mother movie review reddit

Film Review: ‘mother!’

Darren Aronofsky's head-trip horror movie, starring Jennifer Lawrence as a woman who slips down a rabbit hole of paranoia, is dazzling on the surface, but what lies beneath? Maybe nothing.

By Owen Gleiberman

Owen Gleiberman

Chief Film Critic

• ‘Sting’ Review: A Giant Spider Grows in Brooklyn in a Knowingly Cheeseball Indie Horror Trifle 17 hours ago
• ‘Back to Black’ Review: Marisa Abela Nails Amy Winehouse in Every Look, Mood and Note in a Biopic at Once Forthright and Forbidding 3 days ago
• ‘The People’s Joker’ Is a Comic-Book Fantasia More Authentic Than Just About Any Comic-Book Movie 6 days ago

If the only thing we wanted, or expected, a horror film to do was to get a rise out of you — to make your eyes widen and your jaw drop, to leave you in breathless chortling spasms of WTF disbelief — then Darren Aronofsky ’s “ mother! ” would have to be reckoned some sort of masterpiece. As it is, the movie, which stars Jennifer Lawrence as a woman who slips down a rabbit hole of paranoid c ould-this-be-happening? reality (she flushes a beating heart down the toilet; blood in the shape of a vagina melts through the floorboards; and oh, the wackjobs who keep showing up!), is far from a masterpiece. It’s more like a dazzlingly skillful machine of virtual reality designed to get nothing but a rise out of you. It’s a baroque nightmare that’s about nothing but itself.

Yet for an increasingly large swath of the moviegoing audience, that may be enough. “mother!” is often entertaining in a knowingly over-the-top, look-ma-no-hands! way. To ask for a film like this one to be more than it is — to ask for it to connect to experience in a meaningful way — may, at this point, seem quaint and old-fashioned and irrelevant. Considering the number of cruddy recycled horror movies made by hacks that score at the box office, the film is almost destined to be a success, maybe even a “sensation,” because Aronofsky is no hack — he’s a dark wizard of the cinematic arts. Yet his two greatest films, “Requiem for a Dream” (2000) and “The Wrestler” (2008), are both steeped in the human dimension, whereas “mother!” is a piece of ersatz humanity. Its dread has no resonance; it’s a hermetically sealed creep-out that turns into a fake-trippy experience. By all means, go to “mother!” and enjoy its roller-coaster-of-weird exhibitionism. But be afraid, very afraid, only if you’re hoping to see a movie that’s as honestly disquieting as it is showy.

In the remote green countryside, Lawrence plays the young second wife of a middle-aged celebrity author of feel-good poetry, played by Javier Bardem . (The characters are identified in the credits only as “mother” and “him.”) She’s renovating the couple’s exquisitely tasteful and spacious rustic Victorian mansion. The place sits in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by nothing but grass and trees and wind, like a wooden octagonal country castle: no road, no driveway, no cell-phone service. It’s a house with great bones, as they say, but the place was burned in a fire, which destroyed everything Bardem had, including his first wife. In the ashes, he found a burnished crystal, which gave him the faith to go on (it’s mounted in his study), and Lawrence wants to feel the faith too. She isn’t just fixing up a house; she’s restoring their lives.

Popular on Variety

That, however, is going to be a challenge, since Bardem, who has been a blocked writer ever since the fire, skulks around with knitted brows and a bitter scowl, treating Lawrence less as someone he loves than as the ball-and-chain he’s already sick of. The oddest thing about “mother!” is that it pretends to be a “psychological drama,” but the Tensions Simmering Below The Surface are all on the surface. Aronofsky, who wrote as well as directed the film, seems to be drawing characters and situations out of a ham-handed tradition of overly blatant B-movie horror. But can intentional obviousness be an artful style? There’s no subtext to “mother!” — just the film’s hyper-synthetic, flattened-out pop reality.

Early on, there’s a mysterious knock on the door. It’s a skeevy and deranged-looking Ed Harris, who has somehow found his way to the house, late at night, and acts oddly aggressive and familiar (to Bardem: “Your wife? I thought it was your daughter!”). The even stranger thing is that within minutes, he and Bardem are sitting around like old drinking buddies, as if they were in the middle of a conspiracy. When Bardem invites him to stay over, Lawrence quite understandably says, “He’s a stranger. We’re not going to let him sleep in our house.” That Bardem treats a stranger like family and his wife like crap doesn’t really make sense, but the film asks us to accept that we’re in the “Twilight Zone” version of a “Green Acres” universe, where everything Lawrence thinks, says, and does is wrong, and she’s going to suffer for it, all because…well, there is no because. All because that’s the movie’s sick-joke rules.

“mother!” is a nightmare played as a hallucination played as a theater-of-the-absurd video game that seems to descend, level by level, to more and more extreme depths of depraved intensity. You could say that Aronofsky is drawing on “The Shining” (the isolated setting and Bardem’s stony resentment) and also on “Rosemary’s Baby,” the greatest of all paranoid horror films. If so, however, he heads right for that film’s in-your-face, party-with-the-devil final scene (“Hail Satan!”), which director Roman Polanski took an entire two-hour movie to work up to. That movie was a bad-dream vision of pregnancy in which Rosemary paid the price for her trust and naïveté. But what, exactly, is the sin Lawrence is paying for?

The way “mother!” portrays it, she’s an addict of countrified good taste who’s too obsessed with her Martha Stewart home-restoration project. But seriously, this is a crime? The role, as written, is so thin that Lawrence, long hair parted down the middle, has to infuse it with her personality just to create a semblance of a character. She makes this victim-heroine a warm, eager, reasonable sweetheart who is full of feeling (and wants to have a baby herself), but watches her life turn into a funhouse of torment.

She does take a mysterious golden elixir, which may have head-altering properties. (But then she stops taking it, and the madness escalates anyway.) The fact that she imbibes any substance at all may link the film, in Aronofsky’s mind, to the Ellen Burstyn section of “Requiem for a Dream,” in which the director imagined addiction to amphetamines as a hallucination from hell. But that outrageous and memorable episode expressed something deep and true: that this is what drugs could do to your brain.

In “mother!,” the filmmaker basically just keeps coming up with bigger and better ways to punish his heroine. Harris’s wife comes over, and she’s a noodgy drunk played, with blaring ferocity, by Michelle Pfeiffer. A little later, we meet the couple’s adult sons (played by Brian and Domhnall Gleeson), who are at loggerheads, and everything that’s happened so far begins to look like child’s play. We’re now more or less rolling with it, taking refuge in Aronofsky’s puckish skill at staging the delirium, even as his relentless use of hand-held close-ups grows claustrophobic.

