The proposition of an A24 + Anne Hathaway collab is an immediately interesting proposition, especially when the vibes combine the decadence of pop star worship and supernatural darkness. Writer/director David Lowery has a built a reputation for his visual prowess and surreal slow burn storytelling (The Green Knight), both of which are prominently featured in Mother Mary, to an admirable and engaging degree. But his screenwriting tendencies now feel like an Achilles’ heel, where the style overwhelms the substance and dilutes the high quality of the below-the-line craft and performances of his actors.
Mother Mary feels like a play in its staging choreography and heavy emphasis on intimate and detailed exchanges of dialogue between leads Anne Hathaway and Michaela Coel. I actually quite enjoyed the first act that thoroughly explored the historical relationship strain between pop music sensation Mother Mary (Hathaway) and her former friend-turned-elite fashion designer (Coel). Both actors delivered very nice performances per their contradictory endearing/antagonistic chemistry; an interesting energy blend.
The hook with most A24 films is a jarring pivot to surreal or supernatural. With the groundwork laid in the first act of the characters’ past and motivations, I had assumed the inevitable horror elements would be well setup to take the storytelling to a more profound, compelling level. Instead, Lowery focuses on razzle-dazzle visuals and thematic metaphors that just don’t work well. In fact, some of the imagery and especially the 3rd act monologue by Hunter Schafer (yes, she’s in this and is completely wasted) were quite cringe. Lowery simply didn’t seem to have a clear grasp on what this film was supposed to be and how the audience was supposed to engage with it.
And for all the glitz surrounding the the current female pop star scene (I’m sure Taylor Swift will love dissecting this one, maybe that’s who it was made for), the songs themselves just weren’t bangers. They were tepid and bland. In the aftermath of K-Pop Demon Hunters, if you’re going to make a film about pop music, with original pop songs, you better bring the smoke. The songwriters didn’t. And neither did the filmmaker.
