I could have sat and watched Mommy for another two hours and had been as enraptured and joyful as I’d been for the prior two. Mommy is masterpiece filmmaking in ensuring that the characters we are watching feel lived in, infusing tangibility into the world that makes it devastating to bid them farewell as the credits roll. Lucky for us, the magic of the movies allows for us to repay them a visit but few films will touch the all-consuming, visceral experience I had been watching Xavier Dolan’s fifth feature in the movie theater. I grinned until my face hurt, nearly cried out of happiness and then later could admit to a few tears out of sorrow. As a fan of Dolan’s other work (and as someone who counts his third film Laurence Anyways as one of her all-time favorites) there was little he needed to do to prove to me that he was a director worth looking out for. However, for all the rest who were still holding out on support or needlessly maligning him do to his age I’d like to think that Mommy is proof enough of his talent. It gracefully balances substance and style and manages to pack a wallop in emotional satisfaction and pay off. Mommy is a masterpiece from beginning to end. I went to bed last night thinking about the film and I woke up this morning with some of the film’s most poignant moments circling my head and I doubt the story of these three remarkably crafted characters will be leaving my psyche any time soon.
A strong willed widowed mother Diane (Anne Dorval) finds herself taking full-time custody of her unpredictable 15-year old son Steve (Antoine-Olivier Pilon) who’s dealing with ADHD, explosive anger management issues and an unhealthy attachment to his mother. As they work on getting things in order, they meet their new neighbor, Kyla (Suzanne Clément), who offers to help, harboring her own pain and eccentricities that draw her closer to these two odd kindred spirits. They build themselves a makeshift familial unit and try and overcome their personal demons. We watch as Diane and Kyla try to reign in Steve’s temperament, to little avail most of the time, and as the two women begin to rely on one another while being two of the only people in Steve’s corner and seeing the charm and love that the kid possesses but has a hard time expressing.
I cannot think of a single male director that loves his female characters as unabashedly as Dolan does and his care and wonder are apparent. From Jai tu Ma Mere to Mommy his female characters are rich with nuances, riveting in their faults and strengths and so fully human that it’s as if he transplanted someone from his own life onto the screen. We know these women. We know the Diane’s who are a bit of a mess but trying to get by, who are hopeful in the face of despair. We’ve met the Kyla’s who sometimes need a break from their own reality where smiles go unforced, laughter comes forth like waves and shyness evaporates. Diane and Kyla are written with such clear affection and what Clément and Dorval do with the characters is mesmerizing.
Clément delivered one of my all-time favorite performances as Fred in Laurence Anyways and is just as strong here. Her Kyla is wounded, a little peculiar and strikes up a bond with the hard to impress Steve fairly quickly. However, it’s Dorval’s powerhouse performance that truly shines. She and Antoine-Olivier Pilon have a familiarity with one another that would suggest a history of movies together. Dorval and Pilon strike a remarkable balance of an unsettling relationship and one where the mother would do absolutely anything to protect her son, even if the decisions are oftentimes tough ones. Pilon himself gives an explosive and star making performances but Dorval is the matriarch of the film, the character who sets things in motion, and the one who is strong, determined and scared of the ticking time bomb that is her son, whose fuse will blow the second she says or implies the wrong thing.
Written and directed by Dolan, the film is benefited from his particular brand of style where every moment seems larger than life while allowing an intimacy to seep through. Dolan is a one of a kind talent stamps his own vision on everything is creates and he truly does create from the fearless use of vibrancy to the crisp and picturesque cinematography. There’s the 1:1 aspect ratio that allows us an up close and personal glimpse at the characters, creating a music video, modern atmosphere. There’s his penchant for shooting over the shoulders of his characters which give us the vantage point of seeing the world as they do. He lingers on foliage and rain drops, putting us in the time and place of Diane, Kyla and Steve, making us feel the breeze or feel the ferocity about to explode from Steve’s uninhibited anger.
Dolan is a director who likes to play with the tools in his arsenal and music is one of the biggest components of his film. Using songs that range from Counting Crows to Celine Dion, there isn’t one misused musical moment and the one featuring a Celine Dion classic is one of those aforementioned moments where I was overcome with happiness. Music in film can be utilized in such monumental and transcendent ways that it’s a shame more filmmakers don’t use it as masterfully as Dolan does. The song corresponds with the character’s emotion, just as the scenery and lush cinematography lend a voice to the characters state of minds. His worlds are immersive ones and there isn’t one film of his where I’ve ever noticed the running time.
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Mommy is going to linger. The love, the laughter, the anger and the sorrow-it sticks. It’s a lingering story because it’s so familiar, yet so heightened. I would have stayed in the theater and watched this dysfunctional family for as much more time as they’d allowed. Few films affect me to the point of speechlessness and yet all I could initially express when leaving the theater was giddy laughter at what I’d just seen. I loved this film. I loved the characters, even when they challenged their own happiness and even when they did damning things; I loved them because they were warm, welcoming and lived in. Mommy is a masterpiece for Dolan and if this film sticks around in my thoughts for a few more days, I couldn’t be happier. I certainly can’t wait to see what this director creates next.
10/10
Mommy is in select theaters now
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