There’s an abstract audacity to “mother!” The film’s horror plays off everything from the grabby hordes of celebrity culture to the fear of Nazis and terrorists to — yes — what it means to be a mother (complete with the world’s most ironic exclamation point). All of that makes the film seem ambitious. But it also makes it a movie that’s about everything and nothing. You might say that it’s Aronofsky’s (confessional?) vision of what it’s like being married to a famous egocentric artist. But you could also say that “mother!” is so intent on putting an undeserving woman through the terrors of the damned that there’s a residue of misogyny to its design. Toss in a twist ending worthy of M. Night Shamyalan (a good or bad thing? Maybe both), and you’ve got a head-trip horror movie with something for everyone — except, perhaps, for those who want to emerge feeling more haunted than assaulted.

Reviewed at Venice Film Festival (competition), September 5, 2017. Running time: 120 MIN.

• Production: A Paramount Pictures release of a Paramount Pictures, Protazoa Pictures production. Producers: Darren Aronofsky, Scott Franklin, Ari Handel. Executive producers: Mark Heyman, Jeff G. Waxman.
• Crew: Director, screenplay: Darren Aronofsky. Camera (color, widescreen): Matthew Libatique. Editor: Andrew Weisblum.
• With: Jennifer Lawrence, Javier Bardem, Ed Harris, Michelle Pfeiffer, Domhnall Gleeson, Brian Gleeson, Stephen McHattie, Kristen Wiig.

More From Our Brands

Elon musk claims there’s ‘no proof’ swastika-tatted texas shooter was white supremacist, chopard ceo karl freiderich scheufele on diamonds for men, ethical gold, and the power of green, spirit of st. louis: ufl’s battlehawks are proof of league’s concept, the best loofahs and body scrubbers, according to dermatologists, golden bachelor divorce celebrated by view co-hosts: ‘i told you so’ (watch), verify it's you, please log in.

Log in or sign up for Rotten Tomatoes

Trouble logging in?

By continuing, you agree to the Privacy Policy and the Terms and Policies , and to receive email from the Fandango Media Brands .

By creating an account, you agree to the Privacy Policy and the Terms and Policies , and to receive email from Rotten Tomatoes and to receive email from the Fandango Media Brands .

By creating an account, you agree to the Privacy Policy and the Terms and Policies , and to receive email from Rotten Tomatoes.

Email not verified

Let's keep in touch.

Sign up for the Rotten Tomatoes newsletter to get weekly updates on:

• Upcoming Movies and TV shows
• Trivia & Rotten Tomatoes Podcast
• Media News + More

By clicking "Sign Me Up," you are agreeing to receive occasional emails and communications from Fandango Media (Fandango, Vudu, and Rotten Tomatoes) and consenting to Fandango's Privacy Policy and Terms and Policies . Please allow 10 business days for your account to reflect your preferences.

OK, got it!

Movies / TV

No results found.

• What's the Tomatometer®?
• Login/signup

Movies in theaters

• Opening this week
• Top box office
• Coming soon to theaters
• Certified fresh movies

Movies at home

• Fandango at Home
• Netflix streaming
• Prime Video
• Most popular streaming movies
• What to Watch New

Certified fresh picks

• Civil War Link to Civil War
• Monkey Man Link to Monkey Man
• The First Omen Link to The First Omen

New TV Tonight

• Fallout: Season 1
• Chucky: Season 3
• Mr Bates vs The Post Office: Season 1
• Baby Reindeer: Season 1
• Franklin: Season 1
• Dora: Season 1
• Good Times: Season 1
• Beacon 23: Season 2

Most Popular TV on RT

• Ripley: Season 1
• Parasyte: The Grey: Season 1
• 3 Body Problem: Season 1
• Sugar: Season 1
• Shōgun: Season 1
• X-Men '97: Season 1
• A Gentleman in Moscow: Season 1
• Palm Royale: Season 1
• The Gentlemen: Season 1
• Best TV Shows
• Most Popular TV
• TV & Streaming News

Certified fresh pick

• Fallout Link to Fallout
• All-Time Lists
• Binge Guide
• Comics on TV
• Five Favorite Films
• Video Interviews
• Weekend Box Office
• Weekly Ketchup
• What to Watch

Best Movies of 2024: Best New Movies to Watch Now

25 Most Popular TV Shows Right Now: What to Watch on Streaming

What to Watch: In Theaters and On Streaming

Awards Tour

CinemaCon 2024: Day 3 – Disney Previews Deadpool & Wolverine , Moana 2 , Alien: Romulus , and More

Renewed and Cancelled TV Shows 2024

• Trending on RT
• Play Movie Trivia

2017, Horror/Mystery & thriller, 2h 0m

What to know

Critics Consensus

There's no denying that mother! is the thought-provoking product of a singularly ambitious artistic vision, though it may be too unwieldy for mainstream tastes. Read critic reviews

You might also like

Where to watch mother.

Rent mother! on Apple TV, Fandango at Home, Prime Video, or buy it on Apple TV, Fandango at Home, Prime Video.

Rate And Review

Super Reviewer

Rate this movie

Oof, that was Rotten.

Meh, it passed the time.

It’s good – I’d recommend it.

So Fresh: Absolute Must See!

What did you think of the movie? (optional)

You're almost there! Just confirm how you got your ticket.

Step 2 of 2

How did you buy your ticket?

Let's get your review verified..

AMCTheatres.com or AMC App New

Cinemark Coming Soon

We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future.

Regal Coming Soon

Theater box office or somewhere else

By opting to have your ticket verified for this movie, you are allowing us to check the email address associated with your Rotten Tomatoes account against an email address associated with a Fandango ticket purchase for the same movie.

You're almost there! Just confirm how you got your ticket.

Mother videos, mother   photos.

A young woman spends her days renovating the Victorian mansion that she lives in with her husband in the countryside. When a stranger knocks on the door one night, he becomes an unexpected guest in their home. Later, his wife and two children also arrive to make themselves welcome. Terror soon strikes when the beleaguered wife tries to figure out why her husband is so seemingly friendly and accommodating to everyone but her.

Rating: R (Nudity|Language|Some Sexuality|Strong Disturbing Content|Strong Violent Content)

Genre: Horror, Mystery & thriller

Original Language: English

Director: Darren Aronofsky

Producer: Darren Aronofsky , Scott Franklin , Ari Handel

Writer: Darren Aronofsky

Release Date (Theaters): Sep 15, 2017  wide

Release Date (Streaming): Dec 5, 2017

Box Office (Gross USA): $17.8M

Runtime: 2h 0m

Distributor: Paramount Pictures

Production Co: Paramount Pictures, Protozoa Pictures

Sound Mix: Dolby Digital

Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

Cast & Crew

Jennifer Lawrence

Javier Bardem

Michelle Pfeiffer

Domhnall Gleeson

Brian Gleeson

Younger Brother

Stephen McHattie

Kristen Wiig

Jovan Adepo

Darren Aronofsky

Screenwriter

Scott Franklin

Mark Heyman

Executive Producer

Jeff G. Waxman

Matthew Libatique

Cinematographer

Andrew Weisblum

Film Editing

Jóhann Jóhannsson

Original Music

Philip Messina

Production Design

Danny Glicker

Costume Design

Lindsay Graham

Mary Vernieu

News & Interviews for mother!

