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Goodnight Mommy
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray ALL - Australia - Umbrella Entertainment Review written by and copyright: James-Masaki Ryan (16th October 2024). |
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The Film
 "Goodnight Mommy" ("Ich seh, Ich seh") (2014) Lukas (played by Lukas Schwarz) and Elias (played by Elias Schwarz) are young twin brothers who are waiting for their mother (played by Suzanne Wuest) to return from the hospital. When she returns, her face is entirely bandaged up as she heals from plastic surgery, which causes discomfort and confusion from the boys. Lukas and Elias are not even sure if she is really their mother, as she acts differently and they start to find differences in her appearance when her bandages slowly start to come off, including different colored eyes and her birthmarks being gone. As their suspicions rise, the tension within the family starts to grow... Nephew and aunt filmmaker duo Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala had a mutual love for film, with Franz working as a film journalist and Fiala learning about filmmaking through her knowledge and influence. The idea for their first feature length script "Goodnight Mommy", the idea came from watching a makeover show in which the mother of a family would undergo a transformation which would have wowed reactions from a number of relatives and friends, but would sometimes have the opposite reactions from the mother's own young children who don't recognize her and become scared. While it might be a funny reaction for audiences to see the kids in confused form, Franz and Fiala looked at it from the perspective from the children, who immediately question their own mother's identity, and what if that thought never went away and their doubts stayed? Things seem fun and joyous with Lukas and Elias at first, as the film shows them from the beginning playing in beautiful sunny nature through the fields and in the nearby lake, completely carefree and with laughter. It's when their mother returns home that their reactions change to confusion. Their mother's head almost entirely bandaged in which only her eyes, nostrils and mouth are visible after reconstructive plastic surgery. The children have their doubts early on, and it is Lukas who is the one that is more on the suspicious side, as opposed to Elias who is softer and is not quite sure what to make of the situation. The family live in a very lavish and large home in the middle of nowhere, decorated with modern art and having all modern conveniences. The mother is (or was) a famous television personality and was able to afford the place, but it is never stated about her current status. Did she get reconstructive surgery on her face for cosmetic purposes? And if so, why is she taking such a risk to do her entire face as she is a well known star? Was she involved in an accident and if so, was it only her face that was affected? There are other questions such as where the father is, as he is mentioned once. As pictures of him and the family are seemingly removed from old family albums and there are no other traces of his image in the house, it might be safe to say that their relationship ended in a divorce. Backstories are not particularly put forth here, as everything is seen and told through the kids, and adult situations such as marriage and finance are far beyond their years. But there seems to be another reason that the backstories are not told... It's interesting to see the children make their way into trying to figure out the mystery of who the woman is, through careful planning while not trying to get caught in the process. Trying to dress alike to see if their mother could tell the difference between them, hiding a baby monitor in the mother's bedroom to try to capture any vocal evidence, and uncovering clues such as a photo of a mysterious girl that looked and dressed like their mother. There is some fun detective work to be had, though it culminates in one of the more disturbing scenes with the children tying up their mother to her bed, interrogating and torturing her for answers. While the film is extremely good at setting up the characters and situation, there are some weaknesses to be held. The cockroaches that are being taken care of and are a metaphor for what lies beneath the surface might have been an interesting idea, though it did seem like unlikely that the rich family would be keeping a terrarium filled with giant roaches in their home. There is also issue with their pet cat and the subplot of its death, though it seems to play as a basic metaphor rather than consequence. It would also be impossible to discuss the next point without