Mother/Android, movie (2021)
image © Miramax
Article updated: 2022.01.09
The Mother/Android (2021) is a family drama film. The movie was reviewed by Kadmon.
Product: Mother/Android, movie (2021)
Original title: Mother/Android
Series: -
Setting: contemporary alternate Earth / post-apocalyptic alternate Earth
Product type: Film, Genre: family drama, Style: sci-fi, thriller, drama, family drama, robots, androids, post-apocalyptic
Release: 2021.12.17
Reviewer: Kadmon, Type: Male, 40s, Preferences: Immersive, logical story, consistent setting, prefers surprises to spoilers, prefers establishing elements before referencing them
Watched: very recent (2022.01), first time
Rating: Bad (1 out of 3 points), Enjoyment: Bad (1 out of 3 points)
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This is my review of Mother/Android, a family drama movie from 2021. It's about a pregnant girl and her partner trying to get to safety during an android uprising. The Mother/Android film is boring and dumb, I don't recommend it to anyone.
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Review (spoiler-free) - Mother/Android, movie (2021)
I've randomly run into this movie, and the premise looked interesting. I didn't watch the trailer before sitting down to watch Mother/Android.
The Mother/Android movie is about a pregnant girl and her partner trying to get to safety during an android uprising.
The basic plot of the story could be good, but the script is stupid. The story is consistently slow and boring. There are no proper character arcs. There are so many logical problems, that it's irritating.
The cinematography is okay. It's not interesting visually. The action scenes are weak, it would have been better to avoid them. The special effects look out of place. There are lots of close-up shots, I suppose the movie was designed to be watched on a small screen. Also, while I was trying to find some good screenshots, I realised that the shots are not very efficient, it's very hard to find good moments, when you can clearly see the characters in an interesting situation.
We don't get to know the characters, even though there's only two of them. The actors are okay.
The music (by Kevin Henthorn and Michelle Birsky) is quiet, but it's okay.
Mother/Android is a boring and dumb drama, that I don't think anyone would really enjoy.
My experience
I was not satisfied with Mother/Android (2021).
Rating: Bad (1 out of 3 points). Mother/Android had too many problems with both the dramatic elements and the logic of the plot.
Enjoyment: Bad (1 out of 3 points). Mother/Android was boring.
Rewatchability: I'm not sure. I think it's mostly the surprise of the story that makes you feel interested. I don't think anyone would be engaged with the characters or the plot.
Chance of watching it again: No. Watching it once was too much.
Chance of watching a sequel: No. This one was bad enough.
Mother/Android, movie (2021)
image © Miramax
Will you enjoy this?
If you like robot uprising movies, you might like Mother/Android, although you'll get very few scenes when there are actually robots.
If you can get through the first half hour of the movie still interested, you'll get the same for the rest of the movie, it just gets increasingly dumber.
If you don't mind illogical elements in your movies, you can enjoy this.
If you prefer visuals over story, avoid this movie.
If you hate romantic, you should probably avoid this movie, as there are traces of bad romance movies in it.
Watching for plot points
If you are interested in robot uprising stories, it might be worth watching the Mother/Android movie for the plot points, but reading the summary is probably a better way to experience the story.
Should you watch this on your own screen at home, or is it worth going to the cinema?
The visuals probably look better if you watch it in your home.
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Mother/Android, movie (2021)
image © Miramax
Review with spoilers - Mother/Android, movie (2021)
I didn't like the Mother/Android movie. By 40 minutes, I started to get bored, and it didn't get any better.
Cover
The cover of the movie is so vague, it's not even interesting. At least it doesn't spoil the movie.
The trailer
The trailer is okay. It has some spoilers, but it's not coherent enough that you would understand them.
Promise of the first scene
An android attacks people. I assume there's going to be an android uprising, and the main characters will have to find a way to switch them back to normal.
Execution: Sure, we got some android uprising, but then nothing really interesting happened with that.
Plot summary / Synopsis
Now: We see a girl (Chloë Grace Moretz as Georgia Olsen) setting a fire, and thinking about forgetting someone.
Past: Then we see a flashback, at a Christmas party, where the girl is probably pregnant, and she is talking to her partner (Algee Smith as Sam Hoth). Her partner wants to marry her, but the girl doesn't know if she wants to be with him. There are android servants around, and one of them glitches. While the girl talks with her friend, there's a screeching noise, and the android servant starts attacking the guests. They defeat the android, but find out there are attacks all around the city.
