Mothers' Instinct

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Mothers' Instinct

R

Released Jul 26, 2024

1h 34m

Mystery & Thriller

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

52%

Tomatometer

63 Reviews

48%

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250+ Ratings

Set in the early '60s, best friends and neighbors Alice (Jessica Chastain) and Celine (Anne Hathaway) both live an idyllic traditional lifestyle with manicured lawns, successful husbands, and sons of the same age. Life's perfect harmony is suddenly shattered after a tragic accident. Guilt, suspicion and paranoia combine to unravel their sisterly bond a psychological battle of wills begins as the maternal instinct reveals its darker side.

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Critics Consensus

Mothers' Instinct is a glossily enjoyable showcase for Jessica Chastain and Anne Hathaway, although the stars are ill-served by a thin story and shaky tonal command.

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Brian Tallerico

RogerEbert.com

“Mothers’ Instinct” gets by on its pulpy potential more than anything else.

Rated: 2/4

Aug 16, 2024

Full Review

Ty Burr

Washington Post

The movie that is is disappointingly bloodless, cold rather than chilling, with a payoff that isn’t shocking so much as an admission that we’ve spent 90 minutes we’ll never get back.

Rated: 2/4

Aug 15, 2024

Full Review

Richard Lawson

Vanity Fair

It is slickly made and thoroughly entertaining, flamboyant flourishes and all. But it seems that, with a few minor exceptions, no one really knows what to do with movies like it anymore.

Jul 31, 2024

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John Serba

Decider

To say the third act is an utter hogslop mess is to grossly underplay the messiness of hog slop.

Jan 6, 2025

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Ben Gibbons

Screen Rant

Mothers' Instinct delivers a tense, compelling, and thrilling story that leads to constant guessing and reassessing about what could be true.

Rated: 8/10

Jan 4, 2025

Full Review

Francesca Steele

iNews.co.uk

This Jessica Chastain and Anne Hathaway thriller relies on stereotypes it never gets round to subverting.

Rated: 2/5

Dec 11, 2024

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Rene W

I don’t care for many 2024-2025 movies but my boyfriend and I thoroughly enjoyed watching this. It has been a while since I’ve seen movies I’ve enjoyed, so this was very nice to watch.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/20/25

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Kyle M

Another domesticated remake lost in translation, becoming more exposed across the inherent flaws from grasping its psychological aim diving onto a classic Hitchcock thriller irrationally thwarted by the thinly written unpleasantness turning towards utter unsatisfactory, albeit impressive displayed though hectic convictions from the leading actresses. (C)

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/16/25

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Denise K

Excellent performance by all main characters. The cinematography was spot on for time period and a delight. The story line was engrossing and unpredictable for me. Loved every minute of it. Highly recommend. Would watch again.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/09/25

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Ronald H

A WASPy 1960's suburban melodrama that gets inexorably sillier by the minute, until finally reaching a climax and denouement that will leave you angry and exasperated at the sheer absurdity of it all. It almost seems satirical, but unfortunately, it's serious.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

02/08/25

Full Review

Scott B

Good Movie keeps you on your toes. Which one is Evil or just Insane.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/08/25

Full Review

Holy M

The people in Hollywood that make these movies are so disconnected from reality that they make these garbage movies. No parent on earth with half a brain would sit down and watch this absolute atrocity. It's wrong on so many levels. The best wrong again. These types of stories should never be put on a movie screen.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

02/04/25

Full Review

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Benoît Delhomme

Director

Anne Hathaway

Céline

Jessica Chastain

Alice

Eamon Patrick O'Connell

Theo

Anders Danielsen Lie

Simon

Josh Charles

Damian

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Mothers' Instinct: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

Set in the early '60s, best friends and neighbors Alice (Jessica Chastain) and Celine (Anne Hathaway) both live an idyllic traditional lifestyle with manicured lawns, successful husbands, and sons of the same age. Life's perfect harmony is suddenly shattered after a tragic accident. Guilt, suspicion and paranoia combine to unravel their sisterly bond a psychological battle of wills begins as the maternal instinct reveals its darker side.

Director: Benoît Delhomme
Producer: Kelly Carmichael, Jessica Chastain, Anne Hathaway, Paul Nelson, Jacques-Henri Bronckart
Screenwriter: Sarah Conradt-Kroehler
Distributor: NEON
Production Co: Anton, Mosaic, Freckle Films, Versus Production, Wheelhouse Productions
Rating: R (Some Violence|Brief Sexuality)
Genre: Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 26, 2024, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 13, 2024
Runtime: 1h 34m

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