mother!

Hmmm....

Ok...soo....

Yep. Sure. 

Well, I...

I feel like writing this review will be very difficult. 

Mainly because I'm not even positive that I've made up my mind about mother! yet and, if it stays on my mind for as long as I think it will, I'm not exactly sure when that will be. 

Parts of me want to appreciate it for the daring, riveting, poetic thing that it is but another part of me wants to hate its very guts for being so arrogant and pretentious and absurd. And about the only thing that either of those parts of me can agree on is that I'll never need to or want to watch this movie again. It's certainly a one-and-done viewing. 

But yet, there's something so special here, something you can't quite believe made it into the theater, mainly because it's so out there, head-spinningly MAD. It's so set in its ways and its vision that it's commendable and I feel like I should be recommending it. 

But to who? I'd hardly recommend this to my family or many of my friends. My girlfriend likely not. It's not really an enjoyable film as much as it is one big, lasting statement -- hell, metaphor -- encapsulated by a stage-like presentation. For almost the first hour and half I was shocked by how little actually occurred and wondered if all the buzz for the film was bulls**t. Now in retrospect that I actually [somewhat] understand what the actual hell was going on, the beginning makes much more sense. *Thinks to self* "So wait, maybe I should watch it again..." And after one of the longest slow burns of probably any movie I've seen since starting this site, mother! delves into absolute madness and chaos; fully embracing it's extended analogy and punching you right in the face with it again and again and again. Compared to the stretch that came before it, it's completely breathless but, without giving the slightest detail away, that's kind of the point. 

Oh look! A guest!

For me to say much more about the way mother! plays out would be doing it a disservice nor do I recommend you do any research online. It's a film that will be interpreted differently by people and I know for a fact that I didn't understand all of it. I'm confident I got many of the larger strokes and a handful of the more subtle ones but many scenes still elude me in their meaning which is both frustrating and captivating and a source for my confusion over this film. If you plan on seeing it, you must go into it blind.

Seems he's found the rest of his
face from his time on the Seven Seas...

There are some "normal" aspects that I can provide more [read: any] substantial feedback on. For starters, what a couple of performances from Lawrence and Bardem! Jennifer Lawrence carries the film on her shoulders and it's easy to see why this role was a challenge, not to mention had her hyperventilating after certain takes. It's really like we've never seen her before and it's a testament to how talented and enigmatic she is. Bardem shines here too with a persona that you can never really put a finger on, one that's eternally frustrating and endearing at the same time. Much like Lawrence, he himself is a bit of a mystery and how he portrays that via performance is impressive. Other additions to the cast are great too but they honestly can't hold a candle to our two main characters. 

Aronofsky's direction is the other star, which is likely no surprise if you've seen his other work. He often keeps the camera tight on Lawrence, frustratingly bobbling in front of her but so that she's all we witness. She's clearly his muse and he makes sure that we're in her face seeing all her emotions and thoughts (which is another huge shout-out to Lawrence's ability to say a lot with her eyes). The editing is both smooth -- in some areas -- and choppy as hell in others for effect. Once you learn the vision and you start to really catch on to what's going on, everything will make a lot more sense, but my word is it a long and frustrating journey there. Part of me thinks that 10 minutes could have been cut from the film, but I can't say it would have been the same. Along the way there's some stunning/haunting imagery and some insanely crisp sound editing. That's usually not something you get from anything but action or fantasy, but it's so prominent and powerful here that it definitely gets a mention. 

One thing that does irk me is the way this film is being marketed. Similar to a certain other film from earlier this year, mother! is being marketed, for the most part, as a horror film. It's not -- though I guess in a certain way you could argue it is about the absolute greatest horror *tells self to shut-up!* Sorry! But really, mother! is not a horror film in really any traditional or even somewhat abstract sense. I'll be honest, I guess I'm not really sure what it is. Maybe psychological horror or a metaphorical drama, but to put it simply, IT and mother! are not in the same genre. I think a certain aspect of this film has been marketed appropriately, with a general sense of mystery and "We're-not-telling-you-a-single-thing.", but I've also seen some trailers that paint it (if not outright stating it) as a horror film.

"What's that up there? In the ether?"
"Oh that's just my understanding of this film."

I sincerely cannot recommend mother! to my readers because I'm still not even sure I'd recommend it to myself. I simultaneously can't stop thinking about it, but also cant wait until I can stop thinking about it. If you're sitting here wondering, "Oh my gosh, what happens that has everybody freaking out about the movie so much?!?" just know that it's not really one scene or thing. It's the whole journey and it's the pieces slowly coming together in your mind as you figure out what's being said and what that in turn all means. It's so pretentious in that sense and I usually hate that but here it's done in a way that, by the time it's all said and done, kicks your ass so hard. mother! will be a divisive film. It'll be a movie that people "get" or they don't. Whatever score I decide upon within the next few minutes of writing this, you should take it with a grain of salt because its subject to change within the next 30 minutes, hours, days, or weeks. 

And I guess, after reading back through this review, if this isn't one hell of a prompt to get you to go see it, then I don't know what is.

CONS

• Could have used a slight trim...I think
• Such a slow burn to start. For a while I was wondering what all the hubbub was about
• Is a bit pretentious overall
• Some annoying, consistent camera angles on Lawrence
• Was every scene some extension of the metaphor? I have no idea
• Once you've seen it, you've seen it. Or have you?

PROS

• Was every scene some extension of the metaphor? I must know
• Once you've seen it, you'll think you need to see it again
• The slow, oh so slow, gears turning as you put together what this all is
• Incredible performances by Jennifer Lawrence and Javier Bardem. Some career highlights for both of them
• Mostly stunning imagery and camera work
• Impeccable sound editing that goes a LONG way 
• You won't be able to stop thinking about it and I haven't felt this angered or jazzed about a film in a long time. It's a trip and one that you have to decide for yourself if you want to take it

Rath's Review Score | 8.5/10