MOTHER, COUCH (Film Movement)

Mother, Couch
Film Movement

The Stats
Video: 1080p High Definition
Audio: LCPM 2.0 (5.1 surround available in menu)
Subtitles: SDH

Buy it HERE from Diabolik and HERE from Vinegar Syndrome

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, Staff Writer and Podcast Director

Mother, Couch comes to Blu-ray via Film Movement. Writer/director Niclas Larsson's debut feature, after a healthy career in shorter form directing, tackles very real familial concerns with the occasionally insightful, occasionally frustrating language of dreams. The bonus features and additional booklet included combine to elucidate the process of making a film like this, leading to a very satisfying overall package.

The Movie: 4.5 star

Writer / director Niclas Larsson, in his debut feature, adapts the novel Mamma i soffa by Jerker Virdborg with an all-star cast including Ewan McGregor, Taylor Russell, Rhys Ifans, Lara Flynn Boyle, F. Murray Abraham, and Ellen Burstyn in the surreal tale of a disconnected family who unite when their mother (Burstyn) refuses to leave the couch of a very uncanny furniture warehouse. McGregor, Ifans, and Boyle play siblings with different fathers who have never been especially close, but all find themselves drawn into the orbit of their manipulative and withholding mother.

Mother, Couch starts and is almost immediately disorienting. According to the commentary track, this was a deliberate choice to put the audience in the right headspace for what is to come. Ultimately, the film isn't exactly subtle, but watching it all build from these first moments, with their feeling of subtle oddness, is really quite satisfying. But none of it would work without the support of the cast. Ewan McGregor is incredible as David; desperately scrabbling for control over the events in his life and suppressing his feelings in an attempt to prove he's in control. But to whom?

Lara Flynn Boyle as older sister Linda is great, though neither she nor Rhys Ifans (as Gruffudd) have a ton to do. Their characters float in and out of David's sphere while he's trying to decipher just why exactly his mother is refusing to leave the Oakbed Furniture warehouse. They're not actively hindering David's efforts, but neither are they what you'd call helpful. David meanwhile is trying to navigate a tense situation with his wife (Lake Bell) and fulfill promises to their kids, all as his mother and siblings slowly make themselves more and more comfortable, leaving David to straighten everything out.

While McGregor gives maybe the most emotionally volatile performance of his career (?), and absolutely deserves recognition for it, my favorite character and performance is Taylor Russell as Bella. Her father owns the Oakbed Furniture warehouse, which has recently gone out of business, but still seems to be in operation. Russell radiates comfort and support as Bella, and she acts as the calm center of David's emotional storm.

I'm sure this film will earn itself comparisons to Ari Aster's Beau is Afraid (also released in 2023), but for my money, Mother, Couch is a much tighter and more focused affair while still maintaining its sense of heightened unreality. Like that film, Mother, Couch deals with parents, grief, aging, generational trauma, and the difficulties of maintaining relationships with family. Unlike Beau is Afraid however, this film is much more uplifting and hopeful; almost encouraging.

The Packaging: 4 star

The packaging here is nothing fancy. There was a slipcover with the first pressing of the disc featuring a collage-style assortment of moments from the film on the front, and a pattern of chainsaws, clouds, and keys on the back, but it has since sold out. The standard cover features an image of David's head, exposing the interior, where his mother rides the couch on a stormy sea. The release also includes a handsome booklet with an essay from film critic, author, and historian Jason Bailey.

The Video: 5 stars

The film itself looks amazing; soaked in light even in the looming, shadowy warehouse. The colors here, amber lamplight, pale green wallpaper, and stately charcoal shadows, are all thematically important as the parts of David's life begin to collapse on top of each other. Details of the furniture that surrounds them in the warehouse become important in a textual way as well once David is given a key and the vague description of the desk whose drawer it unlocks. All of which is beautifully supported with this release, which does a proper job of transferring the film to a disc fit for your home library.

The Audio: 5 stars

I checked out both the 2.0 and 5.1 sound options on my three-channel sound bar, and thought that overall, both worked perfectly well for me. The 2.0 mix was a slight bit quieter I think, but neither mix seemed to need much finesse. Once I settled on a volume level, I could just leave it be for the duration and enjoy the film.

Composer Christopher Bear shows up for the last 15-20 minutes of the commentary track and he and writer/director Niclas Larsson give some fantastic insights into how they conceptualized the score and why they chose what they chose at certain key moments.

The Special Features: 4 stars

My biggest takeaway from the special features present here is that I'm very excited for whatever writer/director Niclas Larsson does next. He is the constant on the commentary track, with four other members of the crew coming in and out in a manner very similar to the people in David's life now that I think about it. The commentary track combined with the BTS feature give great insight into the process of making this film and harnessing its very unique tone and energy. As I mentioned above, this release comes with a booklet, which I think bears mentioning alongside the disc's special features, as it similarly gives insights into the film in a foundational way that made for a very satisfying read.

• Audio commentary with writer / director Niclas Larsson, producer Sara Murphy, production designer Mikael Varhelyi, editor Carla Luffe, and composer Christopher Bear
• Between the Cushions and Behind the Scenes featurette
• Trailer
• 16 page booklet with an essay from film critic, author, and historian Jason Bailey

In Summary: 4.5 stars

The dreamlike nature of Mother, Couch might not be to everyone's tastes. Things ebb and flow in the manner of dream logic; something might be incredibly important one moment, then barely worth a second thought the next, and while David tries to sort it out, he realizes he was meant to be somewhere else, also extremely important, at the same time. Meanwhile people seem to come and go with barely any to-do.

If you're the kind of person who finds themselves thinking "Why don't they just A, B, or C?" about characters in a movie, you might not have the easiest time with Mother, Couch, which rewards introspection and quiet consideration as it defies conventional logic. It's best, at times, just to let it wash over you. Logic takes a backseat in the long run, allowing emotions to resonate in a quietly beautiful way.