OH, MOTHER!

Darren Aronofsky’s new film “mother!” has easily become one of the year’s most divisive movies. Many critics are hailing it while some film critics like Dan Murrell from Screen Junkies has stated that it just wasn’t for them. “mother!” is receiving heat from one critic that is calling it “the vilest movie ever released by a major Hollywood studio” and feels that it is an attack on Christianity. Whether or not it receives backlash like Scorsese’s “Last Temptation of Christ” did when it was first released is a matter of waiting and seeing what happens. Film critic Kyle Smith, who writes for the National Review, wrote that the film will become a “stain on the reputation” of the movie studio Paramount Pictures. He warned that “pregnant women, those with nervous constitutions or heart conditions, and anyone who happens to be burdened with good taste” should refrain from seeing the new film.

Other critics have also pointed out the biblical metaphors in the movie. The New York Post said that the biblical metaphors are “easy enough to pick up if you know in advance that they’re there,” and they refer to the movie as terrifying.  Nick Valada wrote, “From the religious and political imagery to its remarks on celebrity culture and the nature of creativity, ‘mother!’ is a film seemingly designed for any number of interpretations.” Heritage teacher Garrett Peace saw “mother!” on opening night and had this to say about the film: “Given the content of the film, I can see why it’s controversial. There are several scenes that are shocking.” He also said that the marketing of the movie could’ve been a contributing factor to the controversy because many were expecting a traditional horror film and instead received something quite different.

Paramount has since received extreme backlash. On Monday, they released a statement in response that said, “This movie is very audacious and brave. You are talking about a director at the top of his game, and an actress at the top her game. They made a movie that was intended to be bold. Everyone wants original filmmaking, and everyone celebrates Netflix when they tell a story no one else wants to tell. This is our version. We don’t want all movies to be safe. And it’s okay if some people don’t like it.”

“mother!” currently holds a 69% on Rotten Tomatoes and 74% on Metacritic. However, it became the nineteenth film since 1986 to receive an “F” score from Cinemascore, a company that polls viewers for their reaction after seeing a movie. In receiving this score, “mother!” has joined the vaunted ranks of the remake of “The Wicker Man,” starring Nicolas Cage, “The Devil Inside,” “Wolf Creek,” and “Killing Them Softly.”