Mother of George (2013) Reviews

• Well crafted, highly personal story told with superb acting

  rkw11152013-09-29

  Adenike and Ayodele, a Nigerian couple living in Brooklyn, are having trouble conceiving a child - a problem that defies cultural expectations and leads Adenike to make a shocking decision that could either save or destroy her family. I saw this movie last night and it still resonates powerfully with me a day later. The story of a Nigerian immigrant newlywed couple and their travails in getting pregnant, there are five things that set that distinguish this film and make it so worth watching: - The lead performances are exceptional. The Cesar winning actor Issach De Bankolé is always good and his wife, played by American-Zimbabwean Danai Gurira, is pitch perfect as a tradition-bound young woman struggling to balance custom and familial obligation with a new country/culture and her own budding ambitions. Definitely worth seeing.

• Profoundly sad...

  MartinHafer2014-02-05

  "Mother of George" is a film with a strong and interesting cross-cultural message. It's also a film that would probably be seen as a feminist movie--though it is something that can be enjoyed, or at least appreciated, by all. The film begins with a wedding--and what a beautiful wedding it is. The guests are all Nigerian Americans and they are dressed in their finest and most color clothing. During the course of the wedding (which takes up a significant part of the film), the new wife, Nike (Danai Gurira) is told again and again how important it is that she have a baby boy as soon as possible. Culturally, there is a HUGE amount of pressure on her--and it's pretty obvious at this point that Nike will have difficulty conceiving. This is made so much worse by her mother-in-law--a very traditional African mother who insists that Nike either become pregnant or her son find another wife! While Ayo (Isaach De Bankolé) is not about to get another wife, he also is bound by masculine expectations and he forbids his wife to get infertility testing and he adamantly refuses to have himself tested. What is poor Nike to do? Well, when she listens to her mother-in-law's plan, it throws her for a loop. This film has a lot to say. Yet, interestingly, it DIDN'T have a lot of dialog and managed to say a lot without words. Its theme of women as baby machines and their devaluation by societies is hard-hitting and sad. Equally sad is its way that men are trapped by their machismo. There's a lot to this film--and one that, in some ways, cuts across all cultures. Well worth seeing.

• Superb Acting, Lingering Movie

  territerri2013-10-01

  I rarely want to write reviews about films, but after having seen 'Mother of George' yesterday, I feel compelled to do so. The acting in this movie was superb. I spent years with Nigerian folks, and the way the characters made certain sounds, hard to describe, but Uh- Uh, the way Nigerians do, or sucking in at the teeth, another sound, perhaps unknowingly, I've hear Nigerians, especially Yoruba, make over and over. The accents were also very well done. The film is heavy with close-ups, which are appropriate to convey the emotion of the characters....the burden of the newlywed wife, the claustrophobic working conditions of the husband and his brother, and the stern nature of the husband's mother. This is not a 'Hollywood' movie. The pace may seem slow to many. However, if you want to see an excellently acted film with wonderful cinematography, I highly recommend this movie.

• Leading the charge of New Black Cinema with gorgeous aesthetics

  outdoorcats2013-11-10

  Ayodele and Adonike (Isaach de Bankole and Danai Gurira) are a happy newlywed Nigerian couple living in Brooklyn. However, fractures start to appear in their marriage when Ayodele's overbearing mother grows restless waiting for them to conceive (something they've been unsuccessfully trying to do) and starts to insist that the marriage be dissolved and Ayodele take another wife. This simple but powerful drama is driven by strong sensory impressions happening around the story rather than the story itself. With its rich and vibrant color scheme, Mother of George is one of the most beautifully-shot films I've ever seen. In aesthetic beauty, full use of every inch of a widescreen frame, color, and texture, this film's cinematography is rivaled by a couple of Wong Kar-Wai's films shot by Christopher Doyle...perhaps. The music is no less effective, a blend of traditional Nigerian music, avant-garde score, and symphonic classical music. Everything about the way this film was made in terms of aesthetics and blocking is essentially perfect. So perhaps it's a little disappointing that the script and story, while a good enough one about the tragedy of traditions, could have gone a little further? It could have matched the richness of the film's compositions, the complexity of the fabrics of the gorgeous clothing the characters wear. As it is, it's a fairly simple traditional morality fable. With only five speaking roles given any importance, it has the feel of a baroque chamber drama.

• Slow Drama

  billcr122014-05-24

  Mother of George begins with a traditional African wedding ceremony which takes place in New York City. The bride and groom are toasted with wishes for a baby boy in the near future which will be named George, in accordance with the groom's mother's wishes. After a prolonged period, the hopeful mother to be does not conceive and she attempts various methods to become pregnant. After more time passes, she visits a fertility specialist, but her husband refuses to be checked out by American doctors. Her mother in law tells her that she should allow her husband a mistress in order to have a child. This idea does not go well, nor the next one of having his brother try to father a baby with her. The movie moves slowly, and while the acting is solid throughout, and the clothing beautiful, I was bored by the time it finished.