A recent surge in films exploring men’s relationships with their mothers has brought a fresh perspective to a long-standing trope. Through dark comedies like “Beau Is Afraid” and heartfelt films like “All of Us Strangers,” these movies delve into complicated mother-son dynamics marked by neediness, selfishness, and cruelty. Despite the common theme of a troubled relationship, each movie offers a unique and thought-provoking take on this age-old trope.
The notion of the overbearing mother has been a prevalent theme in film and television for decades, with references to psychiatry and analysis becoming ubiquitous by the 1950s. Doting or domineering mothers were often portrayed as obstacles that men needed to overcome to achieve well-adjusted masculinity. Characters like Norman Bates in “Psycho” and the beta male in Doris Day-Rock Hudson movies perpetuated the idea that a close relationship with one’s mother could lead to neurosis or even homosexuality.
As the years passed, portrayals of mothers in film became more self-aware and ironic. Overbearing mothers like Livia in “I, Claudius” and Livia Soprano in “The Sopranos” added layers of complexity to the archetype. Woody Allen’s “Oedipus Wrecks” and films like “Mother” by Albert Brooks and Darren Aronofsky explored the idea of the matriarch as a creator-underminer-destroyer. Through these films, filmmakers have delved into the lasting impact of maternal relationships on men, highlighting the complexity and depth of this age-old trope.
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