Reviews: Review of “Mother’s Instinct” by Benoît Delhomme with Jessica Chastain and Anne Hathaway

A Hollywood remake of the 2018 hit Belgian psychological thriller that even its two talented leads can’t manage to stay afloat.

It premiered at the Toronto Film Festival in September 2018. DullesFilm by Belgian Olivier Masset-Depassé with Virle Batens and Anne Cosens, based on the novel Derrière la haineby his compatriot Barbara Abel, which was well received by critics and the public.

Masset-Depasse himself was going to shoot the Hollywood remake, but at the last minute he pulled out of the production and it was Frenchman Benoit Delhomme (the famous director of photography for the title). And how long is there?by Tsai Ming-liang; death proposale, by John Hillcoat; The principle of everything, by James Marsh; And Van Gogh: At Eternity’s Gateby Julian Schnabel), who was theoretically supposed to be in charge of photography alone, made his directorial debut with the support of two stars such as Jessica Chastain and Anne Hathaway.

This psychological thriller with pure Hitchcockian origins, despite two talented and glamorous actresses, is coming to Argentine cinemas this Thursday, January 11, without passing through any festival, without receiving criticism from the main industry media. Diversity either The Hollywood Reporter And without anyone caring much about its international promotion (there are almost no press photos). And, after watching the film, you understand why: it’s a failed melodrama, demodé (at times worthy of those old Hallmark television movies) and two good actresses trying to support him and save him without much luck.

Set in a quiet suburb during the 60s, maternal instinct Shows what is a beautiful life in theoretically conservative terms: Celine (Anne Hathaway) and Alice (Jessica Chastain) are good friends and neighbors, have successful husbands (Anders Danielson’s Simon and Josh Charles’ Damian, respectively) and two charming children. . Also a school and adventure companion. Obsessive and self-sacrificing mothers who share certain complexities and “allow” each other moments of respite from smoking and drinking, Celine and Alice face tragedy: one day, while playing on the balcony of their mansion, Max (Belen D. Bilitz) , Celine’s son, falls into the void. Alice, who has seen him, does not come to save him and the little boy, barely eight years old, dies.

It’s just the prologue, the trigger, the starting point for a film that pits former friends in a psychological duel with provocative elements that become increasingly dark, disturbing and disturbing, distrusting each other’s intentions and mental health.

The problem is that there is none maternal instinct Very subtle: neither the staging, nor the cues that are left to build tension and mystery, nor the work on the most dreamlike aspects, nor the performances, which aren’t bad, but are light years away from both Hathaway’s masterpieces. And Chasten.

There’s something vague about the story’s specific distortion (there’s something about David Cronenberg in addition to Alfred Hitchcock), but there’s an initial magnetism to seeing how this essay on pain, guilt, paranoia, and revenge inevitably leads to one. A certain disappointment and frustration, beyond the fact that in Argentina we are somehow “privileged” to be the first to see a film that clearly has more to offer.

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