The Mother (2023) User Reviews

J-Lo has a particular set of skills; hair and makeup.

[Top_Dawg_Critic · 6/10 · 14 May 2023]

Yet another vanity project for Lopez, this time as an action hero with fur coats, and the same hair and makeup in pretty much every scene, even if the scenes are 12 years apart. This film needed a more versatile actress, one that would lose the long hair locks and have it messed up, one that could handle - and look convincing, with some dirt and scratches on her face, one who can show some facial expressions relevant to each scene, not the constant "ya I'm tough" expressionless look and tone.

Next we have a story that took three prolific writers who've written some great films and series in the past, to come up with a monotonous, repetitive, cliched and underwhelming screenplay with bits from many better films in this genre. The poorly paced nearly two-hour runtime felt much longer with many dragged out, unnecessary and predictable scenes. You know exactly what's going to happen, and you waste time watching it happen stretched out for so long, you can just fast-forward and not miss a thing. Top that all off with a director that decided to use a blurred fish-eye lens effect in some scenes, I thought I was having migraine episodes.

Had a more convincing actress been cast, it may have made the dull filmmaking a little more bearable, but combined all together, it's not the gift any mom would want for Mother's Day. It's a pass from me, and a very generous 6/10, all for the young Lucy Paez as Zoe, who was the only one that shined in this dull action thriller.

Made no sense at all.

[virindra · 5/10 · 12 May 2023]

I watched Enough, starring JLo, with my 14 yo daughter and we liked that one a lot. Since this one is rated 16 (don't know why) I pre-watched it. It was boring.

• We have all seen it before.

• Stupid things that made no sense were piling up.

• JLo is a beautiful woman, but she is not a bad-ass like Noomy Rapace.

I don't know why people who are that rich still bother to make movies. Just go enjoy your life. Do good things for people. Skip making mediocre movies no-one asked for.

The movie was predictable, not exciting at all. When there was a bit of action with the snow scooters, it lasted not long enough. The background music wasn't solid, the story about bad people going after a teenage girl because they wanted her mother, but they managed to kill a bad-ass CIA agent in a second, did not make any sense. Seeing a woman like JLo putting back her dislocated shoulder was hilarious. And of course, at the end of the movie, out of the blue, she was the mother of the year. I am a guardian to a little girl who isn't my child. It took us a very long way for her to call me her dad.

This movie did not make any sense.

Nope. She is not an action hero

[hotmasamosir · 6/10 · 12 May 2023]

The trailer is deceiving.

It led me to think I was gonna watch something to the tune of NOBODY. Instead we get this bad-ass lady (by way of narration by a law enforcement officer as to her past accolades) who does bad ass things early in the movie and suddenly, seemingly it all finished. Then soon audiences are reminded oh wait another bad guy still has his portion to get through.

Plotholes, cliches, mentorship in badassery to her kid that doesn't pay off and just poor writing makes for this incoherent action flick.

Sure Lopez has done some (better) action flicks in the past but this won't be the one she will be remembered by.

Jessica Chastain does a better job, Jennifer Garner, heck even Michelle Rodriguez too at being an onscreen bad-ass chick.

The only badass scene here really is when she rode that HD 48.

Such a dissapointment.

Solid if somewhat cliché action

[Tweekums · 7/10 · 15 May 2023]

As this action drama opens a woman is being questioned at an FBI safe house. They want to know about a deal involving former SAS soldier Adrian Lovell and Cuban arms dealer Hector Álvarez. She insists they move to a safer location first. Soon afterwards armed men attack the house. All but one of the agents is killed and Lovell stabs the woman, who we learn is pregnant, in the gut. She and the baby girl survive but she is forced to put the child up for adoption. The surviving agent promises to tell the mother how the girl, named Zoe, is doing. Twelve years pass and the FBI learn that Álvarez is targeting Zoe. Her mother positions herself to protect her but she gets snatched anyway. What follows will lead her to Cuba and then the wilds of Alaska. She will have to face many enemies and teach her daughter how to survive against overwhelming odds.

