Mother! Review
Mother! A title that’s much more fun to say than watch. Darren Aronofsky carries a lot of weight in Hollywood. His name attached to a fall release starring Jennifer Lawrence and Javier Bardem immediately screams Oscars. Throw all those expectations out the window and go into the theatre ready for something you couldn’t ever possibly expect. The release of Mother! has given us one of the most controversial films in recent years.
From a technical perspective, it does everything right. The acting is solid, the dialogue is well though out, and the cinematography is great. That’s all pretty much a prerequisite from a top notch director like Aronofsky. The only element that stands out for all the wrong reasons is the visual effects. There’s much more of it than you’d think and it really sticks out like a sore thumb. It’s all clearly computer generated and doesn’t blend in well with the rest of the sets.
It’s hard to talk about Mother! without getting into the plot of the movie. All I can say, is go into it with an open mind and know that the marketing is completely misleading. It is in no way a horror/thriller like the trailers may lead you to believe. Instead, it’s a heavily allegorical and slow-paced drama with plenty of supernatural elements. The movie is very stagnant at times and seems to drag on and on until its next major set piece.
The allegorical nature of the movie really makes me wonder why it’s so divisive. I expected Mother! to try to hit you over the head, pushing some political agenda down your throat. However, it’s more of a unique interpretation on the story of creation and other famous Biblical tales. The real thing that makes Mother! so different is how it chooses to reimagine these stories. The imagery in this film can be very disturbing. That’s where I think Mother! fails. It drowns out the message/meaning behind its story by being so incredibly shocking. A lot of it feels unnecessary. There’s a difference between being unsettled and being disturbed. Mother! chooses to disturb and is uncomfortable to watch.
I’m not offended or up in arms about what Aronofsky chose to do with this movie. It’s his own idea and he’s proven himself enough that he holds the right to take chances like this if he so desires. I just find myself wondering why? What would compel someone to want to put this to screen? The only think I can think of is for a lot of gasps and uproar. I don’t know if that’s the best reason to make a movie. 4/10
