Other Mommy

So here's the thing. I don't read as much as I should. Certainly not as much as I used to. I can't sit still and read a book anymore. So I listen to audiobooks. I can't remember the last time I actually read a physical book. Years, certainly.

I tried to listen to Incidents Around the House, the novel that Other Mommy is based on. Unfortunately for me, the story is from the perspective of a young child, and the narrator reading the book read it in a little girl voice, and friends, I wasn't going to listen to that for 8 hours. Sorry.

Because the movie is also from the perspective of Bela, the little girl in the story, the success of Other Mommy hinges almost entirely on the performance of the two leads, Jessica Chastain and Arabella Olivia Clark. Honestly, the story is pretty thin. Story wise, it kind of falls apart of you think about it for more than a minute or two.

That doesn't matter though, because those performances both delivered. Especially Arabella Olivia Clark as Bela. That kid is a little rock star. She's got those Dakota Fanning haunted eyes and give one hell of an entertaining example of child acting. I feel like that hasn't been talked about enough, when people discuss this movie. She was really good.

Jessica Chestain was also good, though I didn't feel as though she had quite as much to work with. The smiling watery eyed intense stare thing has been done a lot in horror lately, so that wasn't anything impressive or even particularly interesting. THAT said, it doesn't take away from that she did an amazing job playing role. She had to do some pretty intense physical acting and pulling some serious faces.

Over all, the thin story, great acting, and competent direction, leaves us with a still fairly decent horror movie. Not something I'd run out and see again, but I'd watch it at someone else's house if they put it on. I dunno.

3 stars.