This might not be a great film but I'd say it was far from terrible and if you enjoy the genre it is well worth a watch. There is a good amount of action. This is nicely varied in style and locations. Inevitably one has to suspend ones disbelief more than once as characters make silly mistakes to help progress the plot and our protagonist easily deals with numerous goons without any real injury before the inevitable confrontation with the antagonist. The cast is solid enough. Jennifer Lopez put in a fine performance as 'The Mother' and young Lucy Paez impressed as Zoe. Obviously there is some violence but, for the most part, it isn't particularly gory meaning it is unlikely to disturb many viewers. Overall a solid action film; not a must watch but worth watching if you enjoy the genre and have a couple of hours to kill; just don't expect anything you haven't seen before.

Is Netflix even trying anymore ?

[tresm87 · 4/10 · 12 May 2023]

It seems like every six months we get a regurgitated Netflix "original " film with a seasoned empowered female actress fighting off perpetrators. It's everything you've seen before. Can't imagine even the demographic it's aimed at will find anything new to enjoy about this. Netflix continues to dumb down its "original" content . At least conceive some kind of a ambitious script or do something. They literally think they can just put an actress In a C level John Wick rip off script and it will work out every time. At this point I don't think JLo star power is enough to overcome this blatant cliché offering.

Cliché riddled

[exceladeogun · 6/10 · 5 June 2023]

The Mother

This is a movie we've all seen before. Clichéd and formulaic, The Mother rides lazily on action movies before it, without offering anything tangible or new to the genre, and it's such a shame that three prolific writers were involved in making the plot.

Jennifer Lopez's acting is good, but with the material she had to work with, it's a dud. Lucy Paez as Lopez's daughter is a revelatory performance, and this should be a career launcher; her facial mannerisms also remind me of Sydney Sweeney.

The Mother has nothing new to offer, but even with the cliches it's still a watchable flick.

5-6/10.

B grade film

[TrentSammedia · 4/10 · 12 May 2023]

I Wouldn't have been surprised if Steven Segal just showed up and did a sit down flight scene with J-Lo.

It didnt take me long to realise the kind of film I was watching, and truthfully I only made it past the first act. Some scenes were straight up rip offs of other Hollywood films that did the same sequences much better. J-Lo got very annoying very quickly with her "Im a badass boss" attitude that didnt waiver long enough for me to get to know any other traits of her character. One straight face monotonous performance that got very cold very fast.

Netflix is smart, because they dont care about reviews, they know for a fact people are going to click on this film because its a click away, they know they will prolly make some money from this barely passable film.

This movie really wasn't that bad

[shanlaughlin-97275 · 6/10 · 14 May 2023]

I'm surprised that so many people dislike this movie so much. It wasn't AMAZING but it was fairly entertaining throughout with some beautiful scenery and lots of action.

The acting wasn't bad and we had no problem following or getting into the storyline. Some parts were a little "yeah as if", but that can be said of almost any action movie.

Considering how many terrible movies are on streaming services right now I dont think this movie deserves the level of low ratings it is recieving.... It wasn't my favorite, but I genuinely wanted to see how it ended (instead of turning it off 15 mins in like so many other movies).

Haters gonna hate

[mgitts1977 · 8/10 · 13 May 2023]

This really wasn't a bad movie at all. It was full of action, they were even a couple parts that brought me to tears. I found it to be very entertaining, and I took it for what it was. No comparisons.

Honestly, there are very few movies like this so that is why I found it enjoyable.

Some of these people criticizing need to give credit where credit is due!

Please don't get me wrong, I rated it an 8, because of course it was a little predictable; which was to be expected by the title and the synopsis. The acting wasn't terrible, and her character was believable.

I am not a Jennifer Lopez superfan or anything, but it really wasn't that bad.

Shockingly solid and entertaining

[paul-allaer · 7/10 · 13 May 2023]

As "The Mother" (2023 release; 117 min.) opens, J-Lo's character, later known as "The Mother" is highly pregnant and being interviewed in an FBI safehouse in Indiana, but things go wrong quicky, and she barely makes it out alive. She delivers a baby girl but for safety reasons, the girl is placed in the care of an adoptive family. At this point we are 10 minutes into the movie.

