The hidden meaning of the movie "Mom!" Darren Aronofsky: interpretation of the plot and non-obvious references

What's going on in the movie

The picture begins with the "cleansing" of the burned down house. Someone's hand puts a crystal on the shelf, after which the main character wakes up. The entire action of the film takes place in one house, standing somewhere on the outskirts. Mother and He live in it (the names of the heroes are not called).

He (Javier Bardem) is a famous poet suffering from a creative crisis and trying to write a new book. Its main value and source of inspiration is the crystal in the study.

Mother (Jennifer Lawrence) looks after the house, makes repairs in it and creates her own world in it in the likeness of paradise or an ideal natural system. At the same time, she constantly listens to the heartbeat in the walls of the dwelling and finds bleeding holes in the floor.

Once an unknown person comes to their house, who seems to be an admirer of the poet's work. The host allows the guest to stay, despite Mother's objections. At the same time, the strange man has a scar on his back, as if from the extraction of a rib.

After the guest comes his wife, then their children burst into the house. They put up a fight and one brother kills the other. Further, more and more uninvited guests accumulate in the house at the commemoration, which leads to flooding.

A few months later, the Mother prepares for the birth of the child, and the poet finishes his new work. Soon a crowd of his fans bursts into the house, destroying everything in their path. At the same time, Mother's childbirth begins, but soon the child is dragged away by a crowd of admirers. They pass the baby from hand to hand as a religious symbol, but then accidentally kill him.

The enraged Mother blows up the house, and He takes her charred body to the office and removes the crystal from the woman's heart, returning the action to the very beginning.

What lies at the heart of the plot

Destruction of the planet by man

One of the most obvious explanations for the film's plot is humankind's rude attitude towards nature. In this interpretation, the house is the Earth, and the Mother is the very "mother nature" who herself restores the flora on the planet (makes repairs) and gives new life (gives birth to a child).

At first, people come politely, but immediately break the rules - the first guest smokes indoors. And then they begin to behave more and more impudently, first using the house as a toilet, and then breaking everything that nature has created.

She also "responds" to them with various cataclysms (floods and fires). And after the destruction of the intruders, nature itself restores the house and returns to the beginning of history.

This version was confirmed by the director himself in an interview with Variety. According to him, people treat the Earth without respect, rob and rape it. This is Aronofsky and tried to show in the film.

The cruel God and biblical stories

In the same interview, the director said that Javier Bardem played God in this film, and in his most cruel manifestation - as he appeared in the Old Testament - selfish and demanding worship. God creates a house, after which Mother (nature) takes care of it.

This house is our personal paradise. And I love to create.

Mother

There are many obvious biblical references throughout the story. The first people who come to visit the main characters are Adam and Eve (they are not named either). That is why a man appears before a woman, and he has a scar on his back, as if from a removed rib.

Their children are obviously Cain and Abel, so one brother kills the other because of the will. Interestingly, their real brothers played: Donal and Bryn Gleason.

The flooding of a house after the first invasion of guests is an analogue of the Flood. Then the Mother (Mother of God) gives birth to a child in which a hint of Jesus is obvious, since the fanatics kill him and eat his flesh. Well, the ending seems to lead to the idea of an apocalypse that will destroy all people if they continue to behave this way.

Muse giving herself to her creator

Horror film "Mom!": A muse who gives herself to the creator

The character of Bardem can be considered a creator not only in a divine sense, but also in a purely poetic one. He creates works, and the Mother serves as his muse. While he is trying to write at least something, she is busy with everyday affairs, preparing and renovating the house. And at the same time, her duty is to inspire the poet for new creativity.

It's about you. It's always about you and your work. Do you think they'll help you write? Never! I built the whole house alone inside and out, and you didn't write a word.

Mother

Having become popular again, He is bathed in fame and admirers, even forgetting about the cooked dinner. And Mother has to deal with the consequences and clean up the house again after the invasion of fans. But the main thing happens in the finale, when it turns out that the crystal that the poet so guarded is in fact the heart of his muse.

She completely surrenders herself to Him so that he can create further. And the last shots, which repeat the introduction, but with a different actress, show that the poet immediately has a new muse.

