Probably the worst movie I've ever seen in my life

Rating: 1/10 (6 January 2018)

In a large, old, unfinished house in a secluded area somewhere in the U.S., a woman (Jennifer Lawrence) has her life and sanity unraveled as her poet husband (Javier Bardem) allows several inconsiderate people into their home because of his insatiable need for attention. Chaos ensues including that of the supernatural.
When I had previously told a fellow cinephile of my intention to see "Mother!", he said he thought the movie was "batshit crazy". At the time, I thought this comment was a warning. In the end, it turned out to be an understatement.
How do I hate this movie? Let me count the ways:
1) It is so bad that even Jennifer Lawrence cannot save it.
2) Ditto for Javier Bardem.
3) When it became clear that the movie's end would be soon, I felt an elation like I have for films I truly loved. In those other films' cases, the conclusion was a grand culmination of the greatness that preceded them. In the case of "Mother!", the joy was felt knowing that the mental/spiritual torture would soon end and the two-hour term of purgatory would finally be complete.
4) Catholic priests ought to consider recommending this film when they must issue penance at the end of confessions. But in fairness, this should be only for the most terrible of sinners.
The "story" is reminiscent of the most repugnant of terrible sitcom episodes which take sadistic joy in tormenting a main character. This film is four times the length of such episodes; thus the sadism is extended to the viewers. While the viewer would most sympathize with the Lawrence character, there were times I wanted to see someone give her a Cher/Moonstruck/"Snap out of it"/double-slap followed by "leave your idiotic, pathological, egomaniac husband NOW!!!!" (As an aside, there are also equally horrible cartoon comedy sketches that also follow the mean-spirited sadism mentioned above. As they take place in a much shorter period of time, their vile repugnance is more concentrated.)
Director/writer Darren Aranofsky has done fine work in the past ("The Wrestler" (2008) , "Black Swan" (2010)) as a director and superb work ("Requiem for a Dream" (2000)) as a writer/director. Those other films also took very unconventional directions but there always seemed to be compassion for the main characters rather than a twisted sadism as in the case of "Mother!".
There is no shortage of pretentious social climbers who would likely declare that one should keep an 'open mind' when approaching films like this as well as other forms of 'artistic expression'. To that, I would respond with a memorable quote I saw on a billboard many years ago: "A great many open minds should be closed for repairs."
The best summary of the film would be expressed by yet another quote - this one from the late, great Dorothy Parker: "What fresh hell is this?"
Appalling. Truly appalling.