Anne Hathaway Fears Red Fabric In A Movie Combining Dracula With Taylor Swift

By Chris Sawin
| Published 29 seconds ago

From David Lowery (The Green Knight, A Ghost Story), Mother Mary is a psychological drama-thriller driven by eloquent dialogue and compelling performances from Anne Hathaway and Michaela Cole. Lowery says he was inspired by Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992) and Taylor Swift: Reputation Stadium Tour, while Anne Hathaway says she based her performance on Beyoncé and her film/live album Homecoming: A Film By Beyoncé specifically. David Lowery went on to say that he could see Mother Mary being Taylor Swift in 10-15 years.

Mother Mary (Anne Hathaway) is a pop music icon. Her performances feature intricate costumes, a mesmerizing stage presence, and some of the catchiest and sexiest pop music of recent memory (the film’s score is by Daniel Hart, while the soundtrack features original songs from Jack Antonoff, Charli XCX, and FKA Twigs). Her concerts exceed typical musical expectations as many compare her performances to prayer or Holy Communion.

However, a traumatic experience caused Mother Mary to step away. She is planning her return to music with a new song and wants a new dress that matches her second coming. But nothing seems to feel right with the biggest issue being that her current costume designers have been making her the wrong dress. She turns to Sam Anselm (Michaela Cole), a globally recognized costume designer.

Sam used to work for Mother Mary, and the two were close friends, but something happened that not only caused them to drift apart but also made Sam hate Mother Mary and her music with venom. It transcends the concept of a personal grudge and evolved into this vile animosity that permanently stained the soul. Sam eventually learned to move past it, but it has always been there.  

Now they have four days to make the perfect dress for a groundbreaking headliner and opening date, but the palpable rift between them could lead to complete and utter turmoil.

The First Half Is All Dialogue

At just under two hours, the first half of Mother Mary is almost entirely back-and-forth dialogue between Mother Mary and Sam. There are breakaway moments that showcase the music, which is the film’s biggest draw.

Even though you’re just watching two people talk, that first half is the strongest part of the film. The relationship between Mother Mary and Sam hints at something deeper than friendship. They could have been lovers or even soulmates, but the film only hints at that, and it’s smarter for it. They weren’t just close; they had an unbreakable bond that was broken by someone blinded by the spotlight.

Michaela Cole Is Catty As Sam

Michaela Cole is so unbelievably catty as Sam. Whatever Mother Mary has done has done her so wrong that she is unforgiving and deliciously relentless. She is bitter that she still cares for Mother Mary. The dress and her making it seem to serve as some sort of ending for their time together. It could be a hate dress or something Mother Mary takes at the end of these four days, only to never see Sam again. But it’s a swan song in some capacity in Sam’s eyes, even if it’s meant to be a new beginning for Mother Mary.

Sam’s hatred is articulated through Cole’s magnetic British accent, and these detrimental insults are interwoven into casual yet unwavering lines of dialogue. Cole’s on-screen presence is just as commanding as she barely blinks, is consistently wide-eyed, has these blindingly bright white perfect teeth, and has a bottom lip that slightly curls and quivers when she speaks. She’s a bad bitch that’s been scorned so bad that she wears a mask to cover up the fact that she’s inconsolable.

Anne Hathaway Actually Sings Every Song And Cries Every Tear

Anne Hathaway’s transformation into Mother Mary seems exhausting. The character is to the point that music, the one thing that has brought her fame and that once made her happy, is now a chore that makes her feel nothing but emptiness and fatigue.

Hathaway sings every song in the film, which is impressive enough, but she also cries nearly every time she’s in a scene with Michaela Cole. Crying sucks, and doing it long enough gives you a headache or makes you want to take a nap. Mother Mary took 14 months to film. Even if that’s on and off, that’s still a lot of crying.

Mother Mary has created a new dance for one of her songs for her upcoming tour, and Sam asks her to perform it (without music, but we’ll come back to that). This dance looks like it hurts to perform as it’s full of pulsating, violent gyrating, stomping, and thrusting like Anne Hathaway’s life depended on it.

This dance is the equivalent of rhythmic possession. Hathaway throws her body against walls, furniture, and the floor like she’s trying to smack something out from the depths of her insides. It’s an exorcism in a way, and the story makes it feel like that even more.

Phenomenal Music That Sounds Like A Lost Madonna Album

Sam refuses to hear any of Mother Mary’s new music. The event that triggered Sam’s disdain for her has resulted in a streak that Sam doesn’t want to break. Charli XCX wrote the majority of the film’s soundtrack with help from her husband George Daniel, the drummer of The 1975. Despite the soundtrack’s influence from modern pop music, it sounds like a lost album from Madonna’s prime. With all of that said, the music is phenomenal.

Mother Mary keeps trying to show Sam her new song, but it’s never actually showcased in the film. It’s like we never hear it, and everyone in the film speaks about it and talks about it like it’s the greatest song that ears have ever heard, a la “Tribute” by Tenacious D. If it’s the song that plays over the end credits, it’s forgettable, which is even more depressing since the rest of the music is so good.

It All Falls Apart In The Second Half

Mother Mary falls apart in the second half. Once it begins to explain why Sam turned sour on Mother Mary and what happened to make Mother Mary step away from music, the film gets weirdly simple and bizarre in a way that is unbelievable.

This deeply personal and musical drama becomes a ghost story, with a red fabric symbolizing death and rebirth. The red fabric connects both women as it terrifies Mother Mary, yet serves as a form of redemption for Sam. It’s the cause of Mother Mary’s musical absence and the essence of Sam’s vengeful view of life.

But that red fabric is ejected from one character in the film and spends the rest of the film inside the other. It ruins one’s life while serving a new purpose for the other. It feels like it’s trying to be guilt, regret, and nostalgia all in one, but it gets lost in the fabric’s flowing representation.

Ruined By Red Fabric

Mother Mary has a fantastic soundtrack, passionately captivating performances from Michaela Cole and Anne Hathaway, and beautifully poetic dialogue that grips you throughout. But a piece of flowing red fabric ruins all of that.

There’s genuine art in Mother Mary that’s hidden behind a transparent red veil. The film ends as if you’re letting a piece of fabric drift away in the wind; its journey is endless and unpredictable, but also forever changing. The concept may be fascinating on paper, but its intention to soar in the clouds falls flat while losing whatever life it once had.

Mother Mary comes to theaters nationwide on April 24.