Mom

I first saw this in the early 90s on a vhs. Revisited it recently. The only saving grace is Brion James in a small stint. There is zero tension n suspense, the kills r offscreen n the ending a big meh.

My review was written in June 1991 after watching the movie on an RCA/Columbia video cassette.

At first an effective turnabout in posing a kindly mother as a monstrous killer, "Mom" shifts into a pretentious mode that fails to whip up pathos. Originally scheduled as a TWE video release last year, the horror comedy still bears the TWE logo bhut arrives as an RCA/Columbia title.

FIlm's prolog establishes blind Brion James as a serial killer of pregnant women, with guest star Claudia Christian his latest Christmas Eve victim.

Fiml proper has Jame arriving at kindly old Jeanne Bates' house to become a roomer. He bites Bates and turns her into a monster with a similar blood lust, though she does not copy his expectant mothers' fetish.

Bates' son is tv news reporter Mark Thomas Miller, who coincidentally is working on the same case of corpses created by James and Bates. In filmmaker Patrick Rand's wildly uneven screenplay, Miller quickly discovers James' hold over his mom, literally burns up the fiend and then covers up his parent's connection to the murders.

With many scenes played straight, "Mom" creates effective camp contrasts between the quaint old lady and the bloody mayhem she instigates. But it's difficult to keep the pot boiling, and later reels concentrating on Miller's predicament come off as silly.

Rand's in-jokes are a dud, such as Mom appearing on the stairs doing a Gloria Swanson routine from the climax of "Sunset Blvd.". Pic's best moments are provided by Stella Stevens, extremely sexy as an overage prostitute Miller brings home to mother one night.

Rest of the cast is bland, particularly Bates who never rises to a level of sympathetic fright. Makeup effects are okay but occasional ubbing of Bates with a masculine demonic voice is old hat.

An old lady's boarder Nestor Duvalier(Brion James)turns out to be a cannibalistic monster terrorizing Los Angeles,and promptly turns her into one too.It's up to her son to stop the carnage."Mom" is a perfect flick for few laughs.There is a good amount of gore,but if you're searching for suspense-packed horror avoid this one at all costs.All in all "Mom" is worth checking out for some undemanding horror fans,so if you get the chance watch it.My rating:5 out of 10.

HEY EVERYBODY ITS ME (4) and today we review .........mom ....? No really a film called mom ? ....

YUP its a real film ...and surprisingly it isnt a lifetime film , it isnt a chick flick ....and most importantly it isnt terrible

NO instead what we have here is a new take (from the EARLY 90s) on the classic vampire film ? ... yes ? ... but it NEVER really says vampire exactly .... in fact at one point vampire, werewolf, ghouls ...just all those sorts of mythos are lumped together and i think that was a REALLY smart move for them because it doesnt force focus on the type of vampire, or the way they HAVE to kill the were wolf .... or if certain laws of previous film lore are in effect ETC ........this way it kind of just glosses over the idea of historically YES something LIKE those things DO live BUT its been lost in stories over time AND the movie isnt going to waste its or OUR time going back through the tons of garbage ideas form years past ...........good job movie ......and thank you ....

INSTEAD ... they just concentrate on the hunger aspect of the "creatures" in this film the need to feed and how it changes throughout ....how it messes with their lifes etc ........

SO acting over all isnt bad its fine and honestly better than 80% of films currently out there ........the FX are 90s lol.........the story line is for the time solid ..... it gave you something old and something new while like i said not really wasting time on going over the crap you would already know ...... so over all this movie is a solid piece of work .... fun to watch btu not a comedy really .... i thought for sure it would be a much more dark comedy ....but nope pretty much a straight horror film, lol... IF they would have done it more a "evil dead" kind of deal it would have become a rival for that franchise EASY ... a ridiculous premise like a elderly woman becomes a vampire ? .....yea easy ...

so i WISH i could hate this one and tear it a new hole and go to town but sadly its decent lol..........

8/10 ....it delivers enough new stuff (for that era) to justify a watch while NOT treating us watching it like idiots ........

Several memorable double meanings in "Mom" are teetering on the edge of "black comedy", but there is no further development of the comedy angle. Therefore, I must conclude that this was never intended to be a dark comedy. The horror elements are crude, however the story is memorable for such a low budget film. Brion James has limited screen time, but sets things in motion with a bite to Mom's shoulder. Along the lines of Steve Buscemi in "Ed and His Dead Mother", Mark Thomas Miller is torn between his love for his Mom, and the realization that she is addicted to human flesh. Special mention must be made of Stella Stevens performance as a bar trollop, as it is excellent. = MERK