spoiling the film, as it is key to the end and the entire twist. SPOILERS! While audiences are second guessing as to who the woman is that claims to be their mother and what her purpose was, the story flips the table to reveal that she was the mother all along. Instead it is revealed that Elias was being manipulated through his own guilt and trauma, caused by the death of his twin brother, making him hallucinate him and carrying out his deeds. There is an obvious nod to "Psycho" (1960), in which Norman believed himself to be an incarnate of him mother at times, carrying out her evil deeds and not noticing that he was doing them. "The Other" is a frequently mentioned comparison as it also deals with twin boys and trauma from death, though the filmmakers have stated that they had never seen the film prior to making "Goodnight Mommy". Possibly the closest nod comes from "A Tale of Two Sisters" which was made ten years prior to "Goodnight Mommy", having a similar twist with two young sisters and one being emotionally traumatized by the other's death. While each film has its differing ways of explaining the twist reveal, "Goodnight Mommy" does a fairly good job while not giving away too much with conventional methods such as flashbacks or unnecessary exposition dialogue. It is just enough to give the audiences heartbreak and confusion, which like the other films mentioned, does have a differing impact when watching a second time. The real life twin brothers do an excellent job with their feature film debut, giving each brother distinction in their personalities, and it truly helped by shooting the film in chronological order for them. Logistically it is a more difficult method, but as most of the film takes place in a singular location, it did make sense as well as being a useful way to get the boys into character as they gradually change during the course of the story. "Goodnight Mommy" premiered at the Venice Film Festival on August 30th, 2014, followed by other international festival appearances in Toronto, Sitges, Stockholm, and others throughout the rest of the year, and opening theatrically in its native Austria on January 8th, 2015. It played at more festivals and opened theatrically in a number of countries with positive acclaim, though it was not particularly a hit in Austria. It was due to the film receiving positive international notices that it was decided to re-release the film theatrically where it did much better for audiences. It was selected as Austria's entry for the Academy Awards, though it was not nominated. Though it did receive a number of international prizes at Sitges, the European Film Awards, Ljubljana, the National Board of Review, Fangoria, and many more. The visual style, the atmosphere, and the story were highly praised, and was one of the most acclaimed international features of the year. It was remade in English with the same title of "Goodnight Mommy" in 2022 by Amazon Studios which received lukewarm responses. For its tenth anniversary, Umbrella Entertainment has given it a new Blu-ray release, with a selection of newly curated extras. Note this is a region ALL Blu-ray
Video
Umbrella Entertainment presents the film in the 2.39:1 aspect ratio in 1080p AVC MPEG-4. Shot on 35mm film, it is a film that uses colors effectively, from the bright and beautiful colors of the rural forests and farms near the secluded house, to the cold and harsh interiors of the rich modern home. Night scenes and darker sequences are also excellent with dark hues and there are no issues with compression or errors for a clean and great looking transfer here. The opening shot uses a clip from the Austrian musical film "The Trapp Family" (1956) which is presented windowboxed and is taken from a vintage film print which is filled with scratches and debris, though this is intentional and does not represent what the rest of the film looks like. The film's runtime is 99:53.
Audio
German DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 German DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 stereo The original German audio is presented in both 5.1 and 2.0 stereo in lossless forms. Although it is a film that has very few cues in terms of music, as natural sound and dialogue are main, there are very effective uses of surrounds to be heard. From the echoes of the large empty house, the sounds of nature when the characters are outdoors, they sound excellent and effective. Dialogue is almost always centered and is well balanced against the surrounding effects with no issues of dropout or other errors to speak of. The 2.0 is a downmix of the 5.1 track. There are optional English subtitles in a white font for the main feature, which are easy to read, well timed, and without errors.