Couple of comments: this is an almost all=female production, directed by Niki Caro ("Mulan"), written by Misha Green ("Lovecraft Country", and produced by and starring Jennifer Lopez. J-Lo returns to her "bad-ass" persona, playing a one-woman army who will stop at nothing to protect her daughter. The movie is plot-heavy so the less said about that, the better. I will say this: I was genuinely shocked how solid and entertaining this movie turned out to be. The first hour is almost perfect, with perfect pacing, lots of well-staged action scenes, and an overall gritty and determined atmosphere. The movie's second hour is not quite as solid, but certainly not bad either. Joseph Fiennes is a decent "baddie". Bottom line: I was more than pleasantly surprised by this movie. Perhaps I started watching this with low expectations, but who cares.

"The Mother" has been pushed in the weeks leading up to its release. It started streaming on Netflix this weekend. If you are in the mood for a solid action-packed and gritty movie, I'd readily suggest you check this out, and draw your own conclusion.

It took 3 writers to come up with all these clichés?

[Jblum5 · 3/10 · 12 May 2023]

The mother tells the story of a hardened ex war veteran on the run from a dangerous past lover, only to be forced out of action to protect the daughter she was asked to abandon.

The big issue with this movie is it feels like it is straight of out 1993 without any 90s charm. It is filled with cheesy "poetic" one liners, uninteresting and indestructible characters, and a lame uninspired ending. The bruises shown don't match the violence we see.

The pacing is fine and the actors do what they can with what they are given. Jennifer Lopez is honestly acting her butt off in my opinion-the movie is just terrible and I only fault her for doing this movie in the first place. There are some really good action scenes, but also some that made me audibly laugh out loud. It wants to be grounded in reality sometimes but then takes us completely out of it at others. The lack of consistency is just one of many issues.

The crazy thing to me is I am just not sure how it took three writers to come up with this movie. It is uninspired, unoriginal and a another failure from Netflix.

Probably the 25 000th NIKITA rip-off

[searchanddestroy-1 · 29 May 2023]

I don't know why but, since a decade now, and more than fifteen years after Luc Besson's NIKITA, back in 1990, no one can deny that there legions, batches of action flicks showing female fighters, fist, gun fighters. Women playing men's roles. Of course this kind of scheme was common in the American Indie industry during the seventies, remember the Grindhouse movies, destined for drive in audiences, Grindhouse or psychotronic, exploitation features taking advantage to the women's liberation movements that spread all over the country and even beyond.... Hollywood could not affaord to approve, so the independant movies did it instead. And also women's prison movies. It stopped during the eighties, for one decade, then it came back for a short while before appearing again since the 2010s and especially since the Harvey Weinstein affair and the feminist fashion that rapidly followed,spreading all over the world. Only now, the quality is a bit better, with once in a while a prestigious cast; here Jenny Lopez or a couple of years ago Jessica Chastain - AVA.... This movie is surprise less but efficient, a excellent time waster despite an expected ending.

The female John Wick

[volsdic · 7/10 · 12 May 2023]

I enjoyed this film. I don't know why I see so many negative reviews. J. Lo played that character as a bad ass mom protecting her daughter no matter what. Love her attitude teaching Zoe how to fight. Too bad William Cruise played by Omari Hardwick got killed and didn't survived in this movie. Decent action but the plot was a little confusing. Maybe the cinematography cause this movie a poor rating but I give this a fair rating. Should of been 20 minutes longer and be more specific about the mother's occupation and her experience in the military. This is worth the watch on Mother's Day weekend.

Familiar story, but not badly cliche'ed

[silverton-37959 · 7/10 · 13 May 2023]

The basic storyline is a little bit out there, but not totally incredible, as some reviewers accuse it of being. I don't agree with those who say J-Lo can't act, and this role may have been what she needed to show her abilities. She just isn't portraying an unbelievable badass as some of the younger stars routinely do these days, so viewers looking for that will be disappointed.

The villains are a little cartoonish and the portrayals of their activities aren't credible, I agree, but J-Lo's role isn't too bad. The connections between her and an FBI agent who somehow stayed in touch with the Zoe character are thin and not the best way to reduce the casting demands, but this is a movie-length feature, not a series. The extended connections between characters that could be developed in a limited series had to be truncated to fit the budget. So it goes.

All of the needlessly vicious ratings came from reviewers who can't spell or express their views coherently. This isn't a terrible movie, and it isn't a great movie, but it's not bad enough that I would try to discourage anyone from giving it a try. Reviewers who do that mystify me.

