Perfect Mothers

A fascinating, intellectual and profound exploration of the psyches of four uniquely damaged characters: two boys who never quite left the womb, growing up in a small and affluent community far removed from reality, with one father figure MIA, the other passive and disconnected, and only their mothers for comfort and company; and two women, who never conquered their fears of aging or their struggles with self-esteem and sexual confidence, and whose intimate love for each other and need to feel young and desired manifest themselves in dangerous liaisons with each other's sons.

The premise is disturbing and unrealistic but a major strength of the film is that the characters' actions feel believable and understandable: but never condoned or really condemned. We are given such insight into their island-like community, their lifestyles, their dynamics and their psyches that it's perfectly clear why they fall into these simultaneously symbiotic and parasitic relationships. There is a nuance and an apathy to the directing that encourage the audience to focus more on the "how" and "why" rather than the "what." The film is never sexy or erotic because there is so much loneliness, pain and desperation in the sex scenes. The ocean metaphors strengthen the storytelling but never overwhelm it, and there is one particularly profound scene when Watts and Wright's granddaughters are lifted out of the very water that pulled them under and destroyed them.

The film lags around the mid-point, once the quartet has fallen into a rhythm and so there is no more conflict or tension, but picks up again once their group dynamic and Watts' character's happiness are threatened. The ending is disconcerted and unexpected, but on reflection, given the film's themes and the characters' self- destructiveness, it couldn't have convincingly ended any other way.

Wright and Watts do career-best work here (people who think Watts is often overwrought will like her here, I think) - both give understated but incredibly complex performances and create living, breathing, three- dimensional people out of these initially unbelievable women. Their guilt, neediness and agony are ever-present in their eyes even as the characters try to remain composed and rational. The boys aren't given as much to do but Xavier Samuel perfectly captures the confidence and faux-invulnerability of adolescence. It's also the first time Watts has laughed on screen in what must be years now, which is nice to see!

Overall, in spite of some silly dialogue, it's riveting, labyrinthine, and unique - it's been a very long time since an English-language film explored female sexuality and psychology as intimately and impartially as this one does. It feels more at home with 90's French dramas like La belle noiseuse and La cérémonie than it does in 2013. I'm not entirely surprised it's received such a hateful and crude reaction online, but it has a lot more to offer than a controversial setting, and I hope audiences will be able to look past the premise and see it not as an "issue film" but as the perceptive and devastating character study that it really is.

I almost didn't watch this film due to its average rating and some of the reviews here. I suspect the negative reviews have more to do with people rigid world views and moral inclinations than actual capacity to distinguish any kind of subtlety in the way the story unfolds.

Interestingly it doesn't actually unfold as one would expect and as some commentators have claimed.

Naomi Watts acting is excellent and the emotions she conveys make the story believable.

As for the 2 young surfer dudes, one of them actually looks a bit like Julian Wilson (Top pro surfer) which should be a pleasant surprise for the ladies out there.

The location, beach houses, cinematography are beautiful and makes you want to move to Australia. Just for that the movie is worth watching.

This lovely movie was based on Doris Lessing's short story "The Grandmothers". I just saw the premiere at Sundance and absolutely loved it. Supposedly inspired by a true story, it's about two mothers who really like their son's best friend (their best friend's son) And that tag line is what you'll hear all about. Oh, the horror. I imagine middle age male reviewers will not particularly like this movie, though gay men will most likely love it. But it's a film about women--their friendships, husbands, relationships, sons and lovers. It's directed by Anne Fontaine, a French woman (which explains the exorbitant number of scenes with smoking cigarettes, and an insanely un-American story concept that young men might be attracted to older women.)

It's beautifully crafted (gorgeous cinematography) and has intelligent editing (watch for the skillful matched cuts that "age" the characters). The performances are all around great. Robin Wright is amazing--it's an Oscar caliber performance, however, the film probably won't get a large enough release to be on the radar for awards (sort of like poor John Hawkes not getting nominated for "The Sessions", what was the Academy thinking?) Of course, setting the movie in Australia means the other main character is the location. Tanned surfing teenage boys with model-beautiful mothers in bikinis, cowabunga mate (and significantly less handsome husbands and admirers, thankfully not shown in Speedos.)

