I Am Mother

As I'm the keeper of this site, I made the executive decision this past weekend to avoid the new Men In Black: International and instead invest my time elsewhere in a film I could watch from the comfort of my own home and FO FREE!

The newest Men in Black wasn't really doing it for me - not for lack of star power - but because it doesn't need to exist. And as my time gets more constricted with work/life and my wallet currently doesn't have a working movie-subscription option (hurry it up Alamo Season Pass!), I'll likely make decisions like this one more often in the future. 

And I'm glad I did. 

As I've droned on in recent posts before about Netflix struggling to lock down quality original film content, I'll refrain from it here other than to say: I think they're starting to get the hang of it AND it'll never be perfect.

Much like Triple Frontier earlier this year, I Am Mother, is a strong title in a specific genre (sci-fi) that is so close to "great" you just wish it would have done "XYZ" better. This one won't become a sci-fi classic, but if I'm being honest, it has the makings and idea of one, just not the execution. 

Reminding me of some early parts of Wool (a fantastic novel by Hugh Howey) and Ex Machina, I Am Mother doesn't do anything outright unique, but it does create some interesting angles to the premise of artificial intelligence, human life, the "end of the world", etc. It has an unpredictability to it because of a tightened focus on three main characters and spends most of its time indoors. There's a palpable tension of not quite knowing who's the "right" person for our antagonist, Daughter (Clara Rugaard) to believe as both Mother (Rose Byrne) and Woman (Hilary Swank) have positive and sinister attributes to them. Could the outsider simply be trying to take advantage of them? Could Mother actually be an evil overlord of a new world? The film does a good job balancing these questions for the audience and keeping them guessing. Unfortunately the execution of the twists/reveals isn't as great. Again, there's some neat stuff that it tries to say and not everything pans out the way you think, but it all seems to land with a whimper vs. a thud. I think back to the marvelous reveal and ending of Snowpiercer where I was endlessly conflicted (still am today, BTW) with the motives and decisions of our villain. 

She's talented. Keep an eye out for her

Chappie?! Is that you? God, no!

Byrne, Rugaard, and Swank all elevate the film and this material too; they help to make it real and serious. Byrne is soft and sympathetic as Mother, and her voice is one that establishes trust with the audience. Swank is often grimacing and under tension, clearly a survivor from the outside world. Rugaard, who I'm unfamiliar with, is the true star as the one in the middle. She expertly conveys our confusion and struggles as the audience, but is also a heroine and a badass with the ability to think for herself. Seeing her character's growth throughout Mother is entertaining and, despite being younger, she's a strong core for the film. 

The rest of the film - outside of the premise and the acting - is decidedly average/good and that's where I Am Mother is ultimately so frustrating. There are glimpses of awesome cinematography, world lore, original score, and technology, but not enough of it to continuously wow you. Unlike recent sci-fi films such as Blade Runner 2049 and Arrival, I Am Mother (likely because of budget and talent involved) doesn't sing from a technical perspective. In this particular instance, that's so unfortunate because with some regularly awesome visuals and a memorable, impactful score to go with it, it could have been a sci-fi cult classic; and it would have been one of Netflix's very best offerings to date. Instead, it's still up there in terms of the original films they've made, but there's not enough TLC in the actual execution.

Keeping your baby warm with gentle lava flow. Smart!

CONS

• Has pacing issues throughout. It spends too much time indoors and not enough time building out the rest of the world
• Technically "fine" but you're going to wish it was awesome
• Clumsy handling of the reveals and ending

PROS

• Interesting premise that combines several facets of science fiction into an entertaining story
• Manages its tension well and left me continuously guessing about who was actually the "good guy"
• Grounded and fitting performances from Byrne, Swank, and Rugaard. Rugaard has to do most of the heavy lifting and succeeds
• Some brief moments of awesome cinematography and original music
• Solid sci-fi that'll periodically return to your thoughts

Rath's Review Score | 7.5/10