New on Prime Video and Freevee in September 2022

38th Razzie Award “Winners” Announced

Jennifer Lawrence’s 10 Best Movies

Critic Reviews for mother!

Audience reviews for mother.

Very bizarre. Uncomfortable and hard to watch at times, but I thought it was good.

The first half of the film works. It's a home invasion thriller that is supposed to piss you off, and it does. What happens in the last 30 minutes of the movie may be some kind of metaphor for whatever, and it's certainly gutsy to have a film go off the rails entirely like this, but any sane viewer should probably just laugh at how pretentious and ridiculous it all is. Is it memorable, entertaining and maybe even fascinating? Absolutely. Is it artsy-fartsy bullshit too? Oh hell yes.

One of the worst movies ever made in the history of cinema. This film is somehow perfectly dreadful in every category....it doesn't get a single thing right. Jennifer Lawrence should be fined for acting this atrocious.

From writer/director Darren Aronofsky comes Mother!, an incredibly confusing piece of artistic douchebaggery. It starts out as a psychological thriller about a couple living in a house in the country who are visited by a mysterious stranger, but then it quickly devolves into a heavy handed allegory about creation. And as an allegory, there's not really a plot or developed characters; which makes the film extremely hard to follow and get a grasp on. Additionally, the pacing is so fast that the audience is left feeling disoriented much of the time. Mother! is a chaotic mess that's just not worth the aggravation.

Movie & TV guides

Play Daily Tomato Movie Trivia

Discover What to Watch

Rotten Tomatoes Podcasts

Screen Rant

Mother review.

mother! is an ambitious work that bucks traditional storytelling techniques with its aspirations, but its approach will not be for all moviegoers.

mother! is an ambitious work that bucks traditional storytelling techniques with its aspirations, but its approach will not be for all moviegoers.

Mother (Jennifer Lawrence) lives a tranquil and peaceful life with her husband, Him (Javier Bardem), in their remote home, isolated from the rest of society. He is a famous poet who is struggling to find the proper inspiration for his next piece, while she works on fixing up the house after it had been burnt to the ground in a fire. Mother aspires to create a paradise for the two, but Him's extensive writer's block puts a strain on their relationship.

One night, a man (Ed Harris) visits Mother and Him's home, looking for a place to stay after traveling a great distance. Him is excited to have the company, and Mother reluctantly agrees to let the man spend the night. The next day, the man's wife (Michelle Pfeiffer) comes to the house to spend time with her husband, and Mother's existence continues to unravel as more and more admirers and fans of Him come and make the house their own. Desperate for things to go back to the way they were, Mother tries to convince Him to make their guests leave before all is lost.

Billed as a psychological horror/thriller,  mother! is the latest film from writer/director Darren Aronofsky, who found himself in a dark and troubled place when developing this film. The auteur has made a career of challenging his viewers with unconventional narratives that typically deal with unsettling subject matter, and this instance is no different, leaving audiences with quite the puzzle to put together long after the credits have rolled.  mother! is an ambitious work that bucks traditional storytelling techniques with its aspirations, but its approach will not be for all moviegoers.

Aronofsky is no stranger to incorporating Biblical themes and elements into his films (see:  Noah ), and he doubles down on those influences with  mother! . His script is in essence one big metaphor that aims to provide commentary on the state of the world and humanity - at times beating viewers over the head with its message. While this concept is admirable and sounds fascinating on-paper, it may not have been executed in the most compelling way. Aronofsky gets so preoccupied with the symbolism in  mother! that for the most part, he forgoes setting up the characters and relationships in a way for general audiences to truly be invested in what is happening. Some viewers will definitely appreciate the director's commitment to realizing his vision, but many of roles come across as being thinly-defined and just a stand-in for something else - which make the payoffs unearned.

mother! is a mixed bag in the screenplay department, though there is no denying Aronofsky remains at the top of his craft from a technical standpoint. The film's visuals look great onscreen, with much credit going to cinematographer Matthew Libatique. A majority of the movie is shot in closeups, and the camerawork is used to instill a sense of claustrophobia and dread. In typical Aronofsky fashion, there's plenty of disturbing imagery in mother! as well, and while this can be reminiscent of his 2010 hit  Black Swan , it does a good job of unnerving viewers. In some ways, the home invasion aspects of the film are grounded and more terrifying than a standard horror movie - as "normal" everyday people are used in place of a slasher monster/threat. The pure insanity of what's happening can put viewers on edge, giving  mother! an unpredictable edge where just about anything is possible.

In terms of the performances, Lawrence is the clear standout as Mother, delivering an emotionally vulnerable and demanding turn as a pure, innocent woman who gets pushed further and further into madness. The Oscar-winner does her best at making the most of the material, giving  mother! the closest thing it has to a protagonist viewers can see themselves in. Unfortunately, there's only so much she can do, since there aren't many layers to her character as it's written. The same can be said for Bardem as Him, who isn't bad in the role, but doesn't leave a lasting impression. What's more memorable about the leads is what they mean in terms of  mother!'s overarching metaphors - not necessarily the traits and nature of the individual parts themselves. This will make it difficult for some to get attached to this couple, since there isn't much put into selling their chemistry and romance beyond the surface level.

The main supporting cast of  mother! is small, with Harris and Pfeiffer being the ones with the most to chew on. For the most part, their characters suffer from the same shortcomings as Mother and Him; they work as clear allegories in regards to the film's ideas, but that can only go so far in establishing a connection with viewers. Pfeiffer does command the attention of the audience with her provocative and alluring screen presence, injecting Woman with some seductive and tempting sensibilities. Harris is fine as Man, getting the job done by being rather unassuming. Other minor roles are filled by names like Domhnall Gleeson and Kristen Wiig, but they aren't onscreen enough to make much of an impact.

mother! has already earned the reputation of being a polarizing film, and how one enjoys it will depend solely on how willing one is to buy into what Aronofsky has to say and the manner in which he tells his story. The director is attempting to tackle some lofty motifs here, and on a certain level that is respectable. However,  mother! will certainly not be everyone's cup of tea, playing out as a film that's difficult to box into a specific genre or target demographic. From that perspective, it may be worth checking out for those intrigued by the marketing or Aronofsky in general, since  mother! is definitely unlike anything else that will play this year.

mother! is now playing in U.S. theaters. It runs 121 minutes and is rated R for strong disturbing violent content, some sexuality, nudity and language.

Let us know what you thought of the film in the comments!

NEXT: mother! Ending Explained

Key release dates.

Letterboxd — Your life in film

Forgotten username or password ?

• Start a new list…
• Add all films to a list…
• Add all films to watchlist

Add to your films…

Press Tab to complete, Enter to create

A moderator has locked this field.

Add to lists

Where to watch

2017 Directed by Darren Aronofsky

Seeing is believing

A couple's relationship is tested when uninvited guests arrive at their home, disrupting their tranquil existence.

