Movies to Watch with Mom on Mother's Day
You’ve bought a bouquet and bonded over brunch: you did good, kid. But now you have the rest of the afternoon ahead of you, and you don’t want to hear about her troubles with Skype, the new drapes or that mole she had burned off. Never fear: our Film editor Sean Hebert has some ideas for Mother’s Day flicks that will show mom how you really feel.
Yo’ Mama’s So Cougarlike…
The Graduate (1967)
In a film that portrays the mother of all first-world problems, recent Uni grad Benjamin Braddock is seduced by one of his parents’ friends—the sultry Mrs. Robinson. Not satisfied with being cougar-bait, Ben then falls in love with the more age-appropriate Elaine Robinson, creating a mother-daughter-Dustin Hoffman love triangle that can only end in… murder? (Spoiler: It doesn’t end in murder.)
Perfect for: confronting your mother about her over-flirtatious nature when around your friends.
Yo’ Mama’s So Insane…
Carrie (1976)
Friendless and shy, high-schooler Carrie’s unpopularity is made worse by a fundamentalist mother who abuses her. The girl discovers that she has homicidal psychic powers that flare up when she is angry or threatened. After she is ironically crowned prom queen (by hipsters way ahead of their time, presumably), Carrie causes a bloodbath. It’s like “Pretty In Pink,” except funnier.
Perfect for: making your mother feel comparatively good about her parenting.
Yo’ Mama’s So Negligent…
Home Alone (1990)
The original “Skyfall”! Kevin McCallister’s irrationally large family goes to Paris over Christmas, but fails to bring him along. When burglars descend on the home, Kev is forced to commit aggravated assault with every weapon known to man, save a gun (being that the film is set in the United States, this is an unrealistic oversight). It’s a reverse “Taken,” except that the only one who dies is John Candy, in real life.
Perfect for: demonstrating to your mother that travelling with extended family only leads to mass destruction, arrests and Joe Pesci.