Later, we see the girl and her partner travelling in the woods, sleeping in a tent. They find an outpost of soldiers. While the doctor examines the pregnant girl, she is told that their plan to get to Boston to leave by boat won't work, because they only take children and their mothers. A man tries to get inside, telling that he has a metal hip replacement, but the soldiers just shoot him.
A soldier offers to take them to Boston if her partner defeats him in a fight. He does, but he gets arrested for fighting an officer, and they are sent off the base. They find an empty house to stay for the night. They also find a motorbike, and use it to travel faster. They get chased by androids and drones. They split up, her partner uses the bike to lead the androids away from the girl.
As her partner gets captured, a man (Raúl Castillo as Arthur) arrives, and takes the girl to his shelter. He tells her that he used to work for the company that built the robots, and he is alive because he knows how they think. He also has a camouflage armour.
The androids have a facility where they torture humans, and they've probably taken her partner there. The girl gets inside in the camouflage armour, and gets her partner out, with the help of the man. Her partner has his feet broken off.
The man takes them to Boston. She delivers the baby (Forest). Her partner has both of his feet cut off. They get interrogated. Just when they realise that the man, who brought them here is an android, they hear sounds of fighting. It was the plan of the androids to use her and her partner to sneak in. She comes to the realisation that the androids want to disable the EMP, so she instinctively finds the right place, and gets inside. She fights off the androids, and kills the android who helped her get here. She activates the EMP bomb, disabling the androids in the city.
We see the girl and her partner having a good time with the baby, then they manage to get to the harbour, while they are still fighting outside. They find a Korean ship, but they only offer to take the baby, not the parents. They give the baby to the Koreans.
Now: We see the girl alone. She joins a group of soldier who are about to establish a new base.
The setting
The story is set on an alternate Earth, where there have been robot servants since 1969.
Also, in this world, EMP bombs destroy every electronic device, instead of just the active, unshielded ones, like on our world.
Mother/Android, movie (2021)
image © Miramax
The androids
The androids are stronger than humans, and have better reflexes.
They are resistant to damage, but they can be taken out by a few swings with a baseball bat, or a couple of pistol shots
They have a black lubricant acting like their blood.
They see in UV, they have heat sensors, night vision.
The message of the story
I'm not sure there's one.
The structure of the story
The scenes of the Mother/Android film begin in the present, but most of the movie is seen in a flashback, before returning to the present for the last scene.
There is no single viewpoint character. That's pretty strange, as the whole story is told by the girl.
It has the usual arc of the dramatic structure - introduction, action, resolution.
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Things I liked
- The fantasy future scene at the end was good. (But it's already too long for seeing it once. Two times was a bit much.)
- It was nice to see the android using human emotions to manipulate them.
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How does it compare to the other works of the creators?
From the writer (Mattson Tomlin), I've only seen Project Power (2020), that was good. This was a lot worse.
From the director (Mattson Tomlin), I haven't seen anything else. After this, I'm not really interested in his directorial work.
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Mother/Android, movie (2021)
image © Miramax
Analysis of the story - Mother/Android, movie (2021)
I didn't like the story, the logical and dramatical problems prevented me from enjoying Mother/Android.
Problematic elements
The title: Why "Mother/Android"? Was there any question if the mother was an android? Or what does the title refer to?
Bad choice of protagonists: The pair is unlikeable, both individually, and as a pair. Maybe, if we got some background information about them, seeing more of their thoughts and desires, they might affect me differently.
Off-camera events: There are many events that would be interesting to see, but they are missing from the movie.
Getting out of the city: It would have been interesting to see them getting out of the middle of the android uprising.
Encountering soldiers: In the woods, a soldier shouts at them, but we don't see that happening, just their reaction. It's a very odd artistic choice.
The birth: It's a strange choice to leave the birthing scene out of the movie, as we were preparing for this since the beginning.
Getting to the harbour: I'd like to see how they get through the android attack to the harbour.
The pregnancy test: It would be better if the audience would get to know what the pregnancy tests show. I get it that the creators were probably familiar with them, but not everyone knows how to read medical devices.
Hiding her body: She is hiding her body from her boyfriend when she takes her clothes off. How did they even conceive the baby?
