Review of My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done (2010) by Tom D — 02 Sep 2012

There was an awesome team behind this, with David Lynch producing, and Werner Herzog co-writing and directing. That fact alone makes this film interesting. It's just unfortunate that the end result is rather underwhelming and doesn't really add up to much.

The film is loosely based on an actual event, and involves an young actor who, obsessed with a Greek tragedy he's rehearsing, kills his mother with an antique sword. So, since everyone knows who did it, the investigation of the case is based around why he did it.

Given who's involved here, that obviously means that this film is offbeat and takes an unconventional approach. When the film begins, the crime has already happened, so the film alternates between flashbacks leading up to the crime, and the investigation itself. It's sort of a horror movie, but it's more about tone, mood, and atmosphere, and the psychology of things instead of focusing on the bloodshed.

There have been plenty of films already that have done the whole descent into madness thing so well that there's no real point in trying to top those or add to that collection, so here it is a case of, "we've got a crazy guy, let's just film something about him". In a way, that's cool, and kinda works. It doesn't really lead up to much though, and I never felt like I got much of a point here, but there were some high points along the way at least.

The pairing of Herzog and Lynch is awesome, so it sucks that the result wasn't spectacular. There's a great cast of character players here, all fitting perfectly with the vibe common to H and L's typical works. The performances are pretty damn good, save for Sevigny who just kinda seems ot be spaced out and phoning it in. The music is great however, and the cinematography is also pretty sweet.

The film has a great, creepy vibe to it, and it's a nice reminder of how these two directors can take seemingly normal places and warp them. Too bad the overall result is meandering, ponderous, and a tad too slow in the pacing department.

Look, I like parts of this, a lot, but it's just a bit unfulfilling when it shouldn't be. Maybe I missed the point. All I know is that if you like either director, you are bound to find at least something to like, even if it isn't everything.