Jennifer Lawrence Javier Bardem Ed Harris Michelle Pfeiffer Brian Gleeson Domhnall Gleeson Jovan Adepo Amanda Chiu Patricia Summersett Eric Davis Raphael Grosz-Harvey Emily Hampshire Abraham Aronofsky Luis Oliva Stephanie Ng Wan Chris Gartin Stephen McHattie Ambrosio De Luca Gregg Bello Arthur Holden Henry Kwok Alex Bisping Koumba Ball Robert Higden Elizabeth Neale Kristen Wiig Scott Humphrey Marcia Jean Kurtz Anton Koval Show All… Carolyn Fe Anana Rydvald Cristina Rosato Pierre Simpson Mylene Savoie Gitz Crazyboy Shaun O'Hagan Sabrina Campilii Stanley B. Herman Mizinga Mwinga Genti Bejko Andreas Apergis Julianne Jain Julien Irwin Dupuy Bronwen Mantel Amanda Warren Mason Franklin Laurence Leboeuf Sarah-Jeanne Labrosse Xiao Sun Melissa Toussaint Fred Nguyen Khan Danny MAlin Adam Bernett Bineyam Girma Oliver Koomsatira Mercedes Leggett Alain Chanoine Kimberly Laferriere Deena Aziz Izabela Dąbrowska Hamza Haq Vitali Makarov Daniela Sandiford Nathaly Thibault Chloë Bellande Nobuya Shimamoto

Director Director

Darren Aronofsky

Producers Producers

Jennifer Madeloff Shari Hanson Scott Franklin Dylan Golden Ari Handel

Writer Writer

Casting casting.

Lindsay Graham Ahanonu Mary Vernieu Riva Cahn Thompson

Editor Editor

Andrew Weisblum

Cinematography Cinematography

Matthew Libatique

Assistant Directors Asst. Directors

Joey Coughlin Sinan Saber Michael Lerman

Executive Producers Exec. Producers

Mark Heyman Josh Stern Jeff G. Waxman

Lighting Lighting

Jean Courteau Frédéric Moreau

Camera Operators Camera Operators

Yoann Malnati Chris Moseley

Additional Photography Add. Photography

Robert Mattigetz Chris Moseley

Production Design Production Design

Philip Messina

Art Direction Art Direction

Isabelle Guay Lauren Rockman

Set Decoration Set Decoration

Larry Dias Michel R. Lambert Veronique Meunier Radia Slaimi Guy Pigeon

Special Effects Special Effects

Peter Chesney

Visual Effects Visual Effects

Katherine Soares Colleen Bachman Manda Cheung Ryan Cunningham

Title Design Title Design

Kyle Cooper

Stunts Stunts

Jason Cavalier Marc Désourdy Jason Gosbee Holden Wong Renae Moneymaker Jennifer Cytrynbaum

Composer Composer

Jóhann Jóhannsson

Sound Sound

Craig Henighan Simon Poudrette Skip Lievsay Noyan Cosarer Coll Anderson Paula Fairfield Jill Purdy

Costume Design Costume Design

Danny Glicker

Makeup Makeup

Gillian Chandler Catherine Lavoie Judy Chin Leo Yılmaz

Hairstyling Hairstyling

Félix Larivière Frédèric Duguay Colette Martel

Paramount Protozoa Pictures

Releases by Date

05 sep 2017, 07 sep 2017, 13 sep 2017, 14 sep 2017, 10 oct 2017, 12 oct 2017, 13 oct 2017, 25 oct 2017, 17 sep 2021, theatrical limited, 19 sep 2017, 15 sep 2017, 20 sep 2017, 21 sep 2017, 22 sep 2017, 28 sep 2017, 29 sep 2017, 05 oct 2017, 11 oct 2017, 19 oct 2017, 20 oct 2017, 27 oct 2017, 03 nov 2017, 09 nov 2017, 05 dec 2017, 10 dec 2017, 23 jan 2018, 20 sep 2021, 01 oct 2021, 19 dec 2017, 17 jan 2018, 22 jan 2018, 24 jan 2018, 25 apr 2018, releases by country.

• Theatrical 16
• Theatrical MA15+
• Theatrical KNT/ENA

Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela

• Theatrical limited 16 Sao Paulo
• Theatrical 18A
• Premiere Toronto International Film Festival
• Theatrical 14
• Theatrical 18
• Theatrical 15

El Salvador

• Theatrical K-16
• Premiere 16 Paris
• Digital 12 VOD
• Physical 12 DVD & Blu-Ray
• Digital 16 Netflix
• Digital 18 Prime Video
• Theatrical III
• Premiere A Mumbai Film Festival
• Physical 17+ Blu-ray
• Premiere Haifa Film Festival
• Premiere Venice Film Festival
• Theatrical VM14
• Physical DVD and Blu-ray
• Theatrical N-16
• Theatrical C

Netherlands

• Physical 16 DVD, Blu ray

New Zealand

Philippines.

• Theatrical R-16
• Premiere American Film Festival
• Theatrical M/16

Russian Federation

• Premiere 18+
• Theatrical NC16

South Africa

South korea.

• Premiere Busan International Film Festival
• Theatrical R-18

Trinidad and Tobago

• Theatrical 18+
• Physical 18
• Premiere R New York City
• Theatrical R

United Arab Emirates

121 mins   More at IMDb TMDb Report this page

Popular reviews

Review by davidehrlich ★★★★ 17

mother! is the best movie ever made about that feeling when you just want to sit in your underwear & chill but ed harris won’t leave u alone.*

*oh shit no it's probably still the Truman show

Review by sree ★★★ 13

me: pls leave me alone darren aronofsky *stabbing me in the neck*: it's a metaphor!

Review by #1 gizmo fan ½ 345

This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.

I lost it when they threw her on the ground.

When I say I lost it, I'm not talking about the losing it where tears just come bursting out. Not the losing it where you tuck your head into your knees because you just can't handle standing the sight of anything anymore. I'm talking about the losing it where you feel like everything you've just experienced was nothing more than a bad dream. That nothing this  disgusting could ever be made by a human being, someone with empathy, and an understanding of fear and anxiety. But when they threw Jennifer Lawerence's character (Mother) on the ground of her home, calling her a "cunt" and "nasty whore", kicking, punching, literally murdering her,…

Review by Lucy ★★★ 17

kinda like a charlie kaufman movie... if he did a bunch of coke and speed read the bible

Review by doinkdedoink ★★½ 14

damn but how was she nailing those sweet ass hairstyles without a wifi connection or downloaded youtube tutorials

Review by iana ★ 27

darren aronofsky wouldn't know a subtle metaphor if it slapped him in the face

Review by andrea🌹 ★★ 7

darren is right having PEOPLE in YOUR HOUSE is the SCARIEST thing

Review by maria ★★★★½ 13

this is the most extreme "save the planet" campaign i have ever seen

Review by Robin ★★½ 16

He wrote one poem

Review by bella ½ 114

It’s necessary to preface this with the fact that I am (or, was) a huge Aronofsky fan. He’s ingenious, and sophisticated and he has this distinct style to his films. Plus, his symbolism and metaphors have always struck a perfectly balanced note in the past. Having loved Black Swan and The Fountain, I’ve been super stoked for mother!. It all seemed right: the concept, the cast, the posters. Everything. The spectacle leading up to its various premieres added to my excitement.