Sigh...

[killercola · 1/10 · 12 May 2023]

They should've called the movie Mother F'er because why is Netflix so bad at everything now? I will admit I didn't finish it, I lasted an hour hoping it would at least get a little better so I could finish it but I just couldn't take anymore. Yes, it was that bad. Terrible writing and even worse acting. Netflix is content insulting subscribers with cheap, rushed and pointless originals that you would expect to see on the Lifetime Movie Network or Lifetime Channel with one difference: As bad as LMN is, the movies they do show is at least watchable til the end. Netflix? Not so much. Netflix just doesn't care anymore. They hit a subscriber ceiling and are content putting out generic products by the hundreds to make you think you're getting your money's worth. Ugh...I think I'm done with Netflix altogether. Don't waste your time with this movie. You'll never get that wasted time back.

Not great, not bad, decent for what it was

[nona-sui · 6/10 · 27 May 2023]

Basically 'Salt' but no where as good, storyline has been done hundreds of times. There's more than one bad guy though so that's a little something newer. And thankfully no unnecessary romance. I liked the way it was revealed that she was the little girl's mom and I don't think Jlo's character was ever given a name besides Mother. The acting was decent. It's a Jlo film so you don't watch this thinking it'll be nominated for an Oscar. You watch this because you're super bored and don't want to watch anything too heavy or another Rom-Com, and something with a little action; essentially a movie everyone with different tastes could probably agree to watch. I'm not mad that I watched it but will never watch again.

Yawn

[PrinceCharmingHere · 4/10 · 16 May 2023]

There really isn't anything unique or creative about this movie to make it stand out from the hundreds of other FBI action movies. It's quite dreary and the script is boring. The story is uninspired and horribly shot. It's like something an AI would spit out, actually, I'm sure it was. Jennifer's character lacks intrigue, as do all the characters. Oh, and her child is named Zoey, it's Greek for life... yawn. The longer you watch this movie, the worse it gets. This movie gets 4 stars for Jennifer's complexion because she has very hydrated looking skin. I'm sure this will sweep the Razzie Awards.

Requires stupidity to make the plot work

[imdb-37265 · 6/10 · 18 May 2023]

The movie is about the Mothers daughter being Kidnapped.

A friend from 12 years ago calls her in because her daughters picture was found with badguys and they know they're after her.

Instead of grabbing her daughter and getting it out of danger they.. just don't do that and instead wait till the danger actually rrives.

She is in a parkhouse with a rilfe looking right at the boss bad guy that is coordinating everything. She could just shoot him and end it right there.

What she does instead is wait, then shoot at all his underlings, then be too slow and fail to shoot the boss guy who grabs her daughter and gets away with her.

How about taking out the most dangerous (and easiest to get) target first like any reasonable person.

Then they get the daughter back, even though the guy who ordered the kidnapping is still out there, and still wants the thing he wanted all along, they think they are safe now.

And oh surprise, she gets caught by bad guy again.

She is in a perfect position to shoot the boss badguy and the badguy next to him and end it in just two bullets but.. doesn't...? Which then causes her friend to be killed and her to just escape narrowly.

There is a section where she trains her daughter which is nice, but... its just so typical.

Military parent trains child/grandchild in times of danger is almost too common/cliche of a concept.

Then after being hunted, having loved ones killed and having to disappear into the snowy woods to hide away, somehow the girl didn't know she shouldn't give her real name to a doctor who put it into a computer... And oh what a surprise next day a full platoon of badguys arrive.

She wants to keep her daughter safe and gives her to her father(?).

But of course daughter prefers to just be stupid, steals car and runs away from there and drops right into the danger she was supposed to be kept safe from.

Then we get a bit more nonsense.

See a badguy adjusting the zeroing on his holosight on his MP5 (that's nonsense, that sight is only for short ranges, and he's on a snow mobile and will not use it while shooting anyway").

Something explodes, badguy takes his binocular, and instantly finds a white painted mine lying in the slow over a kilometer away..

Bad guy tties the steering bars of a snowmobile with rope and sents it towards her house. The steeringbar doesn't even hold straight, but over a kilometer distance it still EXACTLY hits the house and it explodes in a big fireball.

