Creative, artistic, insightful, awkward and messy.

Rating: 5/10 (15 September 2017)

Okay, this is a tough one. When I review a film, I'm always careful to avoid spoilers. I describe a movie's characters and plot in some detail, so the reader knows what he or she is getting into if deciding to see it, but I always stop short of revealing twists or secrets which come late in the movie and I never (ever) spoil the ending. I'll stick to those rules in this review, but there is no way to write more than a sentence or two about the drama horror mystery "Mother!" (R, 2:01) without explaining what many Movie Fans will realize at some point during the film. This thing I'm about to tell you is not clear in the trailers, but the film's star, Jennifer Lawrence, was open about the movie's theme in numerous interviews leading up to its theatrical release. Knowing what "Mother!" is really about is pretty important in order to follow and appreciate the story. (Skip the next paragraph if you're still worried that, instead of just shedding some light on the movie, that I'm about to spoil the entire thing.)
Okay, here it is: The entire film is a metaphor. If it weren't already taken, a good alternate title would be "The History of the World, Part I". Everything you see on the screen is a representation either of the earth (note the title) through the eons, including how humanity has interacted with the planet and each other, including how the development of religion plays into human history. I'll avoid revealing more than that regarding the film's symbolism so those who haven't seen the movie yet can discover the details for themselves, but now you know enough to understand what would otherwise be a tough film to follow.
Oscar winner Jennifer Lawrence plays the title character, a young woman who lives in an old, unusually-shaped house in the country with her significantly older husband, called Him (Oscar winner Javier Bardem). Mother's relationship to her house is a mystical one. It bleeds when she is upset and she detects what seems like a heartbeat in the walls. Her relationship to her husband is one of love and devotion. Him is a poet afflicted with a bad case of writer's block. Him shows emotional love to Mother, but shows little to no regard to her feelings and opinions. As Him continually tries to write, Mother works on the house, doing things like painting the walls after deciding between slightly different earth tones. The couple enjoy their quiet life of isolation until uninvited strangers begin coming to call.
The stream of unexpected visitors starts with a man referred to simply as Man (multiple Oscar nominee Ed Harris). Man shows up on the doorstep and deceives his way into the home, at first saying that he thought it was an inn and then admitting that he was a fan of the writer and wanted to meet Him. The man appears respectful, but disrespects Mother's rules in a passive-aggressive manner, smoking in the house even after Mother asks him not to. Him doesn't seem bothered by any of this and quickly bonds with Man. Then, the man's wife shows up. She is simply referred to as Woman (multiple Oscar nominee Michelle Pfeiffer). Him welcomes Woman, who quickly makes herself at home. When Woman talks to Mother, she alternates between apparent kindness and rudeness and acts like she owns the place. Him continues to take it all in stride, until Man and Woman enter Him's study and break something valuable. Mother asks them to leave, but Him begins preaching forgiveness. Before Him and Mother can reconcile their difference of opinion, two feuding sons of Man and Woman show up and a violent melee ensues.
Man, Woman and their two sons finally leave the house and everything is peaceful for awhile. Him and Mother renew their marital passion and Mother becomes pregnant. Him and Mother are very happy. Then, Him's inspiration returns. He writes an apparently epic poem that brings tears to Mother's eyes when she reads it, calling it "perfect". The poem is published and Him gains many new fans. Starting as only a trickle, it's not long before a steady stream of Him's devotees and members of the media come to the house. They basically take over the place, growing increasingly disrespectful, destructive and hateful. Mother seems to be descending into madness, even as she is about to give birth to her baby.
"Mother!" is a dramatic example of filmmaker Darren Aronofsky's messy brilliance. The film's writer-director is known for his dream-like cinematic spectacles, ranging from the bizarrely artistic ("Pi", "Requiem for a Dream", "The Fountain") to the strange but accessible ("The Wrestler", "Black Swan"). "Mother!" falls somewhere in the middle. Aronofsky here returns to his frequent theme of religious symbolism, within a dominant environmental message and even symbolic allusions to the nature and price of fame. And his A-list actors do some of the best work of their careers, especially Lawrence (who was apparently pretty impressed with Aronofsky because she started dating him during production). It's worth noting that this movie has no score, but even more Interestingly, you might not even miss it. This film picks up speed and intensity like a roller coaster coming down from increasingly long climbs and the last 20 minutes is a whirlwind. It's almost too much to take in. And it is too much for this movie. The film's esoteric nature will render it inaccessible to many Movie Fans, while the awkward situations in the story, which eventually become chaotic and violent, will turn off others. However, there is no denying Aronofsky's creativity and skill as a filmmaker – and the impact of this thought-provoking film. "B-"