What’s up everybody. Back so soon? Of course! Although I’m still getting my review for Ilsa: Harem Keeper of the Oil Sheiks ready for dispersal, our good friend Jon Jung has been able to get a few words down for Argento’s latest. Although I’m a little softer for the film than he is, he does nail a lot of things down that Argento is completely guilty of. Check it out!
The Review: Genre film fans should well know by now that Mother of Tears, one of the most long awaited horror films, is the third and final installment of the “Mother” trilogy which also included the seminal art-horror flick Suspiria and the overwrought yet enjoyable Inferno. Sadly, however, this series ends on a markedly anti-climactic note. I know that there are a lot of Dario Argento apologists out there who will defend Mother of Tears as at least somewhat of a return to form. After all, the film certainly tries to be good since it has a good amount of gore, plenty of euro-trash imagery (including a group of witches with faux punk/goth makeup and wardrobe), violence against Achilles heels, pubes, eyes, children AND infants, and the mighty Udo Kier. Plus, Argento made his name nearly synonymous with Italian genre film due to his contributions in giallo (Deep Red, The Bird with the Crystal Plumage), horror (Suspiria), and westerns (Argento co-wrote Once Upon a Time in the West). However, we all have to admit that, save a couple of decent entries in the Masters of Horror TV series, Uncle Dario has been phoning it in for most of the past couple of decades. Unfortunately, “Mother of Tears” is no different.