Blu-ray Review mother! Blu-ray Review (1 Viewer)

[Neil Middlemiss]

Neil Middlemiss

mother! Blu-ray Review

mother! is unmistakably an Aronofsky film. The intimacy with which he filmed and staged the entire production contains, unassailably, his signature. His best work comes when he grapples with things he wants to make sense of. You find it in his under-appreciated Noah, and in my favorite, The Fountain. In those films he reaches for something beyond his natural grasp and attempts to deconstruct it via narrative examination. Where he perhaps falters in mother! is in trying to stretch his inquiry and sense of helpless anguish around too wide a field of study. He includes such a breadth of ideas that as the film leaps towards its close, the constructed focus blurs. The film, however, is audacious enough to remain compelling to the very last shot.

[review]

 

[Mike Frezon]

I'm not the swiftest when it comes to allegory and symbolism, so films like this invariably test me.

And that's exactly the reason I'll be sure to give this a watch eventually. Well, that AND Jennifer Lawrence.

Thanks, Neil!

 

[TonyD]

I saw this at the movies and it is one of the craziest movies Ive ever seen.
I had to go online after seeing it to get a better idea of what I just saw.

Rented to bluray tonight and will watch it tomorrow.
Looking forward to rewatch knowing what I now Know.

 

[haineshisway]

I loathed every frame of it, from first to last. Sorry.

 

[DeanHarris]

Definitely a love-it-or-hate-it film. I loved it, expecting a horror film but, minute by minute, was increasingly surprised by what the film had in store. This is a must-buy for me.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

Definitely a love-it-or-hate-it film. I loved it, expecting a horror film but, minute by minute, was increasingly surprised by what the film had in store. This is a must-buy for me.

I neither loved nor hated it. I mostly liked it for 2 acts and then thought it went off the rails for the final third.

Interesting movie but not wholly successful, IMO...

 

[TonyD]

I don’t fell like it went off the rails.

I think the third act was What all the seemingly normal stuff was leading to.
Entire movie is a metaphor for all existence

 

[titch]

I don’t fell like it went off the rails.

I think the third act was What all the seemingly normal stuff was leading to.
Entire movie is a metaphor for all existence

Entire movie is a metaphor for what I feel when my in-laws come round for Christmas.

 

[Mike Frezon]

Entire movie is a metaphor for all existence

Entire movie is a metaphor for what I feel when my in-laws come round for Christmas.

Well, I've GOT to watch the movie now! Ordered!

 

[titch]

Well, I've GOT to watch the movie now! Ordered!

For added value: watch WITH In-laws. They will never cross your doorstep again.

 

[TonyD]

Yeah. When you watch pay close attention to the first moments of the movie.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

It is going to be seen as a Christmas classic by future generations along the lines of It's a Wonderful Life. I say gather the family in the home theater, pass out some blankets and hot cocoa and settle in for a heartwarming story of epic proportions that shows the true meaning of religion and spirituality.

I think have a tray of turkey legs to pass out for the last 10 to 15 minutes of the film as well.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

All you need to know about this film is it is an Aronofsky film...so, it addresses his feelings about human beings and their nature, how we treat our planet, and his feelings about religion...so expect these things not to be portrayed in a positive light.

If you are religious...particularly Christian...I think you will find this film hideous. I'm not at all religious so I quite enjoyed it as basically an allegorical take on how god is indifferent, other than wanting his worshipers to love him, mankind is brutal, rude, and greedy, and how we treat our planet/environment as a giant trash heap. There are a couple little nods to what it is like to be famous but really that's minor compared to the commentary on poisoning the environment and the lunacy of religious people and mankind in general.

It's a funny thing that the people that really need to hear the message of the film and would get the most out of it will hate it. The people that agree with the message of the film will probably find it somewhat amusing, and people who do not understand what the film is saying/doing and walked into it expecting a horror film will probably be confused as all hell.

I laughed several times during the film at the epic lunacy of the characters...you need to know what they all represent to laugh probably...and where he takes things at the end, which is certainly meant to offend a portion of the audience/population but I could see where he was going a mile away. I mean he is taking what he does out of a very old book that has been incredibly well distributed. So, for me the film was not at all shocking or surprising but it was beautifully shot, well made, and wonderfully acted.

That is my honest, less comical, take on the film. I think it is a good film that really is reflective of the time we are living in and that's likely why he made it now. Who will this film appeal to? Wow, I don't know really because I don't know how many people will enjoy a film that takes this sort of dark view of humanity and basically mocks the utter insanity of religion.

 

[TravisR]

If you are religious...particularly Christian...I think you will find this film hideous.

I'm certainly not telling anyone how to take the movie but I don't think it's offensive. It probably wouldn't go along with that person's beliefs but I don't think the movie intends to mock them either.

EDIT: Added a very important "not" to the beginning of my post.

 

[TonyD]

I was born and raised catholic and I found the movie fascinating.

I didn’t even pick up on most of what was happening. Went online and did a lot of reading and found plenty of interesting insight on what the movie was about.

 

[bujaki]

Catholic like Tony D., but I did recognize the literary origins of the film: a certain book that starts with Genesis and ends with the Apocalypse. And just like Tony D., I found the movie endlessly fascinating. The story has a circular structure so that it never really ends; it goes on eternally.

 

[Tino]

Yup. Catholic. Not offended at all. Fascinated more like it.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

Yup. Catholic. Not offended at all. Fascinated more like it.

I was raised Catholic, and the only thing that offends me is Tino's defense of "Mad Max: Fury Road"!

 

[JohnRice]

I definitely was not raised in a religious environment, and I want to clarify a few things. There is nothing here that specifically portrays Christianity in a negative light. It is an Old Testament God and over zealous followers who are represented badly. There's a big difference.

That's probably all I'll say, because it's treading the line of discussion that's permitted on HTF. In the context of the movie, it's OK, but there's a risk of discussion spilling over into forbidden territory. It just seemed like a distinction that needed to be pointed out.

 

[Mike Frezon]

I was raised Catholic, and the only thing that offends me is Tino's defense of "Mad Max: Fury Road"!