By BRAEDEN RICHARDSON, Staff Writer
“I Am Mother” is a sci-fi movie about a robot who raises a girl in a post-apocalyptic world. I know, it sounds like a cliché sci-fi movie to a fault. In some ways, it is, yet in others, not so much.
Firstly, there’s the epitome of the movie that you see before clicking to watch. After the words appear and disappear, one of the protagonists, “Mother” is displayed. Now, I’m no expert on CGI (computer-generated imagery, known as visual effects), but for a “Netflix Original” movie, I have to say that this movie’s CGI looks great. Realistically, the imagery in the movie is satisfactory. With the exception of a middle ground, surprisingly, the movie leans toward the better side of CGI. “Netflix”, in its entirety, has a reputation for producing merely adequate cinema creations, but in the movie, “I Am Mother”, there’s a display of their production quality.
“Mother” is a robot designed to preserve the life of humans after an extinction on the planet. Displayed in the movie, is a facility that contains 63,000 embryos of humans, and “Mother”, opens one of the preservation containers – a female, to incubate in a pod. Thus, a timer is set for 24 hours, in aims of producing a full-grown baby in the pod after the time completes.
Following the epitome, and the display of “Mother”, there’s an inclusion of numerous enjoyable background music, and various scenes of the other protagonists – the “girl”, bonding and spending time with the robot, “Mother.” As for the exclusion of other humans in the movie, “Mother” aims to learn how to teach, and raise humans. Frankly, the movie is more appealing with the introduction of the “girl” in young adulthood, in which she is more involved with activities in her daily life. In comparison with the “girl’s” life in “I Am Mother”, to my life growing as a child, the lifestyles are quite interesting in their difference – I have had constant interaction with the outside world and people alike, but in the movie, the “girl” has never experienced the outside world, or interacted with other humans. She has been told, by “Mother”, various things about other humans, animals, and the outside world. Nonetheless, the idea of interaction with any of the beings she’s been told about, seemed far from being an opportunity. Understanding her thought process, opened my perspective on certain things. As this movie is also categorized as a thriller, the characters portrayed were dramatic. In one of the early conflicts in the movie, I understood the buildup – the “girl” being terrified of when “Mother” is offline (turned off), the lights are out, and all she has is a flashlight. This to me, is a classic scary movie trope. However, with the idea of the movie’s production process, I’m more aware of the scenes which are pragmatic, equally intense, and scary. Consequently, in the conflict, it turns out to be a rat that has chewed through a wire. In this moment, she captures the rat, and is instantly relieved. In the same sense, she realizes that this is another living thing, and grows attached to it in the short amount of interaction time. Subsequently, after fixing the wire she brings the rat to “Mother” who automatically worries for her “daughter” by incinerating the animal. This in turn upsets the “girl”, yet “Mother” defends her actions by claiming her “daughter’s” safety. As a result of “Mother’s” reaction, the “girl” becomes distant and alert towards “Mother’s” faults, and her life. Later in the movie, a human from the outside world discovers the facility, in search for assistance after being injured by a gunshot. The “girl” is hesitant, but helps thereafter. Correspondingly, she tries her best to keep the stranger away from “Mother” while helping, but in doing so, the stranger holds the “girl” hostage after seeing “Mother”. While this conflict may seem to pose a threat on the “girl’s” first human interaction, it was the opposite. The “girl” caught interest in the stranger. In her effort to understand the stranger, she was made aware of unforeseen discoveries of “Mother”– a marveling plot twist.
Altogether, I thoroughly enjoyed the movie, “I Am Mother”, and would recommend it to others, I found that the movie enveloped an interesting story with a good plot twist, engaging thriller clichés, and astounding background music. Throughout the movie, the inclusion of wise handpicked music tracks gave the cinematic experience a kinship alongside the thriller content allowing for attentiveness. As a result, the music displayed assisted the overall movie experience and thus, “I Am Mother” rates 4.5/5.
