Marking the directorial debut of Benoît Delhomme, who provided cinematography on the likes of The Theory of Everything and Lawless, the movie chronicles the paranoid shift between 1960s neighbors Céline and Alice after one of their kids dies on the other’s watch.
To buy Mothers’ Instinct will currently cost £19.99 on Amazon Prime, and £15.99 for rental.
Following its theatrical release in March, the movie was welcomed by lukewarm reviews from the media and now sits on a 55% Rotten Tomatoes score.
“The movie ends up with such wild absurdity that it’s difficult to recall the interesting and plausible touches of dysfunction and ambiguity that went into the opening scenes – particularly some business concerning a kid’s toy bunny,” wrote The Guardian‘s Peter Bradshaw.
“But when the curtain rises on the third act, it is time for some very ripe and silly overacting and homicidal machinations which are wince-making in the wrong way.”
Empire Magazine was kinder in its four-star assessment, though, deciding: “The real power of Mothers’ Instinct lies in its dynamite cast. Hathaway, whose hair and costuming have echoes of Jackie Kennedy, is outstanding as a mother trying to reacclimate to society after a terrible loss.
“It’s the hints at something more sinister lying behind the sincerity of her performance that makes her such a treat to watch. Chastain provides a worthy foil, suffering from her own overpowering guilt and anxiety while simultaneously trying to create an idyllic life for her husband and son.”
Conversely, Hathaway’s other recent project The Idea of You premiered with a 100% rating on the reviews aggregator site.
Mothers’ Instinct is currently in UK cinemas, while a US release date is TBA.
