Mother's Day

Stars: Rebecca De Mornay, Jaime King, Frank Grillo, Shawn Ashmore, Patrick Flueger, Warren Kole, Matt O'Leary, Briana Evigan, Lisa Marcos

Director: Darren Lynn Bousman

A good ol' gore-n-splatter drive-in movie about a housewarming party held hostage by a family of killers. A welcome return for De Mornay, on cutting form as the Ma Barker figure who will do anything for her 'boys'. Not many people are left standing at the end, and there's even an improbable coda in which Mother gets her own back.

The story centres on Beth (King) and Daniel (Grillo), a young married couple compensating for the loss of a child by moving into a new home that has been repossessed by the bank. Unfortunately, it's Mother's former home, and her three sons, one grievously wounded, head straight for it from their latest bank robbery, unaware that it has new owners.

'You left the door unlocked,' yells Beth to her husband, as well she might, as the desperadoes enter their home. One of their guests is a doctor, which is handy for the injured, nay dying man; but schisms among the guests appear as the evening wears on, and a trigger-happy son guns one of them down, even as Mother tortures the husband for details of the money that should be in the house.

'Nobody had to get hurt. Nobody had to die,' chides Mother towards the end and, while the first is palpably untrue, the second probably isn't, as people do silly things which hasten their or their loved ones' demise.

It's a tad overlong and slips into silliness when Mothers orders one of the girls help her dying son lose his virginity, but fans of gory thrillers who have strong stomachs should enjoy it.

David Quinlan

USA 2010. UK Distributor: Optimum. Colour by deluxe.
112 minutes. Widescreen. UK certificate: 18.

Guidance ratings (out of 3): Sex/nudity 1, Violence/Horror 3, Drugs 0, Swearing 2.

Review date: 05 Jun 2011