Toxic relationships in family and society

If you go down from creativity and religion to human everyday life, then "mom!" also covers many important topics. First, the idea of patriarchy. The mother is always in the shadow of her husband. He does not ask her opinion when he invites guests into the house, and she constantly acts as a servant. At the same time, He does not even understand that he does not suit her, and continues to do only what he wants to do.

- Why didn't you consult with me, inviting them to stay?

“You know, I didn't think it was important.

Mother and He

Secondly, there are several hints of fear of motherhood in the film. A woman who comes shamelessly hints that it is time for the Mother to give birth, acting here as a society pressing on a person with the traditional "clock ticking".

Believe me, youth passes. Have kids. This will create something together that will strengthen your marriage.

Woman (Michelle Pfeiffer)

If we perceive the house as an analogue of the heroine's body, then the changes taking place in it can be considered a reflection of the fear of changes in the body during pregnancy - a bleeding hole in the floor, the beating of the heart that the Mother hears in the walls, the flood and the subsequent death of the child hint at this quite clearly.

Thirdly, even if you do not touch on family relations, in "mom!" there are hints of social intrusion into the life of an introvert. Moreover, He acts in the role of a bright extrovert: he invites guests into the house and cannot understand why Mother is not satisfied with this.

For her, the presence of strangers in the house and in her personal life and their behavior is completely unacceptable. But society begins to dictate its own rules, which leads to disaster.

How the movie ends

The ending of the picture completely repeats the introduction, which many do not notice, since they are not yet aware of the future action. At the very beginning of the film, He puts a crystal on the shelf, after which the burned down house is cleansed, and the Mother wakes up in her bed. After all the events of the film, exactly the same thing happens at the end.

Only this time another Mother wakes up in bed (played by Laurence Leboeuf). In various versions of interpretation, this means either the next round of nature after its destruction by man, or a new creation of the world by God, or another muse for the creator.

In any case, the plot is cyclical and hints that further the action will be completely repeated and the house will be destroyed again.

How the audience understood the picture

Despite the opinion of the author himself and the many already known interpretations, the film "Mom!" allows other versions as well. It can partly be considered a psychological test, where everyone will see something of their own, the closest or, conversely, terrible.

The author himself speaks about this directly through the lips of the poet. After talking to the fans, He says, “They understood everything. But everyone understood in their own way. This is confirmed by the reviews of critics, and simply the opinions of the audience.

The images […] are reminiscent of Abu Ghraib, the war in Iraq, the European migrant crisis and much more.

Zach Scarf IndieWire

For most of the film, she (Lawrence) is an angel, and her closest counterpart is Lucifer. Like an angel, she is a servant (cooks, cleans, takes care of the house while God “creates”). The basement - the underworld - is her domain, and it becomes a source of fire. Michelle Pfeiffer - Eve - was left alone to talk to Lucifer while God and Adam go for a walk. Lawrence gives directions, but no one is listening. As if she brings out the worst in people and tempts them to disobey.

MountainDewsRealGood Reddit

Throughout the film, in moments of crisis, the heroine Jennifer Lawrence goes to the bathroom and alone drinks some kind of yellow powder dissolved in water. He calms her down. […] Perhaps Aronofsky in these scenes referred to the story "Yellow Wallpaper" by the American feminist and writer Charlotte Perkins Gilman. The color yellow symbolizes insanity, and Gilman's novel tells the story of a woman who goes crazy with postpartum psychosis.

Vadim Elistratov DTF

Who watched "mom!" Aronofsky? The last quarter of the film is brilliant !!! But overall … who understood what the film is about? From the mass of versions, I came to the madness of a genius who, crushing everything in his path, strives for inspiration and demand, bordering on madness

I watched the movie "Mom!" Yesterday. Everyone said it was an arthouse and generally fi, but the film is interesting and very deep. At least I saw a different message than what Aronofsky put into it. But any message there is about vanity, talent and soul. And even a little about feminism. Here.

For many viewers, the film responds somehow in its own way. Therefore, personal perception may not coincide with any of the above theories. "Mother!" specially filmed ambiguously to provoke emotions and reflections.