There was laughter in the screening in places unexpected by the director, but this was probably just anxious laughter by viewers unaccustomed to thinking about middle aged women having sexual and emotional interest in younger men. Actually, I felt the laughter lightened up the viewing experience, and made the characters more human (okay, so I laughed and cried in this movie, but I never laughed at it.) At almost every story point where an expected turn would happen (if following Hollywood development script notes) the writer took what I call the "elegant decision" and pleasantly surprised me.

This is all around superb filmic story telling. Brilliant performances, intelligent and gentle direction, spectacular scenery, highly professional technical craftsmanship, and (for most of us, I expect) new emotional territory. It's a great film. I truly hope you get to see it.

{8.5 stars}

ADORE could have turned out really cheesy, but the very real characters, along with a nice blend of funny and sad moods, fitting soundtrack, and pretty Australian beach scenery keep it from becoming so. Fine performances by all the major players. Though more character and conflict development may seem needed at first, we get to know everyone and everything gradually, and the fact that they are all just fairly "normal" (whatever that is) people is pivotal. Not the greatest script, but it's nothing if not realistic.

Regarding the plot: The way the improbable quadrangle develops is pretty convincing. Even if what's happening in the premise is nothing illegal, it's obviously weird if not downright perverse. Yet, I was surprised to find myself rooting for both couples as ADORE proceeded, wanting them all to be happy together. The way the two women bear a superficial resemblance to each other, causing us to occasionally forget who's whose mum and who's whose lover, is another interesting effect. Finally, the isolated cove with its stationary sun-raft is an apropos symbol.

Though it's obviously not a "family film" or one for younger children, there is no gore, serious nudity (just a couple of brief booty-shots of Robin Wright and Xavier Samuel), or other flinchable elements (unless you count the multiple unexplicit sex scenes).

ADORE is one of the strongest, most satisfying films to come out in recent years, and I enjoyed it immensely.

In rural New South Wales, childhood friends and now mothers Roz (Robin Wright) and Lil (Naomi Watts) live a secluded existence. Their life seems idyllic: Roz runs an art-gallery, while Lil apparently does not work but manages quite well to pursue a good life as a widow. As the film develops, however, so both women fall for the other woman's sons: Roz falls in love with Lil's son Tom (James Frechville), and Lil falls in love with Roz's son Ian (Xavier Samuel). Both women try to end their respective affairs - in the belief that they are somehow wrong - but find themselves incapable of doing so, leading to heartache and loss. There are several reasons for watching TWO MOTHERS: the first being the stunning photography of a rural seaside landscape (by Christophe Beaucarne), full of sandy beaches and azure-blue seas. It's hardly surprising that none of the four protagonists really want to leave the place, even though Tom moves briefly to urban Sydney to pursue a career as a theater director. TWO MOTHERS also boasts four excellent performances: Watts and Wright are quite outstanding as the two mothers, their faces beginning to show the signs of middle age, yet retaining much of their youthful vigor. Director Anne Fontaine's camera scrutinizes their features as they ponder the morality of what they are doing, and desperately decide what to do for the best, while remaining true to their instincts. At the end of the film, when they consider what they have done, they do not say much, but the sequence comes across as incredibly poignant: Wright in the foreground, and Watts in the background trying to explain why she did what she did. The third main reason for watching the film is the sparse script - by Fontaine and Christopher Hampton after a work by Doris Lessing. The film makes no judgment on the characters' behavior'; rather it encourages us to reflect on how human emotions work, often in defiance of moral concerns. Perhaps the film is a touch too long - the ending tends to drag a little - but the final image of the four protagonists sitting sunbathing on a wooden raft, the camera placed directly above them, is a memorable one.