Mother Mary review: Anne Hathaway’s pop star turn deserved a better story
When it was announced that Anne Hathaway would play a pop star in Mother Mary, I was beyond delighted. This was right up my street! But Mother Mary is not the movie I thought it was going to be, and it didn’t give me what I had hoped for.
The film begins with our titular pop star, Mother Mary (Hathaway), having a crisis during a dress fitting and making the impulsive decision to visit her former costume designer, Sam Anselm (Michaela Coel), in London, even though they’ve been estranged for 10 years. She shows up out of the blue and asks Sam to make her a dress for her show in three days. Although she still harbours a lot of resentment towards Mary, Sam agrees to do so.
What follows is a talky chamber piece set in a barn – Sam’s studio. I was expecting a juicy drama about two estranged friends – who were there at the start of each other’s careers – hashing it out, going over what happened and healing. And it certainly starts that way, with a super strong and well-written first half. But then the narrative sadly devolves into a supernatural story that is vague, plodding and atmospheric. It’s artsy, inscrutable and maddening, and feels like a different film from what we started with.
Thankfully, writer-director David Lowery (who previously made A Ghost Story) does deliver on the promise of seeing Hathaway in pop star mode. Channelling a mix of Taylor Swift and Lady Gaga (I also spotted some very Ariana Grande-style tattooed hands), it is a delight to see Hathaway bringing her musical talents to the stage. She looks fantastic, the visuals are striking, and the costume design is Oscar-worthy, but I wish they were more camp and fun. I expected to feel more excitement during those scenes than I did, and none of the songs – written by Jack Antonoff, Charli XCX and FKA Twigs – are bangers, sadly. In fact, they’re not particularly memorable at all.
But I cannot fault the impressive visuals, Daniel Hart‘s score, and Hathaway and Coel’s performances. Mary is going through a difficult time mentally and seems depressed and potentially suicidal. Hathaway is raw and emotionally vulnerable with Sam, and a strong, all-singing, all-dancing showgirl on stage. She performs all of her own songs and does an incredible choreographed dance in the barn too. Sam is hurt and hates Mary, and despite the 10-year gap, she knows her better than anyone. Coel is sharp, in command and magnetic. They also have great support from familiar faces like Twigs, Hunter Schafer, Kaia Gerber and Sian Clifford.
I know you shouldn’t be mad about a film because it’s not what you wanted it to be, but this ghost story is so unexpected and out of left field that I can’t help but lament the wasted opportunity. We have Anne Hathaway as a pop star and this is the finished product?! Say it ain’t so.
In cinemas from Friday 24th April