.

• Moses
• homeless
• family
• Isaac
• drug dealer

After Moses leaves following the argument about prescriptions, Henry tracks him down and invites him to return. Despite his earlier reservations, Henry recognizes that Milla's happiness depends on Moses being in her life. He chooses to prioritize his daughter's joy during her limited time over his concerns about Moses' background.

• Henry
• Moses
• invitation
• family
• acceptance

Milla's birthday party marks the emotional climax of the film. After the celebrations, she and Moses prepare to be intimate for the first time. In a moment of extreme pain and desperation, she asks him to smother her. When he cannot do it, they spend their final night together. She then walks outside to look at the stars in peace before dying later that night.

• birthday
• final night
• intimate
• climax
• party

Facing a terminal diagnosis, Milla is determined to live as fully as possible before she dies. She continues violin lessons, attends school, goes to the formal with Moses, and seeks intimate connections. Her desire for normalcy stems from knowing her time is limited, she wants to experience love, friendship, and typical adolescent milestones despite her illness.

• normal life
• terminal illness
• teenage experiences
• violin
• school formal

The final flashback shows Milla at the beach with her family before her illness progressed. She asks her father Henry to look after Moses after she's gone and takes a photo of her parents together. This scene serves as her final farewell, capturing her love for her family and her concern for Moses' future, providing a poignant counterpoint to the sadness of her death.

• beach
• flashback
• final scene
• photo
• parents
• Henry

When Anna finds Milla's body in the morning, she is overcome with grief and breaks down completely. Moses holds her as they share their sorrow. Anna had struggled throughout the film with watching her daughter suffer while coping with her own emotional challenges, and the reality of losing her child finally overwhelms her.

• Anna
• grief
• death
• mother
• breakdown

After Milla discovers that Henry has been signing Moses' prescriptions, she feels betrayed and confronts both her parents. She pushes Moses away in her anger and confusion. Moses, feeling rejected, leaves the Finlay household. He tries to visit his brother Isaac but is turned away by his mother, leaving him with nowhere to go until Henry eventually invites him back.

• Moses
• leaves
• argument
• rejection
• prescriptions

At the party organized by Moses' brother, Milla becomes distressed when Moses is kissed by another girl. She then encounters a mysterious woman who seems to unsettle her, contributing to her feeling overwhelmed and causing her to vomit. This incident highlights Milla's insecurity and the complexity of her relationship with Moses.

• party
• mysterious woman
• Milla
• distress
• vomit