Sudden change of the forest: Before they've found the bike, they had to use the machete to cut their way through the forest. After they've found the bike, suddenly, the forest is clear enough to ride between the trees at full speed.
The chase: The chase in the woods just look bad. It also takes a lot of time.
The rescue scene: The whole scene is slow, dumb and pointless. Also, as we know that she'll get her partner out, there's no tension. At least, it's not that long.
Not checking Arthur: Why didn't they check Arthur like they did everyone else?
Convenient revelation: The android attack happens just at the moment the girl - and the audience - finds out that Arthur is an android. This is just lazy writing.
The plan of the androids: So, what exactly was their plan? They've hidden a truck in the middle of nowhere, in the hopes that they'll meet a 9 month pregnant woman alone, whose partner left her to be captured, then rescue that partner with the pregnant woman, and rush her to Boston? All the while hoping that they will believe the story about the camouflage suit? What would have happened, if the girl decided to take Arthur's advice to leave her partner alone? What would have happened, if she were not strong enough to get into the android facility? Why did they put Sam in a room with another man, who could have messed up their whole plan? Why did they endanger their plan to disguise one of them as a human, then showing off his combat abilities, that were unlikely to have as a programmer.
Lots of androids: How many androids were able to sneak into Boston? It looks like there's fighting everywhere.
Defending the EMP: How come it's only the girl who thought that the androids would want to switch off the EMP? Also, why doesn't the EMP have more a secure protection?
Running into Arthur: It's very unlikely that out of those many androids, it would be Arthur who just got in time to meet the girl.
Unarmed androids: There are plenty of weapons just laying around. Why didn't the androids grab some of them to shoot the girl?
Super strong girl: She is able to hold the door with her legs, just after a C-section, against a horde of super-strong androids. She is also able to jump good.
Stupid androids: Why don't they wear armour? Even if they are resistant to damage, they are clearly not bullet-proof.
The camera: If the EMP bomb destroys every electronic device, how come the camera - that's clearly electronic - still works?
Repeating the fantasy scene: Watching it once was long enough. I get it that there are differences, but they could have incorporated those in the original scene, or making the whole thing shorter.
Switching point of view: As the whole movie was set up to come from the point of view of the girl, it's distracting to see scenes from other points of view.
Unanswered questions
- How and why did the androids turn against the humans?
- What happened to the father?
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Possibilities of improvement
- Cut the beginning scene, and start the movie with the Christmas scene.
- Trim the scenes, most of them are overly long.
- Cut the scenes that are not from the point of view of the girl.
- Redo the digital effects to better fit the movie.
- A proper ending - end the movie after the baby is born, they bring him to the Korean ship, and when they take the kid, just fade out.
- Cut the android attack, it doesn't add to the plot, and it's one of the dumbest part of the movie.
How it could have been better?
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Behind the scenes
Thoughts about the reviews of others
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Mother/Android, movie (2021)
image © Miramax
Uses for the film - Mother/Android, movie (2021)
Plot
- People use android servants in their homes.
- A malfunction / intentional hacking makes the androids to rise up against their human masters.
- During a catastrophe, people are shipped out of the country, they just need to reach that harbour.
- Terrorists (androids) come up with a clever plan to infiltrate a military base.
Scenes
- The beginning scene is good to show how an android uprising starts.
Designs
Scenario ideas - Role-playing game scenario ideas
Scenario ideas - Wargame scenario ideas
Medical convoy: A medical convoy has to break through enemy territory. There are wounded or sick people on the vehicles. The enemy sets up the territory, and chooses an edge of entry. There should be a clear path leading from that edge to the opposite edge, although it can take some turns, making it longer. Outside of that path, most of the terrain should be something the vehicles are able to cross, but there can be some patches of rough terrain. The convoy player has to leave the playing area through the opposite edge. The enemy player sets up their forces anywhere on the playing area. They can start the game hiding - the player should write their position on a paper, or indicate their presence with markers. Choose a number of vehicles for the convoy, and a number of patients. The convoy player decides how many patients will be on the vehicles. Every time a vehicle gets damaged, or goes through a turn of rough terrain, add a counter to that vehicle. If the vehicle is destroyed, every patient on that vehicle dies. After the vehicle exits, roll a d6 for every patient, and add the number of the counter to the roll. On a roll of 6 or more, the patient dies. The convoy player wins if more than half of the patients survive, while more than half of their units is still alive. The enemy player wins if they kill more than half of the convoy units.
