We have not seen enough of Amy Adams recently, but she is gathering awards buzz for her portrayal of a stay-at-home mum who sometimes transforms into a dog in Marielle Heller’s black comedy.
This is an odd film to evaluate. Adams gives a whole-hearted, fearless and intense performance, ably supported by Scoot McNairy as her well meaning but slightly dense husband. Heller’s script cleverly captures the sheer brain numbing nightmare that devoting your life to looking after your child can be.
But there are also some things that do not work. After depicting motherhood as an terrible experience, there is an about face at the end that did not feel in the spirit of the rest of the film, as if it had to be added to appease all the parents in the audience.
Surprisingly, the turning into a dog part of the story is quickly abandoned after hinting that it might steer the movie into body horror territory and showing us flashbacks to Adams’ character’s childhood that suggests her condition is hereditary. But none of that is really explored and ultimately adds nothing to the story.
Rating: 6.5 out of 10