Mommy

I do realize this film was made on a limited budget, but they could have made it so much better. The shots were grainy, the lighting was bad, and the widescreen dvd version was hardly widescreen at all. Apparently Patty McCormack has forgotten how to act, because she was quite good in the Bad Seed. The supporting cast does the film no better. The apparent parallels to the original only act as an insult, especially since the modern counterparts pale in comparison to the characters in which they were based (ex. the janitor at school trying to play LeRoy) The effects were terrible, especially the gun shot scene, and the soundtrack was annoying. Why Patty McCormack passed up other offers before deciding to make this one is a mystery to me. It may have been a good idea on paper, but was executed poorly. This film can only be enjoyed for its camp quality, which in itself is hardly enough.

Not much was expected from this straight-to-video, shot-on-tape movie. However, it's surprisingly good. It's a well-realized effort, especially considering the obviously microscopic budget.

Patty McCormack is diabolically eeevil as MOMMY. She's finally found the perfect follow-up to her role as Rhoda in THE BAD SEED. She's a seething adult now, plotting and killing anyone foolish enough to cross her!

Jason Miller is the cop who believes he knows what she's up to. Majel Barrett is a doomed teacher, and Mickey Spillane is Mommy's attorney. Brinke Stevens plays one of her best roles as Mommy's sister.

MOMMY is a nice chiller-thriller with enough dark humor to raise a smile in spite of Mommy's homicidal ways...

I've seen a lot of people mostly bash Mommy because of the way it looks. It definitely has that cheap, shot on video feel that many films of this time had and, yes, I suppose that does hurt it to a certain extent, but when you have a script this amusing and a performance as campy as Patty McCormack's, you should be grateful.

Mommy is about, well, a mommy (McCormack) and her young daughter who are alone in the world after all of Mommy's husband have died under mysterious circumstances. That's not actually true. Mommy does have a sister played by b-movie scream queen Brinke Stevens who seems to know her sister isn't all there, but she doesn't appear to believe her insane behavior is anything to get too concerned about.

Things begin to escalate when Mommy kills a teacher who wouldn't give her daughter a student of the year award. Pretty soon, she's on a war path, taking out anyone who gets in her way.

Mommy is worth seeing for McCormack's performance alone. While there are, of course, shades of her iconic performance from The Bad Seed, there's also a little Kathleen Turner in Serial Mom by way of Jessica Walter in Arrested Development. It's truly something to see.

Yes, it is low budget, and yes it is shot on video for the direct to DVD market but I've seen much, much, worse. I can only imagine that the critics of this movie went into it with the wrong expectations.

Patty McCormack is great as the deranged Mommy, her performance is definitely over the top, just as it should be in this kind of movie. She's acting as hard as she can and it is not a role which calls for subtlety. Rachel Lemieux may not be the most accomplished actress in the world - but she's less annoying than most children in low budget films. It's also nice to see Brinke Stevens in a (more or less) dramatic role.

If you are looking for a high quality movie with lots of drama, gore, and topless Brinke Stevens, this is definitely not it. However, if you're looking for something kind of campy which you can enjoy making fun of (in an MST3K kind of way) then you could do a lot worse than this.

This is not really a follow-up to Bad Seed. Patty McCormick does reprise her role in a way, but it's a different character. If you wanna use your imagination, and interpret things your own way, here's some food for thought. I like to imagine that this is Rhoda all grown up, with a name and identity change. Anyway, Patty McCormick is obsessed with her 12 year old daughter. She will kill anyone, or anything that gets in her way. When she finds out her daughter didn't win Student of the Year Award, she offs her teacher. An investigator goes undercover to get to the truth of the story. The meat of this story is Mommy & the daughter Jessica. They are both riveting to watch, and I enjoyed the creepy interactions. Rachel Lemuix does a heck of a job as the daughter, and puts many kid actors to shame with her excellent performance. Not only is she sympathetic, but very talented. I wonder where she is now? Patty McCormick is fantastic in her role. Her galvanizing presence and her creepy obsession chilled me to the bone. Brinke Stevens has a bit of a pivotal part as McCormick's sister, and lends good support. The low budget can't be ignored. It looks extremely cheap, but the effort is there, and I have to give it credit. The ending sets up a sequel, and a sequel did commence, called Mommy's Day. I've not been able to find it, though

Final Thoughts: If you can find it, you may enjoy yourself more than you thought you would.

6.3/10