I had an amazing opportunity to go to New York City this week for a screening of the new film Motherhood, which opens today in five cities (NY, Chicago, LA, San Francisco and Boston).
I read an article about the film in the New York Times last weekend, so I decided to write an article for Suite 101, where I’m a Feature Writer. I contacted the public relations agency and they invited me to attend a screening in New York City the next day. There were at least 11 reasons for me not to attend– I’m broke, I’m having a Halloween party with like 80 people tomorrow, it’s 7 (SEVEN!) hours of driving on a school night, etc etc blah blah.
But I decided to go anyway. I am not sure how many times YOU are invited to a private screening of a film not even out yet showing in a cool historic theatre on actual Broadway in NYC, but for me? Never. I couldn’t find one of my local MOM BLOGGER FRIENDS to go with me on such short notice, so I invited my teen daughter (who wants to go to college in NYC in a few short years and is an actress).
We had a blast. The movie is amazing. I fell in love with it from the opening scene, identified 150% with the main character Eliza (played by Uma Thurman), who is a frazzled, harried mom who blogs. It was like me, except even when trying to look frumpy Uma Thurman is still hot, so like it would be like me, if I was hot and 40 lbs. thinner. And living in a cool neighborhood in Greenwich Village in NYC instead of a small town redneck hell. Ok, whatever. It’s nothing like me except the frump and frazzle, but I identified with the film every single moment it was on the screen.
I have never seen motherhood fictionalized so well (print or film) and it’s probably because a.) it hasn’t been and b.) it’s not really fiction. The film’s writer and director Katherine Dieckmann is a godsend to moms everywhere. Through her own experiences and her amazing sense of observation and storytelling ability, she has captured the ‘essence’ of motherhood and displayed it proudly and beautifully for all the world to see. (WE ARE MOTHER! HEAR US ROAR!) I was either laughing, nodding my head ‘yes!’, nudging my probably-annoyed daughter, crying, or some combination of those things (plus, eating Raisinets) during the entire movie.
The plot? It’s simply a day in the life of a mom. Sound boring? Well, if it sounds boring to you, then you are a complete douche jockey and you’re reading the wrong fucking blog.
A day in the life of a mom is what many of us do every day. Trying to write (or otherwise preserve a shred of our sanity) in-between laundry and soccer and errands and work and meal-making and all the CRAP WE DO is what bonds us as mothers who blog (I hate saying mommybloggers, sorry).
Trying to keep our heads above the quicksand of motherhood can be almost impossible on many a day. Sure, we have moments of motherhood perfection- the first time your boy brings you a flower in his tiny hand, the blissful breath of a child who’s fallen asleep in your arms as you read Goodnight Moon for the thousandth time, the rare hug from an appreciative teenager.
But most days it sucks. (Like in the poster- get it? Motherhood S.U.C.K.S. And silences us, like that big honkin bippy. Our voice is snuffed out by the needs of our kids, husbands, dogs, committees….) We’re exhausted, we’re disorganized and cluttered (or is that just me?), we feel unattractive, we hate the other perfect moms at the playground, we are lonely. The movie captures all of that and more. And since the more includes a mom getting off in the bathtub with a kid’s motorized submarine as her new boyfriend? It’s even cooler.
Ok, I’m not going to prattle on about it forever, though I could. Come over to Suite 101 and read my interview with the film’s Writer/Director Katherine Dieckmann, or check out the amazing piece she wrote herself for the Huffington Post (and oh, so much more eloquently than I, my friends) and most of all? Go see the movie. This opening weekend is key, because it determines if the film (which I’ve already saved on Netflix for when it’s released on DVD) will go into wider distribution. It should.
PAJAMAS AND COFFEE BONUS: I have a Motherhood film t-shirt and poster for one lucky reader! Tell me your funniest motherhood moment and I will randomly (because as we all know I am sooo random) choose one commenter to win the cool movie swag!
I will leave you with the words on motherhood Eliza pecks out on her blog at the end of this poignant, honest film:
“Feel fortunate, because chances are good that you actually might be.”
Saw your review on Twitter. I can't wait to see the movie!
So true:
Our voice is snuffed out by the needs of our kids, husbands, dogs, committees…. We’re exhausted, we’re disorganized and cluttered (or is that just me?), we feel unattractive, we hate the other perfect moms at the playground, we are lonely.
You said it perfectly.
Love this! Can't wait to see it (so hopefully it will do well this weekend and come to redneck hell – I live here, too).
Funniest mommy moment? Geez, if my brain wasn't mommified, I'd probably remember more of them, but here's one of my favorites:
My son was two and saw me changing my baby niece's diaper. He looked really confused and asked, "Girls have two butts, mommy?"
