This scene takes on a darkly comedic tone, and it feels very out of place. There’s even a scene near the end involving some Red Cross workers who come into the house, and the boys need to distract them and make them leave. I thought the torture scenes were dragged out to the point where they were just miserable to watch. And I thought the whole ending of watching the mother being tortured was a jarring shift in tone. The scene involving the dead cat is what gave it away to me. I personally saw the twist coming, that one of the boys was mentally ill, and that the other one was just inside his head, imagined. When the priest drives the boys to the mother, it almost seems as if he knows her and automatically believes her in her distress. I feel like that scene could have been taken out, and nothing in the film would have changed. I wasn’t sure if this was hinting that this guy was the boy’s father or not. There’s a scene where they come across a farmer handling some burning crops and he yells at the boys as the score drowns out what he is saying. When the kids left the house, and the nature setting, to go to another town, the feeling of isolation that was built up also went away. I personally feel like the tension and suspense of the film went away when the mother removed the bandages from her face. This next section will be going into spoilers so do not continue reading if you do not want specific scenes spoiled. I would not recommend watching this film if you are squeamish about scenes involving torture. Even though I was disappointed by how Goodnight Mommy ended, there is quite a lot of violence involved. I would also recommend not watching this film if you are bored easily by quiet films with slow pacing. Most people who will watch this film, expecting it to follow a horror structure, will probably be left disappointed. I would not suggest going into this film with the mindset of expecting it to be a horror film. Overall, I would give Goodnight Mommy a moderate recommendation. I think this is very unfortunate because the majority of Goodnight Mommy showed lots of great potential to deliver an ending that could be disturbing and frightening. There are scenes that play out that take away from the isolationism created by the films environment. Unfortunately, the tension and suspense begin to end as we learn more information towards the end of the film. One of the best aspects of Goodnight Mommy is that many of the scenes feel as if you shouldn’t be watching them.
In many ways, the scenes play out almost as if the viewer were a third party watching a family dispute play out without context or bias. The interactions between the Mother and the boys have great tension that emphasizes each of the characters emotional states. This slow pace might turn off some audience goers, but I believe it fits well into the tone the film has created. Goodnight Mommy is more of a psychological thriller that is very slow paced in it’s presentation. Goodnight Mommy was marketed as a horror film, when in reality, the film does not follow the structure of a conventional horror film. Not only are the scenes involving nature beautiful to look at, there’s this underlying theme of suspense that is portrayed very well. The quietness and stillness developed an atmosphere in the film.
I thought the scenes that had Lukas and Elias exploring in nature were very important to the film. The film gives time to show how Lukas and Elias interact with one another. Elias and Lukas Schwarz have great chemistry with each other and do a wonderful job acting. The dissonant sounds that come from the film’s nature setting portray a feeling of isolation. Goodnight Mommy is able to create an environment that is incredibly tense and suspenseful. The film’s subtle and, at times, non existent musical score is able to work to it’s advantage. This distortion of her identity, and some strange behaviour, is what initially sparks the boys’ concern. The Mother, played by Susanne Wuest, has her face wrapped in bandages after her return from the operation. The film follows two twin brothers and the growing suspicions they have towards their mother following her plastic surgery. Initially released in 2014, the film got a wider theatrical release in 2015. Goodnight Mommy (Ich Seh Ich Seh) is a German psychological thriller written and directed by Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala.
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