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Seeing is believing.

mother!, USA, 2017. Written and directed by D. Aronofsky. With Jennifer Lawrence, Javier Bardem, Ed Harris, Michelle Pfeiffer, Brian Gleeson, Domhnall Gleson. Original music by J. Jóhannsson. Length: 121′. Rated: R.

There are no names for the main characters: actually, for none of them. It is even harder then to tell the story of this movie. A couple lives in a cottage in the country, far from everything else, so that the ‘husband’ can regain his inspiration as writer. His wife is determined to help him and to build a family with him, but one day at their door a mysterious man makes his way into their home and their lives, bringing in more and more people until the situation gets totally out of hand…

Darren Aronofsky gained a lot of buzz in Venice this year, presenting the most controverse movie of the year, maybe the most controverse in the history of cinema. It’s not just a matter of what but also of how: his screenplay is a dream, or better a nightmare, filled with obsessions and an escalation of nonsense violence depicted in a majestic way by one of the most talented directors of our time but, at the same time, losing the images to the narrative and reality to metaphors. A huge number of metaphors. Inside and outside a mother’s womb, where fire destroys and builds again from its ashes, where a mother can be loving and over-protective until she loses her mind herself. It is difficult to say any more than this, it is a movie that has to be seen for one to judge or have a say in any of this. And if “Black Swan” was indeed a game of hide and seek between dream and reality, “mother!” has the presumption, not necessarily in a bad sense, to enlarge the game in a kaleidoscope which the posters anticipate well enough.

The true masterpiece of this movie is the photography: colors alternate with darkness while the sequences are incredibly smooth: the use of very long takes, with variations of field depth, is extremely wise and gives the right sense of disorientation. Furthermore, Aronofsky insists on Jennifer Lawrence, and on her close-ups, for a long time, hand filming the numerous staircases climbed up and down until she and the house can be the only things the viewer cares about.

In this very difficult role, Jennifer Lawrence confirms her innate talent, leading most of the time alone in a universe of situations and dialogues which we don’t always hear: her reactions, her sensitivity and her gradual emotional breakdown can easily be on the edge of a parody, but in a very personal judgment I found her just great. Javier Bardem, her ‘husband’, is usually cast for spooky characters: this time, the sense of anxiety is created just by his being there and his character’s attitude, there is little space for him to get really fearsome. Credit must be given to him as well as to Lawrence if the atmosphere is the one Aronofsky wanted. Ed Harris and Michelle Pfeiffer, with their ‘kids’ Brian and Domhnall Gleeson, are the ingredients to make the recipe perfect; the first two have a great deal of experience to play with, so that their characters, are far more convincing than they are credible in their actions, while the (real) brothers get to play a proper fight just when the movie starts its most thrilling part.

In a thriller, or a horror (if you’d prefer this label for “mother!”, I’m honestly not sure yet), the music is one of the most important features to get the hype good. Jóhan Jóhannsson does not have a long career behind him yet, though in thrillers he seems to be at his best. After “Arrival”, “Sicario” and “Prisoners”, another stunning work.

I have really said too much, but a lot of people felt the urge of saying something on this movie, good or bad; mostly bad, it seems. I loved it, but it is a movie that must be seen. At least to know if you love it or hate it, because really there are no half measures here.

 

DOWNLOAD REVIEW IN PDF: mother!, 2017

LEGGI LA RECENSIONE IN ITALIANO: madre! – Recensione