Aronofsky didn’t underwhelm my expectations; in fact he exceeded them in epic proportions – in the worst ways possible. To understand my frustrations, one has to have a sense of the plot. mother! is the story of a giving,…

Review by pilot ★★ 7

imagine reading this script and thinking, "i want to date the man who wrote this"

Review by russman ★★★★ 1

No one is allowed in my house ever again

Similar Films

Mentioned by

Select your preferred poster

Upgrade to remove ads.

Letterboxd is an independent service created by a small team, and we rely mostly on the support of our members to maintain our site and apps. Please consider upgrading to a Pro account —for less than a couple bucks a month, you’ll get cool additional features like all-time and annual stats pages ( example ), the ability to select (and filter by) your favorite streaming services, and no ads!

Mother! Review

Darren Aronofsky is known for making eclectic films that may be more metaphor than a straightforward story. His newest endeavor is mother! , a movie which may be the single most surreal thing ever made by a man known for the surreal. Mother! is unique, compelling, and remarkable. It's terrifying, bizarre, and amazing. There's about a 50% chance you're going to fucking hate it.

Mother! stars Jennifer Lawrence and Javier Bardem as a couple (they're never given names, nobody in the film is) living in a secluded house which Lawrence's character has been single-handedly fixing up while her husband, a poet, tries (and mostly fails) to overcome his writer's block. Things begin to get strange almost immediately when Ed Harris knocks on their front door, apparently by mistake. But Bardem welcomes him into their home almost instantly and just as quickly invites him to stay the night. His wife, understandably, is shocked by this, as he never asked her, but she goes along amiably enough. The next day, Michelle Pfeiffer arrives, playing Harris' wife, and she too is welcomed into the house immediately. Lawrence's character continues to go along with it, though the new couple makes themselves a little too at home, a little too quickly, in her house.

It's difficult to say how much further to even go when it comes to the film's plot. These half uninvited guests instantly connect with the poet, while mostly ignoring his wife. There's a feeling of unease which permeates every scene. Eventually, that unease comes to a head, but that's only the first half of the movie.

Delving into spoiler territory is nearly impossible, as a large portion of mother! utterly defies description. As the movie goes on, logic, and even linear narrative, start to break down as the movie reaches a crescendo in its third act, which goes completely off the rails. There simply aren't enough synonyms for "batshit insane" to properly describe what happens here.

First, let it be said that, on a surface level, mother! certainly achieves much of what it is trying to accomplish. The movie wants to make you uncomfortable, and it does this in spades. Even before things actually get weird, you can't help but feel like there is just something off about everything you see. That feeling never lets up. There is no relief. That feeling in the pit of your stomach doesn't even go away after the movie ends.

Whatever mother! is able to successfully accomplish on screen is almost entirely due to Jennifer Lawrence and the movie's cinematographer, Matthew Libatique. The actress is in every scene, and nearly every shot, of mother! We follow her incredibly closely, as the camera spends most of its time either right in her face or over her shoulder. This means that we never learn anything more than she does about what is actually going on in the story, so our emotional path perfectly matches hers. From uncomfortable to confused to afraid to overwhelmed, we're right there with her.

That doesn't mean that everything in the movie works. The film's two halves feel less like a cohesive whole than they do two parts roughly sewn together. There are a handful of plot elements and moments introduced early in the film, before things stop making sense entirely, which are never even addressed later on, never mind explained.

Clearly, as with many Darren Aronofsky movies, mother! is trying to say a great deal more than what is actually on the screen. The primary conversation is about gender relationships, with the creative man who simply expects his wife to support him unconditionally while refusing to do the same thing for her. He's so focused on what he's doing that he seemingly doesn't even realize that he walks all over her, if he does, it's only because he doesn't see anything wrong with that, which is, of course, the problem.

There's also a lot being said about the relationship between an artist, their art, and the audience. Although, in this case the director seems less inclined to point a finger, than paint the whole thing with the same brush. Darren Aronofsky has little love for the way an audience can feel entitled to the hard work of an artist, never mind their feelings of entitlement to the artist themselves. The mass of characters we meet later in the film feel like what would happen if Twitter became sentient. At the same time, the artist here isn't exactly painted as a perfect specimen, either. He's just as obsessed with providing material for his audience to fawn over as they are to consume it, and that obsession is just as bad, if not worse. Ultimately, nobody is free of blame.

Mother! is going to be a divisive movie, to say the least. Some will love the artistic risks, while others will absolutely loathe the disjointed and gruesome final product. I can't really argue with either perspective. I didn't enjoy the film, but it seems clear you're not supposed to. At the same time, I can't say mother! hasn't intrigued me and been on my mind nearly constantly since I've seen it. Mother! is truly an unforgettable film, that seems to go without saying. Whether or not that's a good thing is an entirely separate question.

CinemaBlend’s resident theme park junkie and amateur Disney historian, Dirk began writing for CinemaBlend as a freelancer in 2015 before joining the site full-time in 2018. He has previously held positions as a Staff Writer and Games Editor, but has more recently transformed his true passion into his job as the head of the site's Theme Park section. He has previously done freelance work for various gaming and technology sites. Prior to starting his second career as a writer he worked for 12 years in sales for various companies within the consumer electronics industry. He has a degree in political science from the University of California, Davis.  Is an armchair Imagineer, Epcot Stan, Future Club 33 Member.

Daniel Radcliffe Gets Hilariously Real Talking About Young Harry Potter Fans Being 'Wildly Disappointed' When They Meet Him

Jennifer Aniston Had A Sweet And Totally On-Brand Ageless Paul Rudd Post For His Birthday

The Joker 2 Trailer Has One Of The Funniest Details That Fans Probably Missed The First Time Around

Most Popular

By Eric Eisenberg February 21, 2024

By Mike Reyes February 14, 2024

By Dirk Libbey February 13, 2024

By Sarah El-Mahmoud February 07, 2024

By Mike Reyes January 31, 2024

By Riley Utley January 26, 2024

By Eric Eisenberg January 10, 2024

By Corey Chichizola January 10, 2024

By Mike Reyes January 05, 2024

By Eric Eisenberg January 04, 2024

Mother! Movie Explained (2017 Plot And Ending)

Mother! is written and directed by Darren Aronofsky . It stars Jennifer Lawrence, Javier Bardem, Ed Harris, Michelle Pfeiffer, Kristen Wiig and many more. It also involves people seeing stars at the end of the movie wondering what they have just witnessed. This is not the first time Darren has done this to his audience. Here’s the plot and ending of the 2017 movie Mother! explained.

Hollywordle – Check out my new Hollywood Wordle game!

Where To Watch?

To find where to stream any movie or series based on your country, use This Is Barry’s Where To Watch .

