Mothers’ Days is just around the corner and that means that it is time for another horror movie list, but this time it’s “(kill her) Mommy” themed. They say nothing is quite like a mother’s love and we certainly all feel safe in the arms of our beloved mothers. So, it only makes sense that a genre all about making us spoil our pants would pit its horrors against the family’s greatest defender. This list is all about those moms whose love is strong enough to propel through even the most harrowing of situations. Your mom may not have to protect you from the savagery of a shrouded killer, but she totally would. So, this Mothers’ Day, remember to thank your Mama for all the terrors she helped you through, and if you have the time, plant her some flowers (#savethebees) and invite her to a movie marathon celebrating all our favorite fictional horror moms.
Rosemary’s Baby (1968)
Poor Rosemary from Roman Polanski’s artful horror drama, Rosemary’s Baby finds herself having to fight the forces of evil for her child before the kid is even born. In every expectant mother’s nightmare come true, Mia Farrow plays the waifish, young Rosemary Woodhouse, whose husband Guy decides to sell her womb for a successful career and a fancy New York apartment—all without her consent (of course the devil has no respect for a woman’s right over her own body). Rosemary’s Baby is an award-winning masterpiece everyone should watch at least once in their lifetime. It shows a mother in her most vulnerable state, struggling against nosy neighbors and a controlling husband to do what is best for herself and her developing child. Rosemary’s future may be the stuff of The Omen, but this mom is trying her best in an impossible situation and for the sake of the world I certainly hope she’s up for raising the anti-christ, a situation I’m sure many a mother can relate to—metaphorically, I hope.
Friday the 13th (1980)
If you haven’t yet figured out the twist ending of this 39-year-old slasher classic, then you’ve really no excuse for complaining about spoilers. Directed by Sean S. Cunningham and written by Victor Miller, Friday the 13th is graphic camp-side horror at it’s absolute best. When a group of young camp counselors (including a puppy-eyed Kevin Bacon) joins up to re-open the abandoned Camp Crystal Lake, they find themselves stalked and violently murdered by a mysterious stranger. Apart from glorious gore effects, Friday the 13th also presents us with one of horror fandom’s most beloved mothers: Pamela Vorhees. Mrs. Vorhees is next level when it comes to the ‘lioness protecting her lion cub’ trope. Betsey Palmer perfectly embodies the kind wholesome chunky-sweater aesthetic we’ve come to associate with Mommy, but pairs it with a mad, cold-blooded vengeance only the devasting loss of a child could inspire. So remember kids, Mommy will always love and always protect you; and if the summer camp bullies somehow get the best of you, she’ll make sure that no one ever has fun at camp again.
The Others (2001)
Alejandro Amenábar’s award-winning gothic drama is a post World War II ghost story set on the Channel Islands. The stylized film stars Nicole Kidman, who gives an excellent performance as Grace Stewart, the struggling mother of two children with photosensitivity who becomes increasingly convinced that there is a supernatural presence in their home. As if two children who are allergic to light and a family of ghosts deciding to move in with you weren’t enough, Grace is also grieving over a husband who never returned from the war. Isolation leads to dysfunction and even the best efforts seem to leave Grace powerless against the threats to her family. Grace’s story shows that wanting to be a good mom and actually being a good mom aren’t always the easiest impulses to balance. We all have our ghosts, and sometimes they get the best of us. So, take a moment to acknowledge Mum’s personal haunting and all the times she helped you with your own phantoms.
The Orphanage / El Orfanato (2007)
The Spanish horror film, El Orfanato, has received an immense amount of critical praise since its debut twelve years ago. Written by Sergio G. Sánchez and directed by J. A. Bayona, the film follows the orphan Laura (played by the incomparable Belén Rueda) who as an adult decides to buy the orphanage she grew up in. Along with her husband and their adopted child, Laura’s plan is to reopen the orphanage as a home for disabled children. Part ghost story and part domestic tragedy, the film uses the disappearance of Laura’s child to reveal the devastating dread that haunts the estate. In this film, motherhood is like Mrs. Vorhees meeting Wendy and the Lost Boys in a gloomy gothic house. In no way are the mothers of The Orphanage perfect, but they’re doing their best and trying to make up for their own and each other’s mistakes. It’s a beautifully shot and ghostly reminder of the lengths a mother will go to when her child gets lost. So, think back to all those times you wandered off and gave your mom a shock, and have a bit of compassion for the moments when she felt like she might become El Orfanato‘s Laura.
The Babadook (2014)
Jennifer Kent’s Australian film, The Babadook is a woman’s take not only on the horror genre but on the intricacies of motherhood. The film presents the mother’s love we take for granted but takes away its self-evidence. Essie Davis portrays Amelia Vanek, an overworked and over exhausted widow who never got the chance to work through the trauma of losing her husband on the same day their child was born. Six years later, the turbulent and temperamental behavior of her son Samuel has driven Amelia further into isolation and deep into the brink of madness. Haunted by a pop-up storybook’s sinister protagonist, Mister Babadook, Samuel and Amelia are forced to face their complicated feelings towards each other head-on in a shocking showdown with the Babadok. Love struggles against resentment as the Babadook threatens to tear this family apart in this masterful, modern psychological horror film. The Babadook reminds us that love is a labor, so remember to be thankful for the mother who loved you even when you drove her half crazy, screaming your head off in the back of her car.
Mother! (2017)
Darren Aronofsky is known for smart, psychological, artistic movies, and mother! certainly keeps to the theme. The film has an all-star cast including Jennifer Lawrence, Javier Bardem, Ed Harris, and Michelle Pfeiffer. Although it leans hard on metaphor, allusion, psychology, and cinematography, there certainly is an element of horror (and even a bit of gore) to it. J-Law plays Mother, the wife,
I hope you enjoyed this list of scary movies made for Mom. The truth is that sometimes we kids are a real horror for our poor loving mothers, but for some reason, they keep on trying to keep us safe and raise us right. So, to all the moms out there just trying to get themselves and their families past their own personal nightmares, you’re all a bunch of Ripleys in my eyes. To all the kids complaining about having to take Mom out for brunch, I hope these movies will remind you of just how much Mom does for you and just how hard it really is sometimes.
Of Joy That Kills wishes you all of the Joy and none of the Kills this Mother’s day. I hope you’ll take some time between celebrating Mamas to let me know all about your personal favorite mother in horror. I’d love to know who I missed.
