Mother and Child Review
By David Kempler
Mothers, Daughters, and Adoption, Oh My
Rodrigo Garcia is fascinated by women, or at least it appears so. In his 2005 film, "Nine Lives", he focused his attention on how women's lives crisscross each other. In "Mother and Child" he turns his attention to the relationships between mothers and their daughters, with specific emphasis on children given up for adoption and the ramifications on both mother and child. Three women's lives are featured in "Mother and Child".
Karen (Annette Beining) is cold and distant from everyone in her life, including her own mother. She accepts this but at the same time is tortured by it because she is haunted by her having given up her daughter for adoption at the age of 14. Karen works as a physical therapist and her life changes when Paco (Jimmy Smits) begins working at the same facility. She is initially cold to his advances but eventually becomes comfortable with him, or at least as comfortable as she can be about anything.
Elizabeth (Naomi Watts) is a successful, power-driven lawyer that can't sit still at any one firm. She has a voracious sexual appetite but is as alone as a person can be. She is also unfathomably cruel. One of the men she beds is her boss, Paul (Samuel L. Jackson). The results of their affair have a major impact on the story. The reason for her erratic and cruel behavior is that she was given up for adoption as a newborn.
Lucy (Kerry Washington) is a young married woman embarking upon the process of adoption because her and her husband cannot conceive. While it's apparent that she is dead-set and happy about the adoption process, her husband is less enthusiastic. He's supportive and says all of the right things but the conviction is missing. Everyone aside from Lucy can see this. A very young girl is pregnant and willing to give up her baby to Lucy and her husband but she is incredibly selective about who shall raise her child. She is portrayed as wise beyond her years but if you met someone like this in your life you would think her to be nothing more than a big pain-in-the-ass.
"Mother and Child" provokes everything it intends to provoke. The acting is fine. The directing is solid. By the time it's over, it's all wrapped up neatly in a bow. But, it never got under my skin. It's incredibly competent but never more than that. It lacks excitement. Maybe the problem is that I'm not a mother or a woman or adopted. I don't know, but my gut tells me that this will play well for the females in the audience and that the chaps accompanying them will feel like Lucy's husband about the whole thing.
