In honor of Mother’s Day, my book, 50 Must-See Movies: Mothers will be free from May 9-14, 2025.

No relationship is more primal, more fraught, more influential, more worried over, more nourishing when good and more devastating when bad that our connection to our mothers. The first eyes to look at us with love, the first arms to hold us, Mom is the one who first keeps us fed and warm, who applauds our first steps and kisses our scrapes and takes our temperature by kissing our forehead.  She’s also the one who keeps people in endless years of psychoanalysis for failing to make her children feel loved and safe.  Mom inspires a lot of movies in every possible category, from comedy to romance to drama to crime to animation to horror, from the lowest-budget indie to the biggest-budget prestige film.  A lot of women have been nominated for Oscars for playing mothers and just about every actress over age 20 has appeared as a mother in at least one movie.

There are innumerable ways of mothering and all of them show up in the movies.  There are cookie-baking, apron-wearing mothers who always know just the right comforting thing to say.  There are stylish, sophisticated, wealthy mothers and mothers who do not have enough money to feed their children.  There are mothers with PhDs and mothers who cannot read.  There are mothers of every race and religion and many species on earth and in outer space (remember “Alien”). 

There are terrifying mothers who abuse or abandon their children or coldly deploy them like weapons of mass destruction. There are mothers who give good advice and endless support and mothers who try to push their children to take the wrong jobs and marry the wrong people.  There are super-strict mothers and super-lax mothers, mothers who want to know every detail of their children’s lives even when they are grown up and mothers who barely remember that they have any children at all even when they are young.  There are mothers of children with special needs who fight fiercely to make sure they have the fullest and most independent lives they can.  There are children who love and support their mothers and children who break their mothers’ hearts with their selfishness and cruelty.

And there are those very special souls who remind us that motherhood does not require a biological connection.  Stepmothers and adoptive mothers are as vitally important on screen as they are in the lives of those lucky enough to be mothered by them.

“A boy’s best friend is his mother,” says a character whose mother is central to the story even though she never appears in the film.  (Spoiler alert: the quote comes from Norman Bates in “Psycho.”)  In “Stop or My Mom Will Shoot,” tough guy Sylvester Stallone plays a cop who mother comes along on his investigation whether he wants her to or not.  In “Oedipus Wrecks,” one of three short films that make up the compilation “New York Stories,” Woody Allen plays a lawyer whose mother finds the ultimate way to embarrass him.  And don’t get me started on Jason’s mother in the “Friday the 13^th” movies.  

I have selected 50 of my favorite movie mothers, including classic films like “The Sound of Music” and “Little Women” along with forgotten or overlooked films like “Stella Dallas,” “Claudia and David,” and “Dear Frankie.”  Actresses like Anne Revere and Spring Byington made careers out of wonderful performances as mothers and I have included some of their best.  I have a special affection for those based on real-life mothers, especially those based on the mothers of the writers who told their stories, like Sally Field’s Oscar-winning performance in “Places in the Heart.”  But it is clear that in some way each of the mothers in these movies is inspired by the unique joys and frustrations of the woman we love first.

I’m glad to say this is not yet another re-working of one of Jane Austen’s books, with a modern-day heroine being too quick to judge a moody but honorable Darcy and too slow to judge a superficially charming but immoral Wickham. Instead, it is not Elizabeth Bennett Agathe (Camille Rutherford) despairs of becoming; it is Austen herself.

Agathe works at the legendary Shakespeare and Co, the English-language bookstore in Paris, but she dreams of being a writer. Okay, there is some initial hostility leading to attraction here, though none of Austen’s heroines accidentally walked stark naked into the bedroom of a man she’d just met. But as people in Paris might say, “Autres temps, autres mœurs.”

She has written some chapters — a romance, of course — but the trauma of losing her parents in a car accident and her own insecurity keep her from making any progress. She also cannot ride in a car, move out of her sister’s apartment, or begin a romantic relationship of her own. When her co-worker and best friend Felix (Pablo Pauly) submits an application in her name to a “Jane Austen” writer’s retreat, she begins to take the steps to move forward with her work and with her life. Rutherford makes Agathe very appealing and the screenplay by director Laura Piani, has warmth and charm. There is even a discussion about the value of stories that connected to Austen’s defense of the novel in Northanger Abbey.

The retreat is run by a warm-hearted but slightly eccentric couple, Beth (Liz Crowther) and Todd (Alan Fairbairn). We do not spend much time with the other writers at the retreat except to see that they are all writing while Agnethe is not.

