Copyright © Fandango. A peculiar neighbor (Suzanne Clément) offers hope to a recent widow (Anne Dorval) who is struggling to raise a teenager (Antoine-Olivier Pilon) who is unpredictable and, sometimes, violent. Thank you for your support. Best & Worst Films at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival. Dolan is a director who thinks hard about the possibilities of cinema and explores them with verve and ingenuity, but it is in his latest film that everything has come together. Son is confrontational and violent but often reveals his underlying vulnerability and terrifying inability to control his impulses. If Mommy counts as a slight creative step back, and I would argue that it is, it's at least an elegant and purposeful one. Canada's entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the 87th Academy Awards, "Mommy" is Xavier Dolan's best work to date. One scene includes racial slurs, including the "N" word. I already did my top movies of 2014 list, now if I only watched this movie before making the list this would have made the list easily. What was the filmmaker hoping to convey to his audience by using each of these techniques? Underlying the story is a constant sense of impending violence and/or sexual menacing which could, and often does, erupt uncontrollably. By entering your email address you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and consent to receive emails from Time Out about news, events, offers and partner promotions. Visually stunning scenes, courageous performances, a talented director with a gift for joining music with story, and a heart-rending, tragic dilemma combine to make this an unforgettable movie. S'ensuit une véritable bataille rangée entre les deux. ‘Mommy’ may feel crass and bombastic at times, and you may wonder why Dolan introduces the whole thing with some convoluted explanatory text, but you can’t ignore its heartfelt emotion and winning belief that there’s no single definition of what makes a family. Suggest an update to this review, Sadly illustrates the lack of solutions or services for severely mentally challenged children or teens and their parents. Directed by Xavier Dolan. Dolan throws everything but the kitchen sink at ‘Mommy’ – he uses a cameraphone-style, almost-square screen ratio that he widens for the film’s happier moments, even getting his main character to do the widening with his own hands. Excess fuels the film, without ever derailing it—for Dolan is equally capable of holding back. S'ensuit une véritable bataille rangée entre les deux, bataille rejointe éventuellement par la voisine d'en face, presque aussi atteinte que les deux autres. Please click the link below to receive your verification email. It’s difficult not to get a little irritated by Xavier Dolan. Cinema doesn’t come much more exuberant, musical and raw than French-Canadian filmmaker Xavier Dolan’s ‘Mommy’. The cinematic frame might have contracted, but there's a kind of ferocious compassion in Dolan's vision, and its embrace is startlingly wide. Where others would find only misery and pain as Die and Kyla struggle with the violent, wild Steve, Dolan discovers joy and energy in unusual places. Parents and caregivers: Set limits for violence and more with Plus. Coming Soon. How Technology Is Reshaping Democracy and Our Lives, Participate in DigCit Week with your kid by using curated activities from Wide Open School, Online Playdates, Game Nights, and Other Ways to Socialize at a Distance, Keeping Kids Motivated for Online Learning, A French-language film with English subtitles, the story takes place in Quebec. Profanity is rampant from beginning to end. Déjà vu! | Rating: 8/10 Tragic yet luminous, Mommy is a film of astounding violence and grief punctuated by bursts of unmitigated glee. Intense tale of unstable teen full of profanity, violence. You're almost there! Review: Mommy. It will punch you in the gut, seemingly for the fun of it, then show you the valid intention of that punch that will leave you in somber gratitude. Willfully over determined and perversely stylized. Mommy, film review: Invigorating drama is performed with frankness and intensity (15) Xavier Dolan, 135 mins.