‘M.O.M. (Mothers of Monsters)’ (2020) Movie Review

What makes a monster? Is it hereditary, the way they are brought up or something else entirely? In the found footage film M.O.M. (Mothers of Monsters), we are witness to a battle of wills between a mother and son that seeks to answer that question. Does it leave us with more questions than answers? Read on to find out.

M.O.M. was written and directed by Tucia Lyman. The film stars Melinda Page Hamilton (God Bless America 2011), Bailey Edwards (Bright 2017), Julian de la Celle (Heroes TV Series), Janet Ulrich Brooks (Sense8 TV Series), and Hollywood legend Edward Asner.

Synopsis

A distraught mother suspects her teenage son is plotting a school shooting, but when he slips through the cracks of the system, she is forced to take matters into her own hands. After installing an elaborate spy camera system in their home, Abbey captures a series of disturbing videos that confirm her worst fears. Torn between a mother’s unconditional love and a mother’s acute intuition, Abbey caters her videos to all the other “mothers of monsters” online. Abbey’s plan backfires when Jacob uses a dark family secret against her, launching both mother and son on a terrifying, and ultimately deadly, game of cat and mouse.

While I’m rarely interested in found footage films, the plot for M.O.M. Mothers of Monsters intrigued me enough to give it a shot. I glad I gave it a shot because it led me to the most haunting film I’ve seen in quite some time.

The story worked magnificently for me. The plot follows Abbey, a mother who tries to stop her disturbed son Jacob from doing something horrible by catching his preparations on camera. As the film goes on it is obvious that Jacob has some deep-seated psychological issues. What isn’t evident is how much of this is a mental health issue passed on through the family or how much is his mothers own trauma’s projected onto him. Abbey clearly has her own issues but honestly believes her son is on a destructive path that will lead him to kill his classmates. She is torn between a mother’s love for her son and wanting to protect those that her son could potentially harm, a product of her own guilt from her childhood and her failure to save her brother.

As things moved along M.O.M. had me on pins and needles wondering if Abbey was going to be caught in the act by Jacob and if so what the repercussions would be. The final act is full of twists and turns, none of which I saw coming, and an ending that is sure to haunt my thoughts for days.

Melinda Page Hamilton and Bailey Edwards give wonderful performances as Abbey and Jacob. The two of them carry the whole movie on their shoulders. Melinda Page Hamilton makes Abbey sympathetic while not being overly likable. She goes through the wringer throughout the film and she does an excellent job of conveying the necessary emotions to make the character work. Bailey Edwards is an intimidating presence as Jacob. The way he is able to flip his emotions like a switch, it’s absolutely terrifying. The things he does in M.O.M. absolutely sicken me and yet, it’s not entirely his fault and in a way, you can kind of see how he was pushed towards this.

Final Thoughts

Anchored by two phenomenal lead performances, M.O.M. is compelling, disturbing, haunting and thought-provoking. This is not a film I will shake anytime soon. If you like films that shake you to your core and leave you thinking, I highly recommend M.O.M. which is out now in select theaters and Digital HD.