Extras
Audio Commentary with critic and writer Alexandra Heller-Nicholas (2024) This new and exclusive commentary has Heller-Nicholas discussing the film, its production, and other of relating topics. Discussed are other horror productions from 2014 and the emergence of independent horror and female directors, the production's background, the audition process of the child actors, filming chronologically and how unusual it is, quotes from the directors about the filming, their process, films with similar tones and themes, the film's release, and much more. in English Dolby Digital 2.0 without subtitles "We Need to Hold This Family Together: Suppression, Concealment, and the Duality of Grief in Goodnight Mommy" 2024 Video Essay by critic Andy Marshall-Roberts (22:39) This new essay looks at examples of trauma and grief being common themes in horror, the symbolism contained in the film, minor details such as the lack of the father's presence and the recurring imagery, and more. It is very well written and well presented, though Marshall-Roberts' voice is slightly echoey and digitally muffled at times, so it might be best for him to look into using a better microphone for future featurettes. in 1080i60 AVC MPEG-4, in 1.78:1, in English Dolby Digital 2.0 without subtitles Interview with directors Severin Fiala and Veronica Franz, Stockholm Film Festival 2014 (14:24) This interview with the directors have them discussing about working with the children, the on set atmosphere, the production process, the rehearsals, and more. The interview is in 1.78:1, while some film clips play in 1.78:1 and others in 2.39:1. The interview has also been embedded below. in 1080p AVC MPEG-4, in 1.78:1 / 2.39:1, in English Dolby Digital 2.0 without subtitles Trailer (2:06) The Austrian trailer is presented here, featuring critics quotes from some foreign publications (translated to German). It has also been embedded below. in 1080p AVC MPEG-4, in 2.39:1, in German Dolby Digital 5.1 with optional English subtitles The film was first released on Blu-ray in Austria and Germany in 2015 by Hoanzl/Koch Media, which had a differing directors' interview, a making-of featurette and 4 deleted scenes. They unfortunately used a 1080i 50Hz transfer for the feature. The US release from Anchor Bay followed that year and featured the directors' interview from the Austrian/German releases as the sole extra, though it used a 1080p transfer for the feature. Unfortunately the extras from the Austrian/German releases have not been included on this new Australian release. Other notable clips: The US trailer from Radius Films Mark Kermode's review of the film Vice Talks Film 2015 interview with Severin Fiala and Veronika Franz, interviewed by Kim Taylor Bennett (Note this extra is mistakenly advertised as being included on this Blu-ray.) An excerpt from a Q&A with the directors at the Lincoln Center from 2015 2015 interview with the directors for The Seven Sees Trailer of the 2022 remake Trailer foer the directors' latest film "The Devil's Bath" (2024)
Packaging
The disc is packaged in a clear keep case. It has reversible artwork in which the only difference is the Australian M rating logos are removed on the other side. The packaging mistakenly states that the disc is region B only, when it is in fact region ALL. It also states the runtime as 95 minutes, rather than the actual runtime of 99 minutes. Also the packaging mistakenly states that there is an additional directors’ interview from Vice Talks Film. (The missing Vice Talks Film interview has been embedded above in the extras section.) It is also available with a limited slipcover exclusively from Umbrella Entertainment with exclusive new artwork by Lucas Peverill. It is also available in a Collector's Edition limited to 1000 copies exclusively from Umbrella Entertainment which includes: - A 48 page book featuring essay from Emma Westwood, behind-the-scenes, experiences and art - New original poster art rigid case - Custom art slipcover by Lucas Peverill - 8 artcards - A3 reversible poster The book starts with a text Q&A with Severin Fiala and Veronica Franz by Michael Gingold, which was originally published in Fangoria Magazine on September 11th, 2015, in which they discuss the film's inspirations, working with the children, the location, and more. Next is "The Mirror Has Two Faces: Twins, Trauma and Goodnight Mommy", an excellent essay by writer Emma Westwood on the film's themes as well as comparisons to "The Other". There are also stills, theatrical posters, and conceptual designs for this release's slipcover. The 8 artcards are printed on thick cards with stills from the film. The double sided poster has English theatrical poster art on one side and new artwork of the slipcover of the "mother" side on the other. The poster is folded in the keep case. The keep case with the slipcover along with the book and artcards are housed in the rigid slipcase. 
Overall
"Goodnight Mommy" is a very effective psychological thriller told through the viewpoint of children, with excellent performances from the leads and fine direction from Franz and Fiala. There are a few flaws with the execution, though they manage to make things extremely entertaining, tense, and uncomfortable with a minimal cast and setting. The Umbrella Entertainment Blu-ray has an excellent transfer with some great new extras, though it is a little unfortunate that extras found on previous Blu-ray editions could not be ported over. Still comes as very recommended.
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