Mommy

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...

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 movie had the whole Alfred Hitchcock feel to it! Usually I prefer the extremely gory, offensive horror movies. The reason I bought this movie was because I am a huge fan of Brinke Stevens. I actually ended up liking this. Also, brinke did a good job as the goody-goody Aunt Beth. Although, it was weird seeing brinke playing a goody-goody role. It was quite a change of pace for her. Also, they had alot of foreshadowing in this film which I liked. I also liked the way they shot it. It was shot on video, but still a bit of professionalism that you don't see in a lot of shot on video movies these days. All in all, I give it a 8. It's suspenseful and atmospheric. Quite enjoyable.

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.

Thinking this low-budget "horror / thriller" to be along the lines of the chilling "Stepfather" films, I decided to watch it, but instead, I felt like I was prying on someone's personal life! The quality of the film was so unbelievably low, it was as if the film was made on someone's handi-cam - you could almost reach out and touch the bad upholstery at "Mommy's" house.

With the exception of the esteemed Majel Barrett I had never heard of any of the cast in this film, which is somewhat surprising, as there were a couple of good actors, while the rest just seemed like locals the director / writer had somehow managed to rope into being in his film. What Majet was doing in this film is beyond me. Patty McCormack was a little bit OTT, but she certainly showed off her character's malign temperament. Rachel Lemieux was harmless, but it's easy to see why she never amounted to anything in the film industry (which I feel rather sorry for her). Brinke Stevens was the surprise, as she was rather good as "Mommy's" kind sister. Jason Miller (R.I.P.) was good as the detective investigating the strange goings-ons surrounding "Mommy", and Sarah Jane Miller was a riot as the janitor.

If you are going to watch this film, be warned, and don't expect too much - because overall, it doesn't amount to much, though that is not for lack of trying.