Serial Mom (1994)

I've been gradually going through the filmography of famous (and infamous) director John Waters over the past year. From his disgusting and yet odd charming early exploitation work on films like "Pink Flamingos" and "Desperate Living," through his weirdly mainstream streak with movies like "Hairspray" and "Crybaby," Waters has always been a fearless and blazing presence in the world of cinema. Unafraid to make movies about anyone and anything.

And the dark comedy "Serial Mom" might be one of his best films!

Kathleen Turner stars as Beverly Sutphin, seemingly the ideal suburban housewife with a swell husband (Sam Waterston) and two kids (Ricki Lake, Matthew Lillard). However, Beverly hides a peculiar secret from her family. And that secret? That's she's totally nuts, and is picking off their neighbors one-by-one!

The central conceit of the film is of course the humorous juxtaposition of an oh-so-perfect sitcom-style family and the fact that the mother is, well... a blithering, homicidal lunatic. Waters mines this clever premise for all that it's worth, supplying an array of sequences that range from cringey and creepy to diabolically hilarious. And it's mostly quite effective, provided you have a taste for black humor. The film also serves as a nice lampooning of the true-crime genre, which was booming around the time of the movie's release, and continues to remain popular to this day. It gives the film a nice quality where it still feels somewhat relevant all these years later.

Star Turner gives a fantastic performance as our lunatic lead. Her Beverly is both charming and off-putting... warm and yet intimidating. Turner plays it on a razor's edge, and it works perfectly for the material. Waterston is a lot of fun as her in-way-over-his-head husband. He brings a certain charm to the character. And I quite liked Lake and Lillard in their parts as Beverly's kids. Especially the adorable Lake, who is always incredibly likeable.

Waters films always have a strange quaintness to them that I've quite liked. Even his most disgusting of efforts have a peculiar feeling of being old-fashioned and storybook-like. Like a 50's sitcom gone bad. And I think that style really lends itself well to this story. Like I said above, it gives ample opportunity for juxtaposition and contrast. And Waters quirky personal touches are all over the movie.

It's not for everyone, but I'd definitely recommend "Serial Mom" as not only one of Waters' best films, but also one of his more accessible adult-oriented films. And if you like it? I'd say start branching out and checking out his weirder films like "Polyester" and "A Dirty Shame." And if your stomach agrees with those, continue exploring his filmography.

I'm giving "Serial Mom" a 4.5 out of 5. (Rounding up to 5 for MovieMistakes).

TedStixon

-30/10.Just what's funny here? That hack actress Kathleen Turner's compulsive mother character is a killer who kills for whatever the reason? This touched a raw nerve with me as she seemed to be OCD and I'm that too. I've gotten mad at people like my mother when they do things they know I'd hate like putting things that had been outside under my bathroom sink, my mother's big on Covid 19 paranoia.Here Beverly Sutphin is just one of the most reprehensible characters ever thought up.Clearly the writer had mother issues so he thought it'd be real funny to write a comedy where a mother's a serial killer.Ha, ha, comedy gold.If anyone thinks this is great comedy then they're to be pitied.

Rob245