Like Elizabeth in Pride and Prejudice, Marianne in Sense and Sensibility, Catherine in Northanger Abbey, and Anne in Persuasion, Emma in Emma, and Fanny in Mansfield Park, Agathe has to decide between two archetypical romantic possibilities. Will it be the friends-to-lovers Felix, who kisses her when he drops her off at the retreat? Agathe worries that he will “breadcrumb” her, alternating leading her on and ignoring her. Or will it be the enemies-to-lovers Oliver (Charlie Anson), the son of the couple who run the retreat who is a professor of contemporary literature and clashes with her immediately and then accidentally sees her naked?

Rutherford is an appealing heroine and the story is gently told, respectful of Agathe’s difficulty in recovering from trauma. While the romantic resolution is satisfying, it is not the solution, but rather a reflection of the courage and determination Agathe has relied on in addressing the issues that keeping her stuck. Miss Austen would approve.

Parents should know that this movie has nudity, non-explicit sexual situations, and sexual references. Characters drink, smoke, and use strong language.

Family discussion: Why did Agathe and her sister react so differently to the loss of their parents? Which man did you think Agathe would end up with and why?

If you like this, try: “Austenland” with Keri Russell, and of course Jane Austen’s books and the many movie adaptations

As he did with “Spinning Gold,” based on his father’s career in music, writer/director Timothy Scott Bogart has Temu-ed a great story and it is barely watchable. This time, it is Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet,” which he has renamed “Juliet & Romeo,” made some changes to the characters and storyline, reworked the dialogue so instead of exquisite poetry in iambic pentameter it’s more like college kids exchanging texts.

However, the fabulous production design by the brilliant Dante Ferretti and beautiful cinematography by Byron Werner are top-notch and the sword fights are ably staged. Oh, and this is a musical, with pop torch songs by Evan Kidd Bogart, who is a producer of the film, the composer of Beyonce’s hit, “Halo,” and Timothy Scott Bogart’s brother.

It isn’t as though we don’t already have a straightforward but artistic version in Franco Zeffirellis version with teenagers playing the young lovers and a sublime version with 20th century flair but Shakespeare’s language, in Baz Luhrman’s “Romeo + Juliet,” starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes.

This version begins a scene-setting intro that lets us know immediately what’s in store. Not just because we see the tragic couple dead before the story flashes back to three days earlier, but because Shakespeare’s

Two households, both alike in dignity
 (In fair Verona, where we lay our scene),
 From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,
 Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.
 From forth the fatal loins of these two foes
 A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life;
 Whose misadventured piteous overthrows
 Doth with their death bury their parents’ strife.

becomes an “in the last episode”-style update somewhere between Shakespeare and the crawl at the beginning of “The Phantom Menace.”

We get a few Shakespearean crumbs just to remind us of what we’re missing. There are a couple of references to “what’s in a name,” and one to “all’s well that ends well.” But most of the dialogue is at the level of “I’m okay,” “You’re a great kisser,” and the repeated song lyric, “I knew that my heart would never be the same.” At one point Romeo sort of proposes by telling Juliet he wants to “turn our prose into poetry.” This screenplay has done the reverse.

Parents should know that this movie, like the play that inspired it, has fight scenes including sword fights, with characters injured and killed, and an apparent suicide. There are sexual references.

Family discussion: If you were going to update this story, what would you do? Why has this story continued to enthrall audiences for more than 500 years?

If you like this, try: “Rosaline,” a sharp, witty re-telling of the Romeo and Juliet story from the perspective of the young woman Romeo was in love with before he met Juliet, the Oscar-winning “Shakespeare in Love,” and the Baz Luhrmann and Franco Zeffirelli versions of Shakespeare’s play and

Swamp Dogg is not the typical musician and this is not the typical documentary about a musician. The movie, directed by three people:  Isaac Gale, Ryan Olson, and David McMurry, and written by four: Andrew Broder, Isaac Gale, Paul Lovelace, and Ryan Olson. The mosaic quality of film, messy, imaginative, zig-zaggy, fits the subject. The off-beat title — note the passive voice as well as the reference to an activity that we drop in on now and then as we meander through Swamp Dogg’s life and his past, which meanders now and then, too.

A pause for some non-meandering, linear background. Swamp Dogg is the stage name for a musician, songwriter, and producer named Jerry Williams. AllMusic writes: “Raunchy, satirical, political, and profane, Swamp Dogg is one of the great cult figures of American music.” His career spanned Southern soul, “eccentric” electronics, acoustic roots music, and rap (he was an early producer for Dr. Dre). His music was often provocative, with commentary on sensitive social and political issues. He now lives in the San Fernando Valley, sharing a house that has a pool with musicians Guitar Shorty and Moogstar and hanging out with performers and artists like Johnny Knoxville, SpongeBob’s Tom Kenny, and Mike Judge.

Swamp Dogg and his housemates and friends spent a lot of time sitting by the pool, casually chatting. These moments are surrounded by archival footage, including what looks like a bare-bones public access show hosted by a fan and some home movies made on one of the earliest videocameras. Those unfamiliar with Swamp Dogg will begin to understand his influence when we see him wander through a hallway in his home, passing a dozen or more gold records framed on the wall.