For one thats ridiculous, second, Why send all your guys through a forest full of mines and traps to get to that house, if you could just take that straight route that is obviously clear of obstacles.

10 seconds after the big explosion, his underlings are suddenly standing right next to the house, why blow it up if you're already there?

All these bad guys are obviously not any kind of problem for The Mother, she handily picks them all off.

But oh what surprise, some stupid girl in a truck comes down the road, fails to control the truck and drives into a ditch and gets stuck without any ability to defend herself.

Badguys behind her on a snow mobile chase. "Oh she's shooting at us, should we maybe not drive right behind her with no cover? Naehhhh" first one gets picked off, second, ... Brains not present apparently.

Then she flees onto a tree.. A tree.. surrounded by badguys... What did she expect would happen? I don't know, maybe she just wanted to help out the bad writing not being able to come up with any non-stupid way to continue.

(My random idea, have bad guy shoot and hit her snow mobile so it can't continue driving. That would atleast have made sense.)

In her last ditch effort, she shots at badguy in car (from left side) who's driving away with her daughter.

She's shoothing with a 7.62mm SCAR.. That bullet will go straight through his head if she hits, and right behind his head is... her daugther. That's a truly great idea.

It would be so simple, but if obvious bad/nonsense decisions are needed to make the core plot work, it just kills the mood.

With good decision this movie would have ended after 20 minutes, with repeatedy bad ones it takes the 2 hours that it does.

It is watchable if you want to ignore logic, but its annoying.

If you're looking for something to help you with boredom, watch it.

If you're looking for something entertaining/good, watch something else.

WHY, J-Lo, WHY?

[Her-Excellency · 3/10 · 13 May 2023]

Take that in every way that it is meant:

1. WHY, J-Lo; WHY do you keep making movies?

2. Why, oh why J-Lo, out of all available actresses?

3. Why J-Lo as a viewing choice?

Do you know of anyone, ever, who you can recall saying: "Hey, let's go catch the new J-Lo flick that just came out". I don't.

There was a television show I caught once with J-Lo starring, and it was not bad. It wasn't very memorable either, however, since I don't remember what it was called. A FILM star, no matter how many films she is in, she will never be. (Of course, just watch her win some acting award in twenty years and prove me wrong). :)

The best description for this latest cliched borefest, The Mother, would best be: FORCED. Forced plot; forced acting; forced self-funded(?) vanity project to stay relevant? Not sure about the last one, but my head can't wrap around how it is that she is still cast in films.

Lastly, I know it sounds as if I am placing the entire blame for this film not being particularly watch-worthy on J-Lo's shoulders, and that is not what I intended. The film drops the ball in almost every area.

Sorry :(, but this one is a suggested 'skip'.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Oh, and lastly, those who are downvoting those of us who are properly rating this a 4-or-below, REALLY need to go watch the TV SHOW "Silo" so as to let Rebecca Ferguson treat them to a Master Class in what ACTING should be.

That's an unexpectedly enjoyable movie

[funnycommentor · 8/10 · 12 November 2023]

First of all, when I first watched the official teaser of the movie I really liked it, even though I didn't really had high expectations about it. Because, most Netflix action movies are average. The plot of the movie was very interesting and mysterious, but not really innovative because it was similar to "Kidnap" (2017). The storyline was very well written and well-explained, even though it was kinda simple and easy to understand. The characters were very interesting, well-developed and really likeable (except, the bad guys). The filming locations of the movie were really good, both Cuba and Alaska. The casting was nice and their acting was really good, especially Jennifer's acting. Gladly, it was a very intense movie, action-filled and there were too many epic fight scenes between "The Mother" and the bad guys. Also, the killcount of the movie was really bloody, even though most kills were done by guns. The opening scene was definitely unpredictable, very intense and really promising. The 2nd act was action-filled, fast-paced and definitely enjoyable. The ending scene was kinda predictable, however it was emotionally intense and I really liked the 3rd act. Moreover, the cinematography and the editing of the movie were both very well done. Overall, "The Mother" is an underrated action movie, full of shocking scenes and I would definitely recommend it to my friends. Last but not least, that movie definitely deserves a sequel!

Passable Revenge Thriller.