Wow! I hadn't heard of this movie, but if I'd seen a preview about a "real" motherhood movie I would have scoffed. But now I want to see it. Thanks.
Funny story? Um. Would that be 5 years ago on my son's first doctor's visit as a baby and I forgot (didn't think of it) to bring a diaper bag? Or when he projectile poohed on me? Nothing so funny since then.
I so totally can't wait to see this movie! Uma Thurman rocks! Funniest moment… let me see… oh the time that my son and his friends took our wiener dog Suzie out to play and got her stuck in a patch of mud in the open lot next door. Did not come in to tell me, but left her there stuck in the mud. My daughter went out to play and saw her stuck went to try to help her and got stuck herself! Yelling for me, I raced outside to see what was going on and she and the dog were stuck ankle deep in mud! I was trying to get them unstuck when I got frickin stuck too! Thank God we had awesome firemen neighbors! He came and saved us all! I was so embarrassed. I had to hose us all down in the yard because we all were muddy, then I made everyone get in the shower/tub…. Ahh, the days when my son was 8 and my daughter was 6. I can laugh about it now, but I cried that day…
I saw Uma on the Today show last week promoting this movie. I really want to see it and can totally relate with what you said in your post and also with the movie clips that they ran on the show.
There are too many funny moments around here – the first one that comes to mind is when my son was 7 and he woke up in the middle of the night totally disoriented. He came to the top of the stairs and I tried to talk to him, but he wasn't really there mentally. He dropped his pants and looked like he was going to start peeing over the landing into the family room. My husband and I flew up the steps and got him to the bathroom just in time. We put him back to bed and of course he didn't remember a dang thing the next morning. Unfortunately there were two times where he peed on his closet door and we didn't know it. And I thought these things didn't happen until college. At least he has stopped doing these things!
PS: Mary we went to HS together – I was year behind you. Love the blog.
Okay, you got me – I can't wait to see this movie now! It sounds completely true to life!
I do have a funny mother story that involves one son secretly peeing on the other's toothbrush – but it's much too long for your comment section. Perhaps I'll blog all the gory details someday myself. When I'm actually over it myself and can stop gagging.
Thanks for the movie review!
I can't wait! I am dying to see this and you only made me want to see it more!
The only moment that comes to mind is when my 7 year old was recently talking to his friend at school and his friend asked him 'what's that thing on your mom's face?' and he replied 'She says it's called a beauty mark' to which the friend responded 'EW! it's so gross' to which my one and only son replied 'Yeah, and it wears hair!'
I'm on my way to the clinic as we speak.
Hey, I like to think I'm reading the right fucking blog. Although I have to say I've never really learned anything about fucking. I've been meaning to say something… I don't generally *go* to movies, but I think I'll check this out!
Unfortunately, my funniest mom moments are usually funny because you'd be laughing AT me, and not me laughing. And those have had to be smothered with large volumes of wine and gin to allow me to proceed, so I don't tend to remember them very well! (partly kidding)
One I managed to document was here
Love Uma/Oprah whatever. Why didn't you call me? I would have gone with you. Except that I live in California and don't fly. I mean, what's with that plane overshooting the city by 150 miles because the pilot was distracted?! Wait, I'm rambling. Sorry. Great review. I'll be standing in line and thinking of you.
I can't wait to see the movie…I love reading your posts, you give me a laugh each and every time.
My funniest mom moment..my daughter at age 3 hated clothes and took every opportunity to take them off. She escaped out of the front door and proceeded to run down to the park next door where an old folks picnic was happening. I followed her trail of clothes to where she was entertaining them…never so embarassed in my life!
I asked why she did that and her answer.."I like being naked!" sigh
You know you should probably surround yourself with BETTER Mothers who blog friends! I say they SUCK if they couldn't get off their lazy, excuse slinging butts and fucking go with you! Shows them, the movie rocked and you walked away with swag AND raisinettes!
Crap now I want to see the freaking flick and it's not even going to show here! Note to film promotion company, There are MORE than enough mothers who blog that will show up for this movie JUST because it's about one of them (if we were 10 feet tall, hot and 10 years younger) to make you turn a profit and maybe even get you some Oscar buzz.. seeing has how we could just call up the moms of every douche at "the academy" and MAKE them vote for it!. So release the dam thing nationwide already and stop being a freakin' tease!!
Motherhood moment of the week: I had ONE day off this week. Let's be clear here- by "day off," I mean, a day out of the office, and home with my 10-month old. Now he's a precious little plop of cream cheese, and I love my time with him, but I was also looking forward to his naptime, which is my reading/writing time.
