“You never loved me. You just loved how much I loved you. I gave you everything! You gave it all away” – Jennifer Lawrence, Mother! (2017)
September 2017. Athens, Ohio.
I sat in a dark theater at the Athena Grand (rest in peace). I watched the credits of Mother! by Darren Aronofsky, very much stunned by what I had just seen. I will never forget that experience or the gorgeous Athens sunset that night (see successive Instagram posts captioned with my shocking overuse of emojis below). Mother! blew my mind then, and it continues to today. I figured it was finally time to bring it into the blog lineup.
*Note: I am basing the character names solely on what is shared on IMDB. Given the representative/metaphorical nature of the movie, everyone is given a role rather than a character name.
The movie begins with Mother (Jennifer Lawrence) waking up alone in bed. As she checks around and eventually finds her husband, Him (Javier Bardem), we see they live in a large octagonal Victorian house in a secluded, wooded area. They live a simple life: Him writes, and Mother spends her days restoring the house. The house had been Him’s house and had caught fire years before. One night, they are interrupted by a knock at their door. Him answers and welcomes in a man neither of them know (Ed Harris). Man is a doctor who claims he thought their house was a bed and breakfast. Him insists that he stay the night, while Mother is very uncomfortable with the sudden invasion. The next morning, Man’s wife (Michelle Pfeiffer) shows up at their front door. Man and Woman make themselves at home and show no signs of leaving.
Man and Woman overstay their welcome for the next day or so. They ignore Mother’s house rules, leave food and trash everywhere, and damage property. Woman asks Mother personal questions and tries to pry into private details about her relationship with Him. Just when it seems the awkward situation could not get worse, Man and Woman’s two adult sons barge into the house. A fight erupts among the family, leading to one of the brothers injuring the other. After leaving Mother traumatized and alone for hours to take the son to a hospital, they return to share he has died. Once the couple and Him return, the house is overrun with mourners. Dozens of strangers enter the house throughout the evening and gradually cause damage to the house. Mother goes through the rooms to try to stop their destructive behavior while Him comforts the grieving parents. Mother finally has enough and banishes everyone except Him from their house.
In the months following the gathering, their life starts to go back to normal. The house is coming together, Him’s new book is in progress, and Mother is expecting their first child. Following the book’s publication, they discover the invasion and horrors they experienced from outsiders are far from over.
Mother! is not everyone’s thing, but it is definitely mine. I am a self-described “bouquet Goth,” meaning my personal taste and style is feminine and colorful while also embracing the dark and spooky. I have a lot of floral-print clothes and nature-inspired decor mixed in with my horror collection and witchy stuff, if that gives you a better idea. All that said, Mother! is my cup of tea. The beauty of the cinematography, production design, and art direction with the super-dark subject matter mixed in makes it a mesmerizing experience to watch (even when I have watched it at least twenty times by now).
I left a lot of details out of the synopsis above. That is because there are A LOT of details in Mother!. Mother! is the type of modern film that has sparked an array of interpretations. One theory I align with is the house represents Earth, Mother is Mother Nature, Him is God, the Man and Woman are Adam and Eve, and so on. The house is invaded by a sudden influx of strangers who blatantly disrespect Mother and damage the house without caring. The people destroy the house, steal food and belongings, fight each other, and do what they believe Him wants over what Mother asks of them. Mother also represents women in general in regards to how we are often treated in the world. Mother is ignored, belittled, sexualized, villainized, and abused throughout the entire story. It has a lot going on and I still cannot watch *that one part*, but I cannot help but adore and find connection with this movie. My synopsis here barely scratches the surface. If you have not experienced Mother! yet, please do so (and good luck to you).
Until next time,
Jordan
By Night 