“Mother/Androids” begins with a conversation between two teenagers, Georgia (Chloë Grace Moretz) and her boyfriend Sam. Although they speak calmly like adults, there is a sense of dread in Georgia as she reveals that she is pregnant and Sam is the father.
Later that night, a shrill screech rang out across the city. The noise causes android butlers to malfunction, transforming them into cold-blooded killing machines.
Nine months later, Georgia is days away from giving birth. So the two flee to the forest and are on their way to Boston to board a ship bound for Asia. But before that they must cross a place inhabited by androids called No Man’s Land.
It's interesting how we found Georgia and Sam after the nine year jump. They camp in a dense forest under dark skies because, ironically, it is much safer there than in the city. They speak in whispers due to the androids excellent hearing. And people start to point guns at each other since it’s difficult to distinguish anyone anymore. Through context clues, we can easily draw that something terrible happened and the only way to survive is to run.
As the post-apocalyptic picture unfolds, the focus also slowly shifts back to the two lovebirds and their soon-to-be-born child, as if to emphasize that this is about them and not the dystopian world they now live in.
But therein lies the problem. Georgia and Sam’s situation isn't as interesting as the movie makes it out to be. Yes, Georgia is expecting a child and the two are racing against time. However, the film failed to elicit a strong emotional connection with the audience. We witnessed no struggle, no high stake, and no real danger, yet “Mother/Android” expects us to care. It also didn't help that the characters are not helping themselves and they have a habit of attracting problems and digging their own graves.
Chloe Grace Moretz is a force in every film she appears in, and in “Mother/Android '' she proved that she is a capable actress once more. But because of the aimless and subpar story, her performance in the movie feels worthless in the end.
Tomlin should have dug deeper into the story. It may be a personal film for him, but if he's trying to be relevant by integrating his story with a machine uprising concept, he should've delved deeper into it. Consider the film "The Terminator." It's also a film about parenthood, androids, and human nature, but it works because it explores the various aspects of our relationship with technology, both good and bad. That kind of exploration does not appear in the story, which is a little disappointing.
1/5