Oh, and if this article doesn’t answer all of your questions, drop me a comment or an FB chat message, and I’ll get you the answer .  You can find other film explanations using the search option on top of the site.

Mother! Movie Plot Explained

Well, here’s the deal. This is not a film based on time travel. Darren Aronofsky’s interview with Collider makes it very clear that the film’s structure is based on the Bible. This is not an area of knowledge for me, therefore, I will not be able to get to an extremely detailed explanation of the plot. As a result, I would not like to speculate much as these are touchy matters. So I’ll keep it to to the extent Darren Aronofsky himself has spoken about. Please do feel free to comment about your view of the movie/scenes.

Darren has mentioned that this film is about “Mother Nature” and the plight she’s going through. A story from Mother Nature’s point of view as to what humans are bringing upon her. The story is also about cycles of the beginning and the end as orchestrated by the “creator”. The films tells the story through a set of humans within the house. The entire movie is a metaphorical comparison.

The film begins with a woman burning up in flames. This is Mother Nature from the previous cycle. Soon after, we see Him (Javier) place a crystal which causes a reversal of all the destruction caused by the fire.

Mother (Jennifer) is born from this fire. She wakes up and looks for Him. Javier’s character plays the representation of God, the creator . I’ll call him H. The beginning is peaceful and quiet. There is no one. H seems to have a writer’s block and is looking for inspiration. Mother is rebuilding the house. The house can be seen as a representation of Earth. Note that Mother has a connection to this House. She can feel it’s life . She decides to paint it yellow which is a colour that represents hope and peace.

One day, out of the blue, a Man (Ed) arrives at the house. H has, on his own, decided to bring Man into the House. Mother is not happy because she was not consulted with. H ensures that it will be fine and suggests Man stays for the night. Man says he’s a huge “fan” of H and that he has read his “book” many times. He mentions “ Your words have changed my life ”. H shows him the crystal. This basically summarizes to Adam appearing on Earth and the Bible. The crystal represents the Forbidden Fruit. And the study is the Garden of Eden.

At night we see Man throwing up in the bathroom as H watches over. Mother comes in to find out what’s happening. She notices a wound around the rib area of Man. H asks Mother to leave. This represents the rib of Adam that has been removed for the creation of Eve.

Next day a Woman (Michelle) shows up at the house. Mother is again not happy that the one visitor has now become two. Woman represents Eve . Man and Woman stay in the House and slowly start messing it up, much to Mother’s dislike, but she adjusts. Mother goes back to building the house.

Woman comes to Mother and hands her a drink. Woman has already made herself at home and has messed up the kitchen trying to make drinks. Mother says that she wants to make the house a paradise. Woman asks for a tour and tells Mother that the house is just a setting. Having a kid is what keeps the marriage going. Woman sees the study and she wants to go in. Mother says that H doesn’t like anyone being in there. Later, Woman sneaks back into the study and is staring at the crystal. This represents Eve eyeing the Forbidden Fruit.

Forbidden Fruit

Mother notices that Man has a picture of H in his luggage. It’s as though Man worships Him . H tells Mother that he got to know about the picture. Man is dying and wanted to meet Him before he was gone. Just then they hear a noise. Man and Woman have snuck into the study to get their hands on the crystal and have broken it. H and Mother come and see this. H gets furious and asks Man and Woman to leave. After this he barricades the room shut. This bit represents Adam & Eve, Garden of Eden, the Forbidden Fruit, and Being Banished.

Cain and Abel

Mother tries to kick Man and Woman out. Woman gives Mother attitude and slams the door on her face. Then two boys show up in the house. They are the two sons of Man and Woman. The two sons are arguing about their father’s will. The two brothers fight physically. One of the brothers hits the other with a doorknob and wounds him fatally. H, Man, and Woman rush their bleeding son to the hospital but the boy dies. The surviving son briefly appears in the house and eventually leaves. This bit represents Cain and Abel (sons of Adam and Eve) fighting and Cain eventually slaying Abel. Cain leaves the House (Earth) to the life of wandering.

Mother cleans up the blood and discovers that there is a wall in the basement which leads to a tank of oil.

More Humans In The House

H, Man, and Woman return to mourn the dead son. H allows for more people to join them in the house. H says he loves Mother but he doesn’t really act like he does. Mother is forced to agree. Woman thanks only Him for the hospitality but is condescending towards Mother. There is a random group of people in the house now. A few of them mourning while the others are doing their own thing all over the house. Mother finds a couple making out in her room, they don’t care. She asks them to leave and they find Mother to be interfering even though it is her room. All of the people in the house act carelessly around the house and to a great extent don’t care what Mother has to say. Basically, this shows how humans are now misusing the house (Earth).

A couple sits on a sink repeatedly even after Mother tries to explain to them that the sink is not braced yet. Eventually, it breaks and along with it breaks the plumbing in the walls. Water begins to flood the house. Mother screams at everyone and asks them all to leave. This is indicative of the great flood that flushes out the first group of people from the house (Earth).

H and Mother have an argument. Mother says that H doesn’t care about what she thinks. H says he’s trying to bring “life” into the house. Mother feels that H doesn’t give a f*ck, quite literally. She says “You talk about wanting kids, but you can’t even f*ck me”. H has been through this cycle many times. He knows that this event that will lead to a baby will eventually lead to the destruction of the house. Hence he’s been avoiding sleeping with her. But over here a push come to shove, and scene.

They wake up the next morning. Mother announces that she’s pregnant. Well, she says she somehow knows that she is. She is Mother Nature after all . Suddenly H gets his inspiration to write. He says all the people, the events, and the baby has given him the right inspiration. Many months later, he finishes writing. Mother reads it. She’s moved by it. It is beautiful. While she believes she’s the first one to read it, H has already given it out to his publisher who calls to say they love it and they publish it. It’s a success every copy is sold in one day.

Mother prepares a special evening for the just the two of them. As H gets home, random people begin showing up to the house. They have all come to see Him. The crowd of followers increases. Mother asks Him having his baby isn’t enough for him. H loves the adoration. People just start multiplying inside the house. Mother begins to lose all control she has on them. They take away the food and move furniture. H is busy signing autographs. People start looting the house. Groups of worshipers begin getting marked in a religious manner. Cops bust into the house. Rioting begins. People tear up into different groups. The house becomes a war-zone. All of this is a representation of how the increasing human population of Earth has led to looting and plundering the planet.

One soldier tries to help Mother and gets shot in the face. This is to represent that small group of humans who are trying to care for Earth and make a difference but are overpowered by the rest.

Mother is about to have the baby. H takes her upstairs to the study. He shuts the rest out. Here Mother gives birth to a boy. This is supposed to be a representation of the birth of Jesus.

Soon after, there is silence outside. Mother asks H to make them go. H only comes back saying that he doesn’t want them to go and that they all want to see the newborn. Mother says no way. She refuses to give the child to H. They sit for a couple of days right there staring at each other. Mother falls asleep. H takes the baby and gives it to the people.

