A One Mann’s Movies review of “Mother’s Instinct” (2024).
What a treat to see a psychological thriller where you can be genuinely surprised by the twists and turns. “Mother’s Instinct” delivers just that, bolstered by excellent performances by two of the finest actresses working today.
Bob the Movie Man Rating:
Plot Summary:
It’s 1960 and Celine (Anne Hathaway) and Alice (Jessica Chastain) are neighbours who are also the best of friends. Their sons Max (Baylen D. Bielitz) and Theo (Eamon Patrick O’Connell) are also inseperable. But when tragedy strikes and one of the boys is killed, a chasm of guilt and recrimination opens up between the two women.
Certification:
UK: 15; US: ‘R’. (From the BBFC web site: “Brief Strong Violence”.) I can’t seem to find a US rating for this film yet, but I would expect it to be an “R”.
Talent:
Starring: Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain, Josh Charles, Anders Danielsen Lie, Caroline Lagerfelt, Eamon Patrick O’Connell, Baylen D. Bielitz.
Directed by: Benoît Delhomme.
Written by: Sarah Conradt. (Based on the novel by Barbara Abel.)
Twitter Handle: #MothersInstinct.
Running Time: 1h 34m.
Surprise! Good support to Jessica Chastain from (from left) Caroline Lagerfelt, Anders Danielsen Lie and Josh Charles. (Source: Studio Canal).
“Mother’s Instinct” Review:
Positives:
- Sophisticated and thoughtful psychological thrillers are like hen’s teeth so this one is a welcome addition to the cinema schedule. I hear other film critics commenting that it is lazy to label films as being “Hitchcockian”… but this one really was, right down to Chastain playing a blond ice-maiden that the great master would surely have approved of. It was difficult for me to discern exactly where this was going until well into the second reel. Some of the incidents in the film deliver a genuine gut punch: a coffin companion at a funeral, for example! Above all, the twists of the finale left me flabbergasted. It’s unusual in a cinema to hear an audience audibly gasp at the same time!
- Chastain and Hathaway – two Oscar-winning actresses – don’t disappoint. That look of terror that Hathaway produces when she realises what has happened during the ‘incident’ is simply breathtaking. Chastain probably has the more difficult, more nuanced, role to play in this and she does it brilliantly. Are these Oscar nomination-worthy performances perhaps?
- The two child actors also do a great job here, with Eamon Patrick O’Connell having to do most of the emotional heavy lifting.
- After all of the 3 hour plus Oscar heavyweights, what a delight to have a tight, taut 94 minute film.
Negatives:
- I predict that the ending will not be for everyone.
- There is a moment in the film, related to an empty space where a ‘bottle’ once was, where one of the characters puts two and two together in an awful hurry! It’s a bit of a leap!
United in grief… or are they? Anne Hathaway and Jessica Chastain star. (Source: Studio Canal).
Triggers
Any parent viewing the trailer will immediately self-select whether this film is for them or not. But obviously the core premise of the death of a child will be very disturbing to anyone who has faced a parent’s worst nightmare.
Summary Thoughts on “Mother’s Instinct”
I hadn’t actually realised that this was yet another example of a French film that has been ‘Hollywood-ised”…. 2018’s “Duelles”. In fact looking at the trailer for “Duelles” (here), many of the scenes look to have been lifted and shifted pretty much intact. But for once this is a good steal! The film is glossy, tense, Hitchcockian fare and I thoroughly recommend it for lovers of psychological thrillers.
Trailer for “Mother’s Instinct”:
The trailer is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLikloRQiUE . The trailer isn’t terribly ‘spoilery’ per se… but it does rather lay out the different elements of the film in sequential order which I would have preferred to not know.
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