a review of 母亲！

Holy cow. I went into this mostly unspoiled except for a single viewing of the first trailer, and this might be the most harrowing film I've seen this year, but I never felt like Aronofsky was abusing the audience's trust at any point. Without delving into any spoilers myself, I will say that I appreciated the film's approach to its allegory, tucking some pretty challenging concepts inside of metaphors that initially seem a bit on the nose, revealing little surprises all the way to the end. Viewers who are unaccustomed to questioning their personal spirituality may not enjoy the ride, but I think the film ultimately respects its theological underpinnings more keenly than a more sanitized adaptation would.