Bread and Wine

Here’s where the crazy hits tilt. The people carelessly pass around the infant like it’s some rock concert and then snap! Yes, you heard right. The piss-spraying baby’s neck snaps. Mother reaches the altar to find her baby’s corpse, well a part of it. The rest of it is being eaten by the people. I can presume the death of the child had something to do with the crucifixion of Jesus but I am stumped for the rest of the baby-gore here. Somebody, please help. Drop in comments.

Mother loses her shit and takes a broken shard of glass and begins slashing people to death. The people respond by beating the crap out of Mother and calling her names. I suppose this represents the various acts of nature that kill people and people’s response by hurting the planet further.

Mother! Movie Ending Explained

H intervenes and asks people to back off. Then he tells Mother that they have to find a way to forgive the people. Forgive the people so that they can understand what they have done wrong. Mother gets furious. She causes the floor to crack open. She heads to the basement, to the tank of oil. She tells Him this “You never loved me. You just loved how much I loved you. I gave you everything! You gave it all away”. She uses the oil and blows up the house – destroying the house and everyone in it. Everyone but Him. We see Mother burning up exactly like the previous Mother in the opening sequence. I suppose this is Armageddon. This is the vicious cycle. The End.

H picks a burnt Mother up and says “I am I”. Again emphasizing he’s God and that he’s going to take it all back to the beginning. H says “Nothing is ever enough. I couldn’t create if it was. And I have to. That’s what I do. That’s what I am. Now I must try it all again”. Lastly, H asks Mother for her love. He rips her heart out as she turns to ashes. He rips open the heart to find a crystal within. He places the crystal (similar to how does in the first scene). This causes a reversal of all the destruction caused by the fire. Another Mother is born from the ashes. She gets up and calls out to Him. The film ends. The cycle begins all over again.

Barry is a technologist who helps start-ups build successful products. His love for movies and production has led him to write his well-received film explanation and analysis articles to help everyone appreciate the films better. He’s regularly available for a chat conversation on his website and consults on storyboarding from time to time. Click to browse all his film articles

Movie Reviews

Tv/streaming, collections, great movies, chaz's journal, contributors, a boy's best fiend is his mother.

Now streaming on:

The strange, fascinating film "Mother" begins with what seems like a straightforward premise. A young man of marginal intelligence is accused of murder. A clue with his name on it and eyewitness testimony tie him to the crime. His mother, a dynamo, plunges into action to prove her son innocent. So there we have it, right? He's either guilty or not, and his mom will get to the bottom of things. Or not.

Is it that I've seen so many movies? Is that why I grow impatient with formulas, and am grateful for films that upset my expectations? If you faithfully remade "Mother" for a mass American audience (let's say with Helen Mirren and Edward Norton ), mainstream moviegoers would likely be furious, because: (a) "You can't do that!" and (b) "Uh, what is it that you did, exactly?"

This is a new South Korean film by Bong Joon-ho , his first after "The Host" (2006). That was a popular thriller about a giant squid, created by toxic waste, who dragged away a victim. Her family members learn she's still alive, but can't get the authorities to listen. Once again, in "Mother," blood ties go up against the state.

The mother of the title, played by respected South Korean actress Kim Hye-ja , is a force of nature. In a village, she runs a little shop selling herbs, roots and spices. Her sideline is prescribing herbal cures. Her son Do-jun ( Weon Bin ), in his late 20s, lives at home and they sleep in the same bed. He's a few slices short of a pie. Early in the film, he's saved from death in traffic when his mother races to the rescue.

Do-jun has a friend named Jin-tae ( Jin Gu ). Jin-tae easily manipulates him. Do-jun's mental fogginess may be his most attractive quality. In the town, a shocking murder occurs. A girl's body is left where all can see. A golf ball with Do-jun's name is found near the death site.

Did he do it? We can't be sure. Did Jin-tae do it and plant the evidence? Or persuade Do-jun to do it when he was drunk? Again, we can't be sure. Under the Law of Economy of Characters, Jin-tae must have been involved, because there are no other eligible suspects. You can't simply produce a killer. Of course Do-jun could be guilty and Jin-tae had no involvement. Or, at least technically, the mother could have done it.

Mother (she's given no other name) marches tirelessly around the village, doing her own detective work. She questions people, badgers them, harasses police, comforts her son, hires a worthless lawyer. We learn everything she learns. It seems she's getting nowhere. At this point the movie might become upsetting for a mass audience, because "Mother" creates new levels in the previously established story.

The film is labyrinthine and deceptive, and not in a way we anticipate. It becomes a pleasure for the mind. Long after a conventional thriller would have its destination in plain sight, "Mother" is still penetrating our assumptions. So much depends on Kim Hye-ja's performance as a remorseless parent defending her fledgling. Likely she has spent years helping her clueless son escape one dilemma after another, and now she rises to the great occasion of her life. Her struggle is made more difficult because the police find it child's play to extract a confession from him.

"Mother," and South Korean films in general, provide a case study of the situation of alternative films. Many Americans have never seen a South Korean film and never will. I once spoke to a class for would-be foreign correspondents at the University of Illinois, and only two of them had ever seen a subtitled film from anywhere.

A film like "Mother" is an adult film, not in the sense that it contains X-rated material, but in the sense that it appeals to intelligent grown-ups. A bright 10-year-old can understand most Hollywood films. Disney recently announced it will make only 3-D "event" movies, comic hero stories and franchises like "Pirates of the Caribbean." It has essentially abandoned films about plausible human beings. It isn't a luxury to see indie or alternative films. It's a necessity.

"Mother" will have you discussing the plot, not entirely to your satisfaction. I would argue: The stories in movies are complete fictions and can be resolved in any way the director chooses. If he actually cheats or lies, we have a case against him. If not, no matter what his strange conclusions, we can be grateful that we remained involved and even fascinated. Why do we buy a ticket? To confirm that a movie ends just the way we expect it to?

Roger Ebert

Roger Ebert was the film critic of the Chicago Sun-Times from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, he won the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished criticism.

Now playing

Clint Worthington

Lousy Carter

Little Wing

Marya e. gates.

Christy Lemire

Sheila O'Malley

Film credits.

Mother (2010)

Rated R for language, some sexual content, violence and drug use

128 minutes

Kim Hye-ja as Mother

Weon Bin as Do-jun

Jin Gu as Jin-tae

Directed by

• Bong Joon-ho
• Park Eun-gyo

From a story by

Latest blog posts.

Until It’s Too Late: Bertrand Bonello on The Beast

O.J. Simpson Dies: The Rise & Fall of A Superstar

Which Cannes Film Will Win the Palme d’Or? Let’s Rank Their Chances

Second Sight Drops 4K Releases for Excellent Films by Brandon Cronenberg, Jeremy Saulnier, and Alexandre Aja

Filed under:

Netflix’s The Mother misses a clear chance to make Jennifer Lopez an action star

Mulan and The Whale Rider director Niki Caro forgets what J.Lo does best

Share this story

• Share this on Facebook
• Share this on Reddit
• Share All sharing options

Share All sharing options for: Netflix’s The Mother misses a clear chance to make Jennifer Lopez an action star

Ask any great screen fighter, and they’ll tell you: Movie fighting is much more like dancing than like real fighting. Bruce Lee was famously a champion cha-cha dancer, Patrick Swayze successfully transitioned from dancer to action star, and scores of movies from India have shown how terrific dancers make for terrific screen fighters.

