Mom (Hindi; 2017)
Legend has it that a swan gives a melodious song before its demise. Even though this fact has been disproved scientifically, somehow the romantic imagery of a female swan, a pen, rendering her last vocalisation before her final breath sounds poetic enough.
Sridevi, in her swansong, gives a sterling performance here in the role of a scorned mother. She yearns for the approval of her late teenage stepdaughter to accept her as 'Mom' whilst struggling to find justice to punish her daughter's rapists.
Even though the storyline is riddled with holes and is relatively predictable, it is compensated by the excellent acting shown by Sridevi. There are many non-verbal cues that are pivotal in any good filmmaking; here it is in abundance. The director manages to keep the audience glued to the edge of their seats with suspense.
Another character, DK (Nawazuddin Siddiqui), who assumes the role of a private eye, is an interesting one. Appearing weird in his 'soda glass' oversized spectacles, prominent frontal balding and a thick occipital lock of scalp hair, he gave the persona of a shady character. It turns out that he himself carries a heavy burden and genuinely wanted to help.
Is it not funny? Over the years, I have viewed many of Sridevi's movies. In most of them, save some of the Tamil ones, I thought of her as a glamour actor who cashed in on her youth, external attraction and dancing prowess to bowl audience over. Only after her demise, in this film, do I see her in an entirely different light. Her depiction of a grieving mother is so surreal. I have seen enough in my lifetime to appreciate one.
Legend has it that a swan gives a melodious song before its demise. Even though this fact has been disproved scientifically, somehow the romantic imagery of a female swan, a pen, rendering her last vocalisation before her final breath sounds poetic enough.
Sridevi, in her swansong, gives a sterling performance here in the role of a scorned mother. She yearns for the approval of her late teenage stepdaughter to accept her as 'Mom' whilst struggling to find justice to punish her daughter's rapists.
Even though the storyline is riddled with holes and is relatively predictable, it is compensated by the excellent acting shown by Sridevi. There are many non-verbal cues that are pivotal in any good filmmaking; here it is in abundance. The director manages to keep the audience glued to the edge of their seats with suspense.
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| DK, the interesting private investigator who provides some light comic relief. |
Another character, DK (Nawazuddin Siddiqui), who assumes the role of a private eye, is an interesting one. Appearing weird in his 'soda glass' oversized spectacles, prominent frontal balding and a thick occipital lock of scalp hair, he gave the persona of a shady character. It turns out that he himself carries a heavy burden and genuinely wanted to help.
Is it not funny? Over the years, I have viewed many of Sridevi's movies. In most of them, save some of the Tamil ones, I thought of her as a glamour actor who cashed in on her youth, external attraction and dancing prowess to bowl audience over. Only after her demise, in this film, do I see her in an entirely different light. Her depiction of a grieving mother is so surreal. I have seen enough in my lifetime to appreciate one.
