Review of Goodnight Mommy (2015) by Douglas L — 02 Nov 2015

Goodnight Mommy is a film that explores youth in search for answers regarding self-identity and comfort in a life that seems to alienate it. The characters of the boys Elias and Lukas become alienated from many aspects of existence that are external of themselves and as particular changes occur in their lives they begin to forcefully take whatever action they need to find stability.

The film introduces a great deal of strange and disturbing images that set a tone and fascinate the eyes but the ultimate metaphor behind them is not made clear enough for general connections to be made. The reoccurring motifs such as fire, insects, bones, and torture as a form of learning are not interwoven with plot points particularly well.

The film explores many of the same ideas as the novel The Wasp Factory written by Iain Banks I noticed. In both this novel and Goodnight Mommy we notice a child or children creating their own reality, a violent and primitive one, as a result of a lack of attention or belonging into a welcoming social group. Neglect forces a being to compensate and through this compensation imagination and ideas start to become over powerful, especially in connection with mental or physical trauma. This film pokes fun at the idea of religious stability in the modern household as we see a crucifix on the wall in the mothers room, and the boys constant praying to a stone. It cannot be a mistake that the nature of the boys religious beliefs are left unexplained. The ambiguity makes the nature of the masks the boys wear, the candles, the preserved dead animals (cat) as well as the insects a possible religious instrument.

The character of the mother is where I feel the film lost great opportunity at greatness. Because the intensity of the film is derived completely by her actions and the boys questioning of her true identity and location of their "real" mother she is the focal point of the plot. The film introduces concepts that throw possible alternatives and outcomes to who this woman might be, however the viewers are given no source for comparison. We cant intimately sympathize with the boys suspicions. If more details were provided to raise more questions in the viewer and a back and forth of details threw our beliefs for constant curveballs, the film would have had more of an effect.

The film is full of tension and carries itself well with its moody score. This film is not for the faint or weak stomached. A decent film all things considered. Very Dark.