That’s the opportunity director Niki Caro ( The Whale Rider , Disney’s live-action Mulan ) has with Netflix’s The Mother , a dark action thriller starring Jennifer Lopez as a nameless assassin thrust back into action to protect the daughter she gave up at birth. Lopez is a singular talent who has excelled in the crime genre with Out of Sight and Hustlers. She’s an enjoyable comedic actor, and she’s particularly strong as a dancer, coming up as a Fly Girl on In Living Color before hitting global superstardom through her dance-centric music videos.

Unfortunately, neither of those skills gets much use in The Mother , which doesn’t give her much to work with. The plot and her character are darkly serious, and the most exciting action sequences involve long-range gun fights and vehicle chase scenes. The few hand-to-hand combat sequences are edited beyond recognition, robbing viewers of any chance to follow the action or appreciate the work Lopez put in for this role.

“She had to learn how to fight, and she’s really good,” second unit director Jeff Habberstad said in a behind-the-scenes video about her training for the role. “Dance and choreography background makes it so she’s just real coordinated.”

The Mother opens at an FBI safe house, where Lopez’s very pregnant character (credited only as “The Mother”) is acting as an informant, with agents interviewing her about a pair of dangerous arms dealers. The interview ends badly, with a hard-to-parse fight scene (thanks to Netflix’s compression and some dark lighting ) that leaves her isolated, unfairly on the outs with the FBI, and forced to leave her new daughter behind. (Just saying this sequence strains credulity would be an understatement.) She makes a deal on the side with FBI agent Cruise (Omari Hardwick), who will watch her daughter and contact her if anything goes wrong. Twelve years later, she’s moved to Alaska, and gets the message that something indeed has gone wrong.

The movie’s entire setup is a series of thinly drawn characters and conflicts. In The Mother , people recite the title character’s biography to her in order to build her legend, rather than letting us see it and believe it for ourselves, or having characters tell each other about her, as if she were a spooky story (a tactic used in John Wick , and, more recently, Sisu ). Bad guys illustrate that they’re evil by pushing down nuns in the street. Gael García Bernal plays a cartoonishly villainous arms dealer who says things like “You sold your soul to the devil, how do you look so good?” — which sounds like fun, but instead plays out as another rote bad guy who sexually menaces the protagonist with a series of played-out aggressive pickup lines, like some sort of perverted wind-up doll.

The most interesting part about The Mother is the relationship between The Mother and her estranged daughter Zoe (Lucy Paez). A small portion of the movie is spent with the two of them together, as The Mother teaches Zoe to drive, shoot, and fend for herself in the Alaska wilderness. The two of them getting to know each other and forging a connection through circumstance is the best narrative thread in The Mother , but Caro speeds through it quickly. It’s shocking when The Mother at one point refers to the “months” they’ve spent together — it feels like a week, maximum.

Some of the action beats do work better than others. A sniping scene outside a villa sees The Mother picking off guards from far away, allowing for some creative blocking and framing as the bodies drop one by one. Some later sequences in snowy Alaska at least look nicer than the poorly lit interiors from the first half, and are more exciting, including an explosive snowmobile chase and shootout. There’s also a funny gag where The Mother hits a guy with her car as a nearby wedding party does the bouquet toss, and the edit matches his flight through the air with the bouquet’s similar arc.

But Caro and editor David Coulson even undercut those moments with bizarre cuts that pull the story’s punches. In one scene, The Mother is brutally interrogating a gangster, hitting him repeatedly in the face while asking questions. She actually has barbed wire around her fist, which Caro only shows after The Mother is done punching him, rather than building anticipation for the brutality by showing her wrapping her fists with it. Then The Mother waterboards him, which gets her the information she needs within seconds, because apparently we’re in the 2000s again.

The Mother is the second straight-to-streaming Jennifer Lopez action movie this year, following the Prime Video action comedy Shotgun Wedding . While The Mother goes for more emotional depth, Shotgun Wedding at least recognized Lopez’s central talents and used them, giving her an opportunity to flex her comedic chops as well as her movement skills. The end result for Netflix is a missed opportunity to redefine a generational star as a bona fide action hero.

The Mother is streaming on Netflix now.

Loading comments...

By providing your information, you agree to our Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy . We use vendors that may also process your information to help provide our services. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA Enterprise and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

‘Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead’ Review: Siblings Learn to Fend for Themselves in a Harmless, Needless Remake

Christian zilko.

• Share on Facebook
• Share to Flipboard
• Share on LinkedIn
• Show more sharing options
• Submit to Reddit
• Post to Tumblr
• Print This Page
• Share on WhatsApp

That mass apathy ensured that Wade Allain-Marcus’ new remake had a wider berth for success than many of the comparable low-budget remakes that have been dumped on streaming services in recent years. There’s no denying that “Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead” is a phenomenal title for a movie, and the original film’s minimal cultural impact meant that anyone tackling a remake should have felt free to run wild with the idea. Unfortunately, this one didn’t set its sights quite so high. Allain-Marcus and his cast deliver a perfectly competent feel-good story that might please fans of the original film, but it’s hardly enough to justify a second take on a movie that never justified its existence in the first place.

Like most 17-year-olds, Tanya Crandell (Simone Joy Jones) is well aware of how agonizingly close she is to the freedom of early adulthood. She was excited to enjoy her first brush with independence by spending the summer in Spain with her friends, but finds her plans thwarted when she’s hit with the one-two punch of not being able to afford the trip and watching her mother undergo a nervous breakdown. When her mom (Ms. Pat) announces plans to head to Thailand for a three month mental health retreat, she ends up stuck at home with her three younger siblings and a babysitter from hell (June Squibb).

Tanya cons her way into a job at a fashion brand in order to pay the bills, and quickly distinguishes herself as a stellar executive assistant despite her lack of qualifications. Her brothers dip their toes into domestic chores like cooking and cleaning while she tries to balance her career and a budding romance with an architecture geek (Miles Fowler). Tanya soon find that her summer of imprisonment has become the most eventful stretch of her life as she manages to speed-run adulthood while still navigating the endless complications of life as a teenager.

In the end, this iteration “Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead” is a safe viewing experience that’s likely to evoke even less emotion than the film that inspired it. But the project still hides a pearl of wisdom that Hollywood executives would be wise to jot down: If you’re looking to remake something, you could do a lot worse than finding an underperforming film with an endlessly catchy title.

“Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead” opens in theaters on Friday, April 12 before streaming on BET+ beginning on May 16.

Most Popular

You may also like.