Just in time for Mother’s Day, here’s Mother’s Day, another ensemble film from Garry Marshall (you may recall his other similar flicks New Year’s Eve, Valentine’s Day, and the like). His previous movies, filled to the brim with stars, lacked emotion and seemed more like a collection of montages rather than a cohesive whole.
Mother’s Day is guilty of some of Marshall’s previous crimes: namely a bloated cast, some ridiculous premises and a wholly predictable plot, but there’s a fun thread that runs throughout. It never really takes itself too seriously, and that’s a relief.
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It feels like the cast is having a ball (also evidenced during the credits, when we get to see outtakes from filming), and that feeling of enjoyment spreads to the audience. That goes a long way in making the movie more palatable; it could have been very different. Had Mother’s Day tried to present too-serious storylines, this would be a harsher review.
Yes, it deals with gay relationships, interracial relationships, divorce, parental death and marriage as a whole, but it’s superficial. After all, how can you really delve deep when you have a cast so full of A-listers? Screen time is a commodity, and hey, this isn’t quite the cinematic vehicle to deliver moral messages.
Is it funny or cheesy?
It is both. I was surprised at how many lines made me laugh out loud. A stand-out is Jennifer Aniston as the divorced Sandy, who’s trying to deal with the new (much younger) wife of her ex-husband (like how best to “share” their kids). Aniston’s forte is most definitely comedy, and without her in this movie, it would have flopped, and hard.
The cheesiness is expected, especially from Marshall, and the “holiday” it’s focusing on practically begs for it. Going into the film anticipating the cheese makes it a more enjoyable experience.
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Is the ensemble cast too much?
Sometimes. Usually ensemble movies consist of A-listers scrambling to grab the spotlight, but in this movie, even scenery-chewer Julia Roberts is surprisingly demure. Mother’s Day has the feel of a ’90s-early ’00s reunion of movie stars, where they rehash old glories and reminisce about their golden days. Despite the seriousness of their individual plotlines and their far-fetched connections, it has a party atmosphere to it. There is at least one clown, a bouncy castle slide, a parade float shaped like a womb and a wild ride in a camper.
Will Mom love it?
I’m coming clean: I brought my mother with me as a gauge. While we whispered to each other about what was going to happen plot-wise (with 100 per cent accuracy, for the record), we had fun. Afterwards she told me that the depictions were true: that divorced women suffer through a lot of emotions when ex-husbands move on, and that mothers never stop loving their children even if they have “issues” with their lifestyles.
It touched a nerve with her despite its formulaic structure, so yeah, bring your mother. The two-hour runtime is a bit much and it starts to drag as the storylines try to wrap up, but there’s enough to keep you (and mom) occupied.
So what’s the bottom line?
While formulaic and exactly what you’d expect from an ensemble holiday movie, there is a jovial vibe to Mother’s Day that saves it from being a jumbled disaster.
‘Mother’s Day’ opens in theatres on April 29, 2016.
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