3 Reasons Why You Should Watch ‘Mother!’

If you’ve dropped by the cinema this past week, you may have seen posters for a largely unnoticed film called Mother! You may have also seen the ratings for the film depicting it as an average production. Really though? The film stars Jennifer Lawrence and Javier Bardem and was directed by Darren Aronofsky.  (Black Swan and Requiem for a Dream) How can it be average? I decided to watch it for myself, and well, I’ll explain everything in a bit. For now, here are 3 reasons to watch Mother!

Jennifer Lawrence and Javier Bardem carry their roles in Mother!

Lawrence plays the Mother character. We are initially made to believe she is living the perfect married life with her husband, only referred to once as “Him.” The husband, played by Javier Barden, is a writer. Conflict arises when fans of Barden’s work start entering the household and show increasing disrespect for private property. The house slowly breaks apart. More neighbors show up. People get hurt. More people arrive. Mother is ultimately torn between her love for “Him” and her growing hatred for the growing horde of abusive fans.

This creates an interesting dynamic between the main cast. You can tell Mother and Him are only trying to be the best they can be, but are slowly becoming overwhelmed by the situation with the neighbors spiraling out of control. If you’re looking for the strong persona of Katniss Everdeen in Lawrence, it’s here… only so you will watch it break.

Mother! Will Make You Hate Humanity (And Appreciate Everything Else)

“Big deal. Household setting gone wrong? Psychopathic neighbors? I’ve seen it before.”

Sit down, son. No. No, you haven’t. See, while Mother! is advertised as — and shares the creep factor of — a psychological horror film, its plot is really that of a philosophical drama. Everything in this movie is a metaphor. The Mother character is a metaphor for Mother Earth. The house is our environment. Javier Bardem’s “Him” is a representation of God, and the neighbors are people.

Let me tell you: the way these people just walk into Mother’s house because they “adore” Him will make you rethink every time you have ever been anything less than courteous at the local neighborhood fiesta. Bit by bit, they break furniture, trash the lawn, and eventually brutalize each other, all the while proclaiming their love for Javier Bardem’s work. That is why I don’t consider this a horror film. It isn’t so much scary as it is sad.

Mother! is a Thinking Man’s Movie

Maybe the previous point is why audiences generally didn’t like the movie. We like stories where good wins over evil because is part of what is attractive about fiction. Mother! however, does not coddle. It does not beat around the bush. It tells you up front: “Hey. This is what we’re doing to Earth.”

It’s that kind of reality slap that wakes you up from denial. It doesn’t feel good. You know it’s right, but it sure as hell doesn’t feel good. It is near impossible to have positive feelings throughout the experience. But once the height of emotion runs out, it becomes an experience you have to think about over and over to appreciate.

I really can’t see anything to complain about plot-wise. The cinematography was decent. The sound just fit the atmosphere so well. I really believe the only reason people disliked the film enough to reduce its IMDB score to 6 is the fact people felt disturbed by the imagery and situations depicted on-screen. Here’s the question, though: if the intent of the film was to evoke those specific feelings… if the film was well-directed and well-acted… if it had good camera and audio work… does it deserve its low rating? If you take a second to swallow the film’s message and think about it, ask yourself: isn’t it a good movie?