Movie review - I am Mother *SPOILER WARNING*

Image credit : Netflix

What do you do when you suddenly found cause to suspect the motives of the person who lovingly raised you from birth? Who do you believe in when an outsider tells you your life is not what it seems? What if the person who you call "mother" is a machine?

These are the questions posed by the trailer for the sci-fi thriller I Am Mother, and I was instantly intrigued.

The film begins with an ominous on screen title that announces matter-of-factly that most of the human race have been annihilated in an extinction event. In a non-descript location described only as a re-population facility, the robot known later as Mother grew one of the thousands of stored human embryos into a human infant, known simply as Daughter.

Image credit : Netflix

Inside the confines of the facility, Mother raised Daughter with equal measure of affection and emotional distance. From young, Daughter is subjected to a rigid regiment of mental and physical cultivation on the pretext of preparing her to become part of a new generation of humans that would be grown from the aforementioned embryos.

Image credit : Netflix

However, like any child, Daughter was endlessly curious about the world beyond the facility's airlock. Her curiosity caused her to inadvertently let in a female human stranger from the outside, leading her to question her presumptions about this world and her relationship with Mother. As the intrigue unfolds, Daughter finds out the truth behind her existence, and her role in everything that is to come.

Image credit : Netflix

I Am Mother is the directorial debut of Grant Sputore. Although the cast is headlined by Academy Award winner Hilary Swank, make no mistake as the film's emotional core is carried by the young but very talented Clara Rugaard who plays Daughter and Rose Byrne who voices the robot Mother.

Image credit : Netflix

Rugaard convincingly captures the naivete, confusion and subsequent horror as her character's arc develops, displaying an emotional depth that I would argue is more than typical for this type of film. Although we don't see Rose Byrne in person, there is something about her voice that is both comforting and creepy at the same time - I guess that probably has something to do with the soft, nurturing female voice coming out of a big bulky robot that can cave your face in with a single punch (motion capture for Mother is performed by Luke Hawker). Of course there is the always excellent Hilary Swank, who gave an impeccable performance as an ultimately tragic character who unknowingly played into Mother's designs.

Image credit : Netflix

The initial premise itself is fresh if somewhat predictable. That said, the pacing and story beats are on point and that little side twist at the end about Swank's character is a nice touch.

All in all I give it a 8.5/10, a very impressive first outing for Sputore and I look forward to good things from him and Rugaard in the future.