2017’s “Mother!”, written and directed by Darren Arnofsky.
Starring Jennifer Lawrence, Javier Bardem, Ed Harris, Michelle
Pfeiffer, Brian Gleeson, Domhnall Gleeson, and Kristen Wiig.
What is it about?
Mother! is the story about an idyllic home in the country
side where mother (Jennifer Lawrence), and her partner, Him (Javier Bardem), live. Bardem is a
famous writer, whom is going through a mean stretch of writer’s block. As Bardem struggles through his creative
blockage, their lives are interrupted by some fans (Ed Harris and Michelle Pfeiffer), who suddenly
become house guests. Before we know it, the house guests begin a surge of unpleasant events that are
almost biblical in their unpleasantness, and a reckoning is upon the household. Will Lawrence be able to stem the horrors the outside world
brings into their little piece of Eden?
Why is it worth seeing?
Writer/Director Darren Arnofsky does not make relaxing films
(Although I consider my #2 movie of 2006, The Fountain, his most cathartic).
Whatever through the lens of addicts enduring drug addiction (Requiem for a
Dream), a mathematician finding a formula for both god and madness
(Pi), or a ballet dancer trapped in a transformative nightmare (Black Swan), his protagonists suffer through great
pains in their respective journeys.
Here, might be his toughest endurance contest yet. Mother! is
technically flawless, full of ambiguity but clear in it’s direction, and
littered with great performances- but it’s tough to imagine this film getting
much tract with mainstream audiences seeking popcorn entertainment. It's a harrowing and undefined journey.
As indicated in the summary, Lawrence and Bardem have a
little slice of heaven that one day brings invaders who essentially never
leave. Are they cursed? Is it a metaphor for god punishing mankind? An allegory
for Eden being ruined by civilization’s rapacious wants? Is the husband a
godlike figure who is unreliable? Is all of this, is Arnofsky working through past relationship baggage or exploring faith in religion? There’s a lot to unpack in this
metaphorically rich film- and I look forward to doing just that. But it's tough to view it as a cinephile's delightful labour of love- like say, re-watching Goodfellas. Just figuring out its genre is a grueling task (I'm going with horror).
Arnofsky himself, suffering from writer’s block here when trying
to create a children’s production- made this instead. Aiming for a feature that
had plenty of dream logic and non linear passages of time, he has been successful. And also, on another goal of
his: making the audience either cheer or boo.
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