Based on the book Incidents Around the House by Bird Box scribe Josh Malerman, Other Mommy created a lot of social media buzz with its first trailer. That insane wagon-wheel version of the titular Other Mommy under the table was quite the visual. Add in the chatter about the source material, which folks were saying is super scary, and I was pretty psyched to see this.
Okay, I was interested in seeing it. Admittedly, I had some misgivings watching the trailer. It seemed to rely a lot on jump scares. I especially thought that after seeing that last scene in the car. But trailers can be misleading, so I thought, you know, maybe they’ll work it out on the remix. They did not.
The Other Mommy Loses Momentum Early
Instead, there’s this. Most of the movie revolves around 8-year-old Bela (Arabella Olivia Clark), who lives with Mommy Prime Ursula (Jessica Chastain) and Daddo Russell (Jay Duplass). There’s some cryptic tension in the house, which would normally explain why Bela has an imaginary friend. But Other Mommy (also Chastain) isn’t imaginary. As we saw in that table scene, Daddo can see her, too, at least.
If you really liked that scene in the trailer, then you’re in luck. It’s one of the first in the movie. That actually gave me hope, because I thought that positioning (and its place in the trailer) signaled that better, spookier things were to come. Unfortunately, that didn’t prove to be true. The film has some haunting visuals later on, but nothing else lives up to that one big scare.
Also, jumping into the action that early leaves little time to get to know the main characters. That’s a detriment for the Mommies. Since we don’t know Mommy Prime that well, it’s difficult to tell when the (M)other is pretending to be her. Not only does that dampen the fright, but it also means we care less about her and the rest of the characters.
The Film Also Tells An Incoherent Story
It’s not as if they would notice, though. Awash in phantasmagorical delights, the family of 3 might as well be asleep the entire time. They are scared–briefly, in the moment–but when that moment ends, they go back to their regularly scheduled programming. This includes Bela, who watches someone be graphically dejawed, yet seems to harbor no lasting effects. This is a film that obliquely suggests that therapy would benefit the family–more on that in a minute–but yanno, I don’t think they need it, not with processing trauma as briskly as they appear to do.
That homemade mandibulectomy, incidentally, is one of the movie’s few high points. However, it doesn’t feel very fresh. It plays like someone saw the Smile films and decided to go with that. Beyond those movies, this film also reminded me of Antebellum, never a good sign. More specifically, it made me think of that movie’s stilted, awkward dialogue that doesn’t sound like a real person could say it. And it’s not just the casual way in which they keep dismissing a persistent demonic entity as if it were a gopher in the yard–some minor nuisance.
It’s everything else they say and how they say it. That fuzzy, unexplained tension we sense isn’t just our imagination. There is something to it…I guess. In the way it plays out in this story, it serves a story that is baffling in its insignificance. It’s also as if the story refuses to commit to something darker, so we get this reveal that damn near tilts toward “lobster too buttery, steak too juicy.” When God sings with His creations, will He not let something like [the reveal] just slide?
Ultimately Delivers Tonal Whiplash Instead Of Scares
Instead, the movie acts as if this knowledge of this “secret” is the key to returning the family to happiness. It’s jarring, as far as things go, but it’s in keeping with the pace and tone of the film overall. We speedrun through set pieces, while characters look on in muted boredom or overact with a ferocity that would make a 90s comedian blush. We’re here, now we’re there, now we’re in other here, now we’re back to there.
This gives way to a sense at times that the film wants to lean into its kitschier elements. This includes, for example, a winky bit at the end that hints at a sequel. Or a sequence with Dichen Lachman that feels like a descendant of the more CGI-heavy horror of the early aughts. Then it rights itself, returning to its comparably duller family drama. The result is a movie that can’t decide what kind of film it wants to be. Serious or silly. Coherent or jumbled. One, or the Other.
Rating: 2.10/5
HERE BE SPOILERS FOR OTHER MOMMY
Also, if Other Mommy fixates on Bela because she’s “innocent,” then why’d she let her watch when she ripped that dude’s jaw smooth OUT?
Featured image via Universal Pictures
