By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3.75 cats
Director: Lukas Moodysson
Starring: Gael García Bernal | Jan David G. Nicdao | Marife Necesito | Michelle Williams | Sophie Nyweide | Thomas McCarthy
Country: denmark, germany, sweden
Year: 2009
Running time: 125
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1038043/
Michael says: “As in JELLYFISH, my favorite film from last year, MAMMOTH finds as one of its core conflicts, a mother traveling half-way around the world to take care of other people’s children in order to make money to support her own family. In MAMMOTH, Leo (Gael Garcia Bernal) and Ellen (Michelle Williams) are a successful New York couple; Leo has struck gold with a social networking website and now travels around the world just to sign contracts, and Ellen is an ER surgeon saving the lives of people caught up in the cruelty of the world, while their precocious, 7-year-old daughter Jackie (Sophie Nywiede) is cared for by Gloria (Marife Mecesita), a Filipina nanny who has left her own sons back home to make money to support them. At the beginning of the film, Leo flies to Bangkok on business leaving Ellen to face some particularly emotionally-harrowing cases even as she bemoans having so little time to spend with her daughter who grows increasingly attached to Gloria. Gloria’s older son Salvador begs his mother to come home, and she pleads with her mother that perhaps she should return. Her mother in turn gives Salvadore a harsh lesson in poverty, explaining that his mother is in New York making good money so that he doesn’t have to pick through trash at the dump and can afford to see a doctor if he gets sick.
“I’m always a little uncomfortable watching films about globalization, and how the world is growing smaller even as the distances between people grow wider. It’s slightly reminiscent of BABEL (which also featured Gael Gracia Bernal), but in the writing and directorial hands of Lukas Moodysson, manages to avoid so many of the pitfalls that film could not. It still feels slightly preachy, but as in LILJA 4-EVER, Moodysson is skilled enough to earn the right to preach a bit. The story unfolds slowly, and the performances are strong, particularly Williams, who senses that things aren’t quite right in the world but can only continue doing what she feels is right for her family. There’s also the exotic element of Claire Denis’ THE INTRUDER, which has me rethinking that film and what it might be saying in perhaps an even more subtle way, about globalization and poverty. Of course, just when you think it’s all tied up neatly at the end, Moodysson punctuates his final scene with a terrific parting line. He may be a little heavy with his messages, but he’s got a wicked sense of humor. 4 cats”
Thom says: “I had just seen a Moodysson film a week ago A HOLE IN MY HEART that I was less than thrilled with but with the inclusion of must-see Bernal in this I was very excited about the film. For the most part my excitement was rewarded and I was well on the way through the early part of the film in imagining a brilliant rating. Unfortunately it started to plague me that I’d seen much of the dramatics in MAMMOTH in too many other films. As Michael Colford said there was the similarity to BABEL (Alejandro González Iñárritu, 2006) but that was just the tip of the iceberg. At times the film reminded me of SALAAM BOMBAY! (Mira Nair, 1988), THE BEACH (Danny Boyle, 2000), ‘Grey’s Anatomy, THE CENTER OF THE WORLD (Wayne Wang, 2001), & LA MOUSTACHE (Emmanuel Carrère, 2005). So finally, the pilfered baggage brought the total effect down. Be that as it may, the film is about a young couple with a young daughter who is essentially being raised by a Filipino nursemaid. The wife is a busy surgical doctor & the husband is a dot.com mastermind with no business sense. He goes off to Thailand to sign a lucrative contract but loses himself along the way and disappears in the environs of a Thai island (although that damn cell-phone works everywhere). Along the way the film is decidedly preachy and the ending is really not satisfying. While I like Michelle Williams I kept being bothered by her in the film by thinking of her failed coupling with incomparably gorgeous Heath Ledger and now hooking up in this film with adorable Bernal. OK, that’s just me being silly, but it did detract from my watching the movie. Still, I’m happy I saw this. 3.5 cats”