Those who then wonder why we are unfamiliar will get a sense of it when we see some of his work, like the album cover with him riding a giant rat. (One of the film’s highlights is when his friend, apparently not understanding how editing photography works or even that it exists, asks him where he found that giant rat.)

This movie is a pleasure on several levels, first as the discovery of a fascinating musician and his role in a remarkable variety of hit songs, second as a emblematically American version of a resolute original with a wildly generative and generous life, and third as a near idyllic story of a life of creation and support of others who want to create. It is also a story of loving family; Swamp Dogg’s neurologist daughter Jeri Williams’ love for her father is wonderfully touching.

And yes, that pool does get painted, and the final image is chef’s kiss.

Parents should know that this movie includes strong language and references to sex, drugs, and alcohol. There are references to sad deaths and family dysfunction.

Family discussion: Which of Swamp Dogg’s productions do you like the best and why? Would you like to live in a house of musicians?

If you like this, try: “Dolemite Is My Name” and “Muscle Shoals”

I liked “Thunderbolts* (note the asterisk) a lot, but it will be divisive. Some people don’t want to delve into the mental health struggles of anyone, including a superhero or supervillain. They’re just there for the punches, powers, explosions, and special effects. But as I watched the film, I thought about how many superheroes experienced devastating trauma before gaining their powers and/or dedication to saving the world. Bruce Wayne saw his parents killed by a mugger when he was a child. Superman lost his family and his whole planet. Spidey was living with his aunt and uncle, so had already lost his parents before Uncle Ben was killed. Tony Stark had dad issues. Black Widow was trained to be a child assassin.

“Thunderbolts*” is a “Suicide Squad”/”Guardians of the Galaxy”-style superhero story about a group of damaged, distrustful loners with superpowers who have to do more than just band together for all the punching and explosions. They have to begin to heal themselves. And I am completely here for it, plus for finding out the meaning of the asterisk, which I enjoyed very much. And yes, you do need to stay all the way through the credits for a final scene that teases what’s coming next.

Before I get to the superheroes, I want to talk about the villain(s). I always say that it is the villains more than the heroes that matter most in a comic book movie (and in some other places as well, as Milton showed us in Paradise Lost). Julia Louis-Dreyfus is one of the all-time great villains as Valentina, the ultra-wealthy corporate CEO turned Director of the CIA (though with current Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s streak of silver hair, just a coincidence, I’m sure). Some villains have great evil smiles. Louis-Dreyfus has a great social smile exuding the supreme confidence and power of the .001% while all-but-hiding the voracious all-consuming drive for power and utter disregard of the rights or value of anyone in her way.

We first see Yelena (Florence Pugh), still in mourning for her sister, Natasha (The Black Widow) and almost by rote working as an operative for Valentina. She is numb and lonely and lacks purpose. She tells Valentina she wants out, but agrees to one last job, in a remote lab where Valentina’s company once performed experiments, trying to find a formula to give superpowers to her subjects.

She ends up fighting Captain America (Wyatt Russell as John Walker), Ava Starr/Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), and another super-character who doesn’t last long, before they figure out that they are all there for the same reason, to die, because they have become problems for Valentina. At this point, a guy who seems to be the opposite of super in any way wanders in wearing pajamas, with no memory of pretty much anything except his name. He is Bob (Lewis Pullman, in his second “just Bob” role after “Top Gun: Maverick”).

Yelena, John, and Ava do not trust each other, but the only way to stay alive is to work together. The escape works well in moving the plot and character development forward as well as being fun to watch. And that’s pretty much the vibe for the rest of the film.

Valentina thought her program to turn humans into supers failed, meaning they all died. But somehow Bob survived and that changes her plan. And the people she describes as “defective losers, anti-social tragedy in human form” may not have the cool powers and (mostly) good manners of the Avengers, but they are all struggling toward being something better. That means dealing with sad and scary feelings like loss and trauma, with the characters catapulted into immersive re-creations of their most painful moments. Will they finally find a way to become, a, what’s the word, team? The good news is that by the end of the film, we hope so.

NOTE: Stay through the credits for a mid-credit scene and a teaser at the end for what’s coming next.

Parents should know that this is a superhero movie with non-stop peril and action-style violence including automatic weapons and fantasy powers. Characters are injured and killed, including a child. Mental health and trauma are themes of the film. Characters use some strong language and there are drug references and alcohol.

Family discussion: What is the best way to discover your purpose? How did the childhood experiences of Yelena and Bob affect the way they saw themselves? How is Valentina different from other villains in superhero movies?

If you like this, try: “Guardians of the Galaxy” and the Avengers movies