Meat at the Movies: Jennifer Lawrence Goes Insane With ‘Mother!’

So the movie I'm really excited about this weekend is called Mother! This is the new movie from Darren Aronofsky, a great director responsible for movies like Requiem for a Dream, The Wrestler, and Black Swan - and his work has always had horror elements to it, but this is the first time he's made a straight-up horror film, and from what I hear, this thing is insane. Like, "hard to believe this is being released by a major studio" insane. Reviews have been mostly positive, but everyone seems to disagree on what the movie is actually about, and I'm expecting it won't play well to a mainstream audience - movie geeks like me though are probably going to love it. I know very little about the actual story other than Jennifer Lawrence plays Mother, and her life is disrupted when guests arrive at her house. The movie also stars Javier Bardem, Ed Harris and Michelle Pfieffer, and it just looks like the kind of old-school horror film that isn't made as often anymore (Even the most recent trailer is delightfully 70s, with a voiceover guy telling you the film will mess you up for life and demanding you buy your tickets as soon as the movie you're watching is over).

Also out this weekend is American Assassin, a new thriller about a young CIA agent recruited by a Cold War vet played by Michael Keaton. The two of them get involved in a mission to stop an operative in the Middle East who's trying to start a world war. Michael Keaton is always great and the movie might be worth seeing just for him, but it is getting mostly mixed reviews - there are solid spy thrills to be had, but it seems like one you can skip.

Finally, this weekend also sees the release of Brad's Status, the new movie written and directed by Mike White, the creator of the HBO series Enlightened with Laura Dern. This stars Ben Stiller as a man having a mid-life crisis (which is basically the only role Ben Stiller seems to play these days) as he is touring colleges with his son. The movie also stars Luke Wilson, Michael Sheen, Jenna Fischer and Jemaine Clement and I'm hearing very good things, that it's a thought-provoking drama while also being reliably funny. This is opening in limited release but should expand into more theaters pretty soon.

So my pick for the week is definitely Mother! but if you live near a theater playing Brad's Status, that's a good one to see, too. I'm Meat Sandwich and until next time, We'll Meat at the Movies.