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‘Mothers’ Instinct’ Almost Thrills
Some interesting ideas that don’t quite come together.
After a tragedy, everything changes for two families who seem to have it all. They have to navigate paranoia, guilt, and fear as they acclimate to their new reality.
Mothers’ Instinct has all of the potential to be a great film. Sadly, I don’t think that the pieces come together as effectively as they could have. What could’ve been a really interesting film about tragedy and grief ends up being a semi-interesting, semi-thrilling film.
Anne Hathaway (Céline) and Jessica Chastain (Alice) are both tremendous actresses. There are moments in this film where both of them really shine, but I wish that there was more in the script for them to work with. Somehow, I felt like the characters were a bit underwritten, despite each of them possessing some interesting traits, especially Alice.
In some ways, Mothers’ Instinct reminded me of Don’t Worry Darling. Both are set in this glossy moment of yesteryear and highlight the difficulties of being a woman today. Both films show husbands gaslighting and not believing their wives, as well as the dangers that can come from that. There are so many good ideas in both of these films, but I think both of them struggled to pack the punch that they wanted to.