Mother’s Instinct (2024)

A tragic accident shatters the perfect existence of 50s housewives Alice and Celine (a committed Jessica Chastain & Anne Hathaway), mothers of sons the same age, giving way to paranoia, suspicion, guilt… and worse. 

While it’s always entertaining to see a pair of pros like these demonstrate that they have more to offer than that thousand-watt smile, on the whole this timid psychodrama from newcomer Benoit Delhomme is kind of a slog. Dare I suggest it would have worked better as a farce? At any rate, it should have been a lot more fun.

The imagery and production design are flawless. But nothing else rings true. The plot is laughable, the motivations questionable and the campy, melodramatic finale simply absurd. Not good, but not bad, either. Mainly for fans of these two fine actors. (94 min)