[azizsalhi-56473 · 6/10 · 12 May 2023]

The Mother is an action film with hard edges and an emotional payoff. Jennifer Lopez plays a tough chick that is formidable, She is back in her element as the Tough Chick. It is a Netflix action thriller with a slightly silly plot. The movie uses existing clichés to entertain, but does so well enough to satisfy the minimum quality of entertaining for a while. Lopez and her stunt doubles attempt to bring some intensity to the physical activity, despite miscasting and storytelling choices. Niki Caro's direction and Jennifer Lopez's star quality maintain the film's commitment to being a mother-daughter story, despite the formulaic beats of an assassin revenge thriller.

Commando in 2023

[JSG25 · 14 May 2023]

This film is essentially a 2023 remake of Arnold Schwarzenegger's Commando movie with a women protagonist, and instead of tropical island scenes it takes place in Alaska. It has the same cheesy and over the top cliches, but without the self-awareness that it's such. Jennifer Lopez is good enough in the role of an action hero type, but the story, script, and filmography are disjointed and convoluted. The major problem is it has the absurdly unrealistic aspects of a shoot-em-up movie (laughably impossible feats, innumerable henchmen taken out with ease, and a scar-faced antagonist) while trying to be a serious action/drama film. It would have been better if they had chosen one or the other.

Simple and entertaining formula...

[indiana1981 · 7/10 · 17 December 2023]

Watched this movie after reading "The Mother" was the most watched movie on Netflix in 2023.

Firstly, I'd like to say the misogyny in these reviews is pathetic. I read one which stated something like, "Nikita redone for the 100th time"!? I'm surprised to read that, because there are thousands of action movies out there, with the same basic formula, led by the same cliche male action hero, but god forbid a woman playing with guns!

I will agree with some of the reviews, the formula of this movie was nothing new and basic. But the execution of the movie was decent. Jennifer Lopez is 54 years old and she did a great job, playing a retired army veteran! She also did a good job chasing, killing bad guys and loading up her gun well!!

The fight scenes were not John Wick level. Perhaps some people were expecting some fancy art house fight scenes. But it's pretty standard. But tbh, this didn't disappoint me. The movie is more about her trying to protect, DEFEND and keep her daughter safe. Not to go on a bloody rampage.

In summary, this is an enjoyable movie to watch. It is easy to follow, not heavy, not gruesome, has good acting and it's fun to watch Jennifer at 54 years kicking ass. She should continue doing these kinds of movies, as she did a good job. I highly recommend.

Don't watch this, if you're a 50 year old man or a jurassic boomer, still horny for a "First Blood" type movie.

One of the comments I saw mentioned in some of the reviews, more than once was, "look at her make up, it's so unrealistic she'd never wear make up in the snowy woods!". WTF. It's movie, get real! I wish I saw more scrutiny of male action heroes and how unrealistic most of their scenes are in reality.

Good popcorn action movie

[Clementine44 · 7/10 · 15 May 2023]

This is not the best movie ever made, but it's definitely worth a watch. It's an action movie for sure, but for some reason the writers felt the need to add a child to the mix. I don't see why the bad guys couldn't come after the good guy without there being a child to protect. That is unless you can't envision a woman being a badass on her own account, then of course she must be maternal.

Jennifer Lopez does a better job than I thought she would, and definitely plays a tough guy very well. I hope she plays this kind of role again, but maybe without having to be maternal next time. Just being a regular assassin is enough for Jason Bourne, it should be enough for Lopez. But aside from that, sure, it's a decent watch. Not awesome, but not horrible. Just a regular action movie. For those of us that like action movies, it's worth a bag of popcorn.

this movie is insulting

[tohmsono · 2/10 · 12 May 2023]

Such horrible acting, J Lo especially, has not been seen in a while on tv screens. Also, whoever directed this amateur flick needs to give me my money back for time wasted. I wanted to give up on this amateur-job after 15 minutes, but I lasted about 50 all-together. When JLo pulled her daughter with one hand onto a speeding bike on a wet road, which is not possible without loosing balance and trashing yourself on the ground, i yelped in agony and despair. Such cheap action flicks full of "glitches" and general disconnect from real life situations, should be banned from production as they do nothing else but insult the audience and alienate the actors. Avoid at all cost.