Ragtag militia: The enemy units are more numerous than the convoy units, but they don't have the right weapons to destroy vehicles outright. However, they can build makeshift barricades on the path. The convoy units have to get out of their vehicles, and spend actions to clear the path.
Infiltrators: The defender has a base, but the enemy has infiltrated it. The defender sets up the playing area, with a fortified place in the middle, that has a gate, and a defensive weapon that can cause area damage. The weapon is useful to take out attacker that try to bring down the gate. The gate can be broken if the attackers spend enough time to bring it down. Then the attacker sets up their army (except for one, maximum 10 model squad) anywhere outside the fortified place. Then the defender sets up their army anywhere on the playing area, but outside of the fortified place, they must be at least one movement away from attacker models. Then the attacker sets up their infiltrating squad anywhere in the fortified place. Their objective is to take out the weapon, and to open the gate from the inside. The attacker wins if they defeat the defender. The defender wins if they kill the infiltrator before they open the gate or take out the weapon, otherwise, they have to defeat the attackers.
Miniatures - 1/50-1/60 (28-32mm scale)
Civilians: Human-sized (S3) modern (advanced) human female / male civilian.
Androids: Human-sized modern human civilians. Sometimes with robot skeleton showing.
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Similar stories - Mother/Android, movie (2021)
Novels
John Christopher: The Death of Grass (1956): In a contemporary setting, civilisation falls due to an apocalyptic event (viral death of grass). A family has to get through a dangerous territory (post-apocalyptic bands) to a safe place (a village).
Movies
A Quiet Place 2 (2020): In a contemporary setting, civilisation falls due to a catastrophe (alien invasion). A family has to get through a dangerous territory (alien creatures) to a safe place (a boat to get safe), while remaining silent. It's slightly better than Mother/Android.
Children of Men (2006): In a contemporary setting, civilisation falls due to a catastrophe. A "family" with a pregnant woman has to get through a dangerous territory (post-apocalyptic bands) to safe place (a boat to get safe). It's much better than Mother/Android.
No Blade of Grass (1970): In a contemporary setting, civilisation falls due to an apocalyptic event (viral death of grass). A family has to get through a dangerous territory (post-apocalyptic bands) to a safe place (a village). Based on The Death of Grass novel.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003): In a contemporary setting, civilisation falls due to a catastrophe (robot uprising). A family has to get through a dangerous territory (killer robots) to a safe place (nuclear fallout shelter).
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Frequently asked questions - Mother/Android, movie (2021)
Is the Mother/Android film based on a book or comics?
No, Mother/Android is not based on either books or comics.
Is the Mother/Android film a remake or reboot?
No, the Mother/Android film is neither a remake nor a reboot.
Is there a post credit scene in Mother/Android? Does Mother/Android have end credit scenes?
No, there's no post credit scene in Mother/Android.
Where can I see Mother/Android? Where can I watch Mother/Android online? Is Mother/Android available on Netflix? Is Mother/Android on Amazon?
As of 2022.01.07, Mother/Android is on Hulu, Netflix.
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Resources - Mother/Android, movie (2021)
Information
IMDB: Mother/Android (2021): Database article.
WikiPedia: Mother/Android: Database article.
Letterboxd: Mother/Android 2021: Database article.
Rotten Tomatoes: Mother/Android 2021: Database article.
Creation
: Concept art article.¤
Reviews with no spoilers - Mother/Android film (2021)
: Review video about the Mother/Android film with no spoilers.¤
Reviews with spoilers - Mother/Android film (2021)
: Review article of the Mother/Android movie, with spoilers. Includes a very detailed plot summary.¤
Analysis - Mother/Android movie (2021)
: Analysis video, explaining the finale of Mother/Android.¤
https://www.ign.com/articles/mother-android-review-chloe-grace-moretz
https://www.indiewire.com/2021/12/mother-android-review-hulu-1234686208/
https://variety.com/2021/film/reviews/mother-android-review-chloe-grace-moretz-1235134667/
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Buying the product - Mother/Android, movie (2021)
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Have you seen the Mother/Android film? How do you like the movie? Would you recommend it to others? Do you know reviews or resources you'd like to add? What further thoughts do you have about it? Tell your opinion in the comments!
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