Baby Ruby

Nobody tells you that all babies are not created equal. Some will literally suck the life out of you when you already don't have much life to give. A baby that incessantly cries is not the same as one that sleeps and smiles and coos.

That is what this movie is about. The underlying questioning of yourself and your abilities. The feeling that you are losing yourself, your sanity and that nothing is going to be the same again. That everyone else has it together while you are drowning.

This movie was so triggering because it captured every one of those feelings. It was hard to watch for these reasons, but also a brilliant idea for a horror film...

I thought I was being cheeky when I found myself thinking, early on, that the first impression this was making was as a public service announcement advising against pregnancy and child-rearing. The thing is, even with some wonderfully enticing, unnerving moments bringing pointed psychological horror to bear, as the length advances it increasingly comes across that this was a rather accurate impression after all. At bare minimum filmmaker Bess Wohl has in part latched onto the unacknowledged truth that some new mothers resent or even hate their children, countermanding the cultural expectation or demand that childbirth be upheld as "joyous," and a "miracle" - but then again, there are also straightforward horror-thriller vibes on hand, and major notes of post-partum depression, and ultimately also the amplification for genre thrills of the acute fears of new parents. But wait, those are five distinct ideas that 'Baby Ruby' is trying to encapsulate. There are also select moments that almost inspire laughter, coming across as fresh cut brass from a parallel horror-comedy. Just what was it that this wanted to be? All told, I can only firmly stand by that first impression.

I adore Noémie Merlant, and she's been terrific in anything of hers that I've watched; even if a picture falters in other regards, one can in the very least trust Merlant to give a fantastic performance, and quite anchor and elevate the whole just by being a part of it. This is no less true here; I admit bias since I'm already a fan, and she was the reason I sat to watch in the first place, but I think the actor is the chief consistent strength of these ninety minutes. The rest of the cast is great too, of course, and in all other ways this is splendidly well made in terms of stunts, effects, filming locations, art direction, hair, makeup, cinematography, editing, and so on. In what is apparently her directorial debut, I also think Wohl illustrates fine skills in orchestrating shots and scenes. Only: what tone is she trying to strike here? What exactly is it that she was driving at with her screenplay, and what should we as viewers be taking away from it? The one definitive guiding ethos of the narrative is "parenting is hard," and I appreciate the notion of twisting this into a horror flick. As the conception here tries to stir various odds and ends together, however, it comes off not as multifaceted but as unfocused, which again returns us to my takeaway - that the audience is being warned against considering procreation, or even adoption.

Maybe 'Baby Ruby' would be more meaningful if I had any slight inclination toward being a mother. Maybe I'm being overly critical, and cynical, and the mix of ingredients is just right in capturing for horror ends the apprehension of being a new parent. I think there are superb ideas in here. I just also think there are too many ideas, and the result becomes jumbled. If Wohl as writer had concentrated more discretely on just one or two thoughts - or maybe more to the point, dispensed with one or two thoughts - then I think the feature would be more strongly centered, and it would be more effective and impactful in turn. I honestly don't dislike this, and I want to hold it in higher esteem than I do; the sum total simply doesn't do much for me when fine acting and craftsmanship is weighed against a screenplay that feels kind of cluttered and subsequently diluted. I'm glad for those who get more out of 'Baby Ruby' than I do, and I look forward to seeing more from Wohl in the future. And hey, if nothing else, mission accomplished: I've been decisively convinced to never become a parent.

I thought this sounded like an interesting concept, social media has baby and things go wrong is what I got from the synopsis.

The film kind of went how I expected but lacked or even included too many things for it to be a good film.

It lacked meat on the bones of the overall storytelling from her backstory to her life in general. It included too many different characters and themes without managing to nail any of them.

It has a fairly dark dreary look which can add to the tone of a film and its not something I dislike but its done in a fairly weak manner that it never really hits you with any impact.

When the focus here is on the lead actress you really need a great lead and Noémie Merlant never pulls it off. The melancholic feels are all there but everything else is just placid. The rest of the cast ( including Kit Harrington ) are bit players and often overlooked or put in a corner once their purpose has been served. Many of which serve little purpose that really get to you in an unnerving way as intended.

You could remove a few characters and give others more to do and Im sure the impact would have been greater. I don't know an awful lot about Post Natal Depression so its difficult to comment on the realism in how it was used. Overall though it ended up being a bit disjointed and withering to a pretty anticlimactic ending.

There are flickers of horror and an ever omnipresent haunting flow to the film but little else.

5/10.

Baby Ruby follows an influencer that after her pregnancy is dealing with motherhood and its problems. The movie dives heavily into the subject of Postpartum and what it can do to the human psyche.

While the acting is fine and the whole thematic made me think twice about having kids I have to say that sadly I was bored for most of the time of the movie. You have our main character spiraling down into madness, imagining scenarios that are not really happening and you have a crying baby for pretty much 93 minutes. This gives the movie a pretty monotonous feel and prevents it to draw in the viewer for the watching experience.

Another thing that could have improved the movie would have been a smart plot twist, but since the movie does not do that it ends up being forgettable. However if you have experienced a pregnancy or Postpartum you might enjoy this movie but for me it was a boring watch. [4,2/10]

An eerie film.

This film is thought to watch to say the least. The constant crying of the baby and the horrible hallucinations of the mother are just to eerie and disturbing for my soul. I found the movie difficult to watch and it just made me feel uneasy which is good sometimes but I just felt a bit off after watching it. However the fact that the movie can make you feel so much so is an aspect that's hard to achieve. The film conveys how powerful and capable the human mind is, to such extent that it can eat at itself slowly chipping away at your sanity and control. It also shows how powerful the bond between mother and child truly is. Overall could've been a better.