Birth

Birth

Year: 2004

Runtime: 100 min

Language: Arabic

Director: Jonathan Glazer

Budget: $20M

DramaMysteryThrillerRomance

An Emirati family's carefully constructed world is shaken when long-held secrets begin to surface. As tensions rise, hidden truths and unsettling mysteries come to light, threatening to tear them apart. A complex web of forbidden desires and betrayals emerges, forcing them to confront painful realities and question the foundations of their relationships.

Warning: spoilers below!

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Timeline & Setting – Birth (2004)

Explore the full timeline and setting of Birth (2004). Follow every major event in chronological order and see how the environment shapes the story, characters, and dramatic tension.

Time period

Location

New York City, Central Park

New York City serves as the film's urban backdrop, shaping the mood with its dense streets and modern anonymity. Central Park appears as a pivotal setting where Anna confronts Sean and where crucial exchanges occur in a quiet, open space. The city’s apartments, parties, and public spaces create a intimate drama within a sprawling metropolis.

🗽 New York City 🌳 Central Park

Last Updated: October 04, 2025 at 08:09

Main Characters – Birth (2004)

Meet the key characters of Birth (2004), with detailed profiles, motivations, and roles in the plot. Understand their emotional journeys and what they reveal about the film’s deeper themes.

Anna (Nicole Kidman)

Anna is a married woman who is drawn into a disturbing claim that a ten-year-old boy is the reincarnation of her late husband. She grapples with rational skepticism and a deep longing for closure and love. Her emotions oscillate between trust, fear, and the fear of losing her current fiancé to the mystery surrounding Sean.

🎭 Drama 💞 Love 🧠 Psychology

Sean (Cameron Bright)

A boy who asserts that he is Anna’s deceased husband reborn. He speaks with unsettling certainty and appears to know intimate details of Anna’s life, testing the boundaries between memory and reality. His quiet confidence and persistence push Anna’s family to verify his claims, while the truth remains elusive.

🧭 Mystery 🔍 Investigation

Anna’s Mother (Lauren Bacall)

Anna’s mother is a steady, concerned presence who witnesses the upheaval surrounding Sean’s claims. She navigates family tension with wary support, offering insight while trying to protect Anna from the potential consequences of belief.

👵 Family 🗣️ Voice of Reason

Last Updated: October 04, 2025 at 08:09

Major Themes – Birth (2004)

Explore the central themes of Birth (2004), from psychological, social, and emotional dimensions to philosophical messages. Understand what the film is really saying beneath the surface.

🪞 Identity

The film probes identity as a fluid construct, testing whether a claimed reincarnation can truly be the same person. Anna’s oscillation between belief and doubt reveals how memory and desire shape who we think we are. Sean’s insistence on his identity forces the characters to confront what constitutes truth in love and loss.

💔 Love & Obsession

Love here blurs into obsession as characters pursue restored intimacy with a dead husband or resurrected presence. Anna’s longing drives dangerous entanglements, while Sean’s fixation on her life becomes a destabilizing force. The narrative explores boundaries between devotion, manipulation, and the risks of clinging to the past.

⏳ Time & Mortality

Ten years separate the lovers from the man who died, and time becomes the stage on which memory and grief play out. The boy’s claim forces a re-encounter with mortality, forcing a reevaluation of past relationships. The film suggests that time cannot soothe all wounds and may even complicate them.

Last Updated: October 04, 2025 at 08:09

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Explore Movie Threads

Discover curated groups of movies connected by mood, themes, and story style. Browse collections built around emotion, atmosphere, and narrative focus to easily find films that match what you feel like watching right now.

Unsettling family secrets and psychological unease like in Birth

Stories where hidden familial truths create a creeping sense of dread.If you liked the tense atmosphere and unraveling mysteries of Birth, explore more movies like it. This collection features similar dramas and thrillers where unsettling family secrets come to light, creating a heavy, melancholic mood and complex character dynamics centered on grief, betrayal, and obsessive love.

unsettlingsombereerieheavypsychologicalmelancholicclaustrophobictense

Narrative Summary

Narratives in this thread typically begin with a stable but fragile domestic situation, which is disrupted by a mysterious event or revelation. The story unfolds slowly, focusing on the psychological impact on each character as they confront painful truths, leading to emotional turmoil, ethical dilemmas, and often a bittersweet or unresolved conclusion.

Why These Movies?

These films are grouped together because they share a core focus on the destructive power of secrets within intimate relationships. They create a similar viewing experience defined by a tense, somber tone, deliberate pacing that builds unease, and a heavy emotional weight stemming from themes of betrayal, grief, and the questioning of reality.

Atmospheric slow burns of grief and obsession like in Birth

Meditations on loss where mourning twists into unsettling fixation.For viewers who appreciated the heavy, obsessive exploration of grief in Birth, this list curates similar movies with a slow burn pace. Discover films that share a bittersweet ending, complex emotional depth, and a tense, melancholic vibe, focusing on characters whose mourning becomes an all-consuming and unsettling force.

melancholicobsessiveheavysomberatmosphericpsychologicalunsettlingeerie

Narrative Summary

The narrative pattern follows a character deeply wounded by loss, whose coping mechanism transforms into a single-minded, often irrational obsession. This journey is depicted with atmospheric subtlety rather than dramatic outbursts, focusing on the internal struggle and the ethical unease that arises, typically culminating in a conclusion that offers little catharsis, leaving a residue of sorrow.

Why These Movies?

These movies are united by their specific emotional and stylistic blend: a heavy focus on grief, a narrative pace that is intentionally slow to build an atmosphere of melancholy, and a central theme of obsession that creates psychological tension. They deliver a similarly immersive and emotionally draining experience.

Unlock the Full Story of Birth

Don't stop at just watching — explore Birth in full detail. From the complete plot summary and scene-by-scene timeline to character breakdowns, thematic analysis, and a deep dive into the ending — every page helps you truly understand what Birth is all about. Plus, discover what's next after the movie.

Birth Summary

Read a complete plot summary of Birth, including all key story points, character arcs, and turning points. This in-depth recap is ideal for understanding the narrative structure or reviewing what happened in the movie.

Birth Summary

Birth Timeline

Track the full timeline of Birth with every major event arranged chronologically. Perfect for decoding non-linear storytelling, flashbacks, or parallel narratives with a clear scene-by-scene breakdown.

Birth Timeline

Birth Spoiler-Free Summary

Get a quick, spoiler-free overview of Birth that covers the main plot points and key details without revealing any major twists or spoilers. Perfect for those who want to know what to expect before diving in.

Birth Spoiler-Free Summary

More About Birth

Visit What's After the Movie to explore more about Birth: box office results, cast and crew info, production details, post-credit scenes, and external links — all in one place for movie fans and researchers.

More About Birth

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