So anyway, we're on our way to take the Six year old to school, when he realizes he's forgotten his lunch bag and back pack. Ok, OK, no biggie. You can buy a school lunch, no problem. I'm trying not to make it a big deal and fuss at him, which I am wont to do. But THEN, as we pull into the school, he announces, "Yeah, and I forgot my shoes, too."
It's raining cats and dogs, and the kid has on socks only. Our school is 25 minutes from our house. And my house is located 5 minutes from the Home Offices of Wal-Mart. You know, the world's largest retailer? To say that traffic around my house is insane in the morning would be an understatement. I really just wanted to leave the school, go home, and get back in bed.
But, no way am I letting him have an absence over this. He walked into school in soggy red Dr. Suess socks. But I spent the majority of the rest of my morning driving around in the cold rain with my fussing baby, to retrieve and deliver bags and shoes for the boy.
And in the world of motherhood, that's a "day off."
I loved your review of the movie! I am bummed that it is not playing here in Orlando, Florida, but hopeful it will make it here.
My funniest moment so far (my son is only 17 mos old) was when he put a floater in the bathtub last week. I had no clue he pooped, he was playing and having such a grand time…then I noticed this thing floating. It didn't take me long to figure out what it was! Of course, my husband wussed out and I had to clean it out. GROSS!
I hope they release the movie else where! I'd love to see it, but live too far from the city, booo.
My funniest mom moment so far (or disturbing, depending on your sense of humor) would have to be… A couple weeks ago, my son (2) came into my room to wake me up in the morning (have no idea how I outslept him) and he was making weird swishing noises and yelling "Mama look at my light-saber!! Its so cool!!" At which point I hear vibrating noises, shoot out of bed, and yeeeeeeeeaa….somehow he discovered one of my, ahem, adult toys….. which has now been named My 'Special' Light-Saber….
My funniest moment was something that happened in the car. My middle daughter was about 4 and she was crying dramatically (some things never change) about something absurd like a hang nail. I made a huge deal of it and pretended to call 911 on my cell phone. I begged them to hurry and get to my child as fast as they could. Just when I was about to pull onto our road, an ambulance came flying around the corner, lights and sirens going. The timing was EPIC. I thought her eyes would pop out of her head!
very cool that you got to do that my friend! sounds like a good one.
I love the sound of that film, and hope it gets a UK release.
I need to think of my best motherhood story… I'm laughing hard at the ones posted already (especially Jessi's)
HI, I Love your stories, You Might find something useful over on my blogs, I too could have went to a screening Anyway KEEP Blogging.
themidnightwriter
Great review! Can't wait to see this. You capture stuff well my friend. Really well!
Won't share a funny moment, because I would win, and I live too far away for you to mail me a t-shirt.
I went an saw an advanced screening too, but I'm not sure if it's the same movie–my review was, well…slightly different.
Anyway, I'm glad you had a good time at the screening and enjoyed a great day in the city. What I can agree with you about is that Uma Thurman, even when she looks like crap, still looks amazing.
My (polar opposite) review: http://graymatter-matters.blogspot.com/2009/10/mo...
Okay….here's my funny/horrid moment. My 4 year old accident prone son (he's 25 now, so he made it)…who at this point had endured stitches, casts…well, you get me…..a bit of everything…until one evening…..when he came out of the bathroom…which by the way was his favorite place to sit and he always took a chair in there to sit in front of the commode…for what you ask? his snacks while he pooped…yeah, I'm that gross….what? it kept him busy for an endless amount of time!! so…he comes out of the bathroom and says he "can't get it all"…his poop that is…so I ask him to bend over…and to my horror I see his rectum hanging partially out….I think I remember my toes shaking first and then it went all the way up to my scalp…an ER visit later…a scolding of sitting on the pot to long…and all was back in place. It is now a funny story to tell…at the time…it was unbelievable. Have I just ruined funny story moments for your blog?
*sighs*
I love your review on the film. It is sooo true that most of us are just trying to survive in our lonely, crazy, frumpy world of reality with kids.
A very funny moment for my three boys, for me not so much, was when they go all excited during a conversation at a dinner party about the funny things that moms do and they in unison said, "mommy remember your funny story about how when you were a teenager, visiting a friend in Virginia, everybody was crying while watching Shindler's List and you sneezed and farted at the same time?"
The conversation went dead for a second followed by loud raucous laughter. After my face changed from white to red to normal, I was able to appreciate that I could be the source of such grand laughter.
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