Gory, Stylish and Flawed.
Added 10/23/2009
May Contain Spoilers
Set in present day Rome, a large chest is unearthed in an old cemetery and is sent to Rome's Natural History Museum for inspection. Once it is opened by an unsuspecting archeologist (who meets a heck of a demise BTW), it re-awakens the last surviving Black Witch known as Mater Lachrimarum (Mother of Tears) and restores her powers. She then summons all witches from every corner of the globe to travel to Rome and witness her return. In the meantime, Rome becomes engulfed in violence and chaos and it is up to our heroine Sarah (Asia Argento) to try to find a way to defeat this ungodly witch since she is linked to the current events through her deceased mother, who when alive, was a powerful White Witch.
Dario Argento finally finished his "Three Mother's Trilogy", the first being the classic "Suspiria (2-Disc Special Edition)" (1977) followed by "Inferno" (1980), with this rather nasty little horror flick. In comparison to the glorious original, it is sorely lacking. Not in the gore since there is an abundance of it here, but in its originality and overall execution. "Suspiria" is one of my favorite horror films of all times. Despite a bizarre storyline with loop holes galore, Argento was able to create a masterwork of suspense, creative camera angles, some nice cinematography with rich vivid colors despite the over-use of 70's cheesiness and a haunting score. "Mother of Tears", set several decades later, doesn't offer that kind of visual magic and although it's more visceral, the violence far more graphic, there is little to no suspense. With that said, this film entertained me immensely. Maybe it's because Asia Argento's edgy good looks is a sight to behold & she is incredibly sexy here (not to mention I love her accent) or maybe it's because it's been years since Argento gave us anything of high quality and this effort is better than most, if not all of his films released throughout the last 2 decades. Many state he lost his touch after 1987's "Opera" and I tend to agree to a certain extent although I immensely enjoyed his "Masters of Horror" entries- "Masters of Horror - Dario Argento - Jenifer" and "Masters of Horror - Pelts". This film does offer a rather clumsy, mildly intriguing storyline as did the original. "Suspiria" made up for it with its clever execution. "Mother of Tears" made up for it, at least to me, with the wickedly explicit murder sequences and its pace. Despite a lot of mumbo jumbo, the pace is swift, moving from one elaborate murder sequence to the next (the impaling of one unfortunate soul for instance is cringe-worthy & even babies are not safe from this films wrath). Also worth mentioning is the great cast, Asia Argento, Udo Keir, Dalia Nicolodi all whom offer middling to good performances but Argento's films are not noted for their actors masterwork but more for Argento's creativity and lastly, the location shots of Italy are sumptuous.
Judging by its reviews, this is a love it or hate it type of film. Especially if you are comparing it to Argento's earlier greater efforts. However as a horror film, it delivered what it promised. It may lack suspense & wit but the gore, nudity, outrageousness and scenes which many will consider "bad taste" are here in abundance and for those that like this type of morbid entertainment, it will be time well spent. Recommended.
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Good job Argeto!
Added 10/16/2009
OK it's Not Suspiria but it's a good film and fits right in with the Mother trilogy. If you like Suspiria and Inferno you will like Mother of Tears. Only bad thing about this film is that the FX are not that great.
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Even Masters Make Mistakes
Added 9/18/2009
Wow, how many writers did it take to write this mess? Why was Daria Nicolodi not involved in the writing process on this film? Not to take anything away from the great accomplishments of a filmmaking legend like Dario Argento but Nicolodi's writing presence was greatly missed in this final installment in the Three Mothers trilogy. Mother of Tears just doesn't have the impact that Suspiria and Inferno had and the only missing component is Dario Nicolodi.
The acting is on again, off again, accents are occasionally too heavy and the makeup and costume design were just a bit too wonky and dated for my tastes. On the other hand, there was some great gore, a cool monster here and there and the nudity was phenomenal. Asia Argento and Moran Atias are breathtaking women; Dario's got a great eye for beauty.
My biggest problem with Mother of Tears is that it just seemed to meander, ramble and bounce about too much. The story just wasn't conservative enough, it was as if there were too many ideas packed in and not enough restraint used to bring the concept back down to earth. It came off like a first draft; logic went right out the window, CG FX was hokey, dialogue was bad, characters were unlikable and the finale was tremendously anticlimactic. In my opinion, Claudio Simonetti's score ended up being more epic than the film itself!
Mother of Tears just didn't work for me and I more than likely will not be voluntarily watching it again. It was just all over the place and not focused enough for me. If you're an Italian horror devotee or a hardcore Argento fan, you could probably rent worse but be sure to rent before purchasing first because Suspiria or Inferno this is not.
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Mother of Turds
Added 9/17/2009
Wow, where do I start with this one? Like every other Argento fan on the planet I waited with bated breathe for this release and wow, how have the mighty fallen! In a word, i'd describe this as ludicrous. Gone are the creative camera movement innovations Dario was once known for. Acting, as usual for an Argento film,is uneven. I found Asia to be one of the bigger offenders (the films star!), as her acting was stilted at best and just dreadful & (dare I say) amateurish at its worst! Much fun to see Udo Kier in his brief appearance, his demise (like the other similiar scenes) was particularly vicious.In fact, the gore in this film made me feel like I was watching another misogynistic Fulci movie instead of Argentos latest.
So if it stunk that bad,why three stars? Like any good roadside accident,I just couldnt tear my eyes away. The combination of (unintentional) comedy,including but not limited to the laughably bad acting & the films surprisingly swift pacing kept me away from the fast forward button.The aforementioned vicious death scenes leaves me wondering more about whats wrong with this Argento guy,than interest in his next film project.You have been warned.
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Better then people are saying
Added 9/4/2009
This is a good film. Argento is a great filmnaker. If you like Suspiria and Inferno then you need to see Mother of Tears. I think it fits right in.
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