‘Other Mommy’ Review: Jessica Chastain’s Horror Film Struggles To Deliver The Frights

Horror movies have a fairly straightforward job description. They are supposed to make you jump, keep you on edge or leave you checking the shadows long after the credits roll. "Other Mommy" seems to have misplaced that memo. Despite a premise that promises an unsettling supernatural presence and a child caught in its grip, the film is far more interested in making noise than sending a chill down your spine.

At its centre is a relatively simple but intriguing idea. A supernatural entity begins entering people's bodies, including that of a mother named Ursula, played by Jessica Chastain. The spirit earns its ominous nickname, Other Mommy, while another possessed figure is dubbed Other Kevin, setting up a world where familiar faces may not be quite as familiar as they seem. There is the regular Kevin, the babysitter, the other Kevin and a mother who may or may not be herself. Keeping track of who is who is practically a horror subgenre in its own right.

The entity has one apparent objective: it wants to get inside a child's heart. Why this is so important is never explained with enough clarity to make the mystery compelling. The film introduces supernatural rules and ominous developments without giving its audience much of a reason to invest in them. There is also Frank, played by Arian Moayed, the man Ursula is having an affair with, a secret that is hardly a secret to anyone around them. But infidelity is the least of everyone's problems once the supernatural business begins.

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Frank’s fate is particularly bizarre. After Bella wishes for Uncle Frank to be taken care of, Other Mommy appears to interpret the request in a rather permanent way. It is the sort of development that should make you wonder how far the entity’s powers extend. Instead, it leaves you wondering whether the film has a clear idea of its own supernatural rules.

For much of its runtime, “Other Mommy” feels less like a horror film and more like a supernatural action thriller. There is plenty of commotion, an abundance of loud sound effects and enough activity to suggest that something terrifying must be happening. Yet the actual scares are few and far between. Even the moments that seem designed for a jump scare lack the tension needed to make them effective. Volume, after all, is not the same thing as fear.

The second half does attempt to turn up the intensity. There are moments when the film briefly finds its visual footing, particularly a sequence involving ultraviolet light that makes the ghosts appear more striking and gives the supernatural proceedings a welcome visual jolt. It is arguably the most exciting stretch of the film, offering a glimpse of the eerie atmosphere the story could have sustained throughout.

Unfortunately, the escalation does little to raise the stakes. More things happen, but the action never quite builds towards a satisfying payoff. The film keeps adding to its supernatural chaos without making the central mystery any more gripping. It is a little like being promised a roller coaster, only to discover that the ride is mostly loud machinery and a few interesting lights.

Then comes the ending, which seems to arrive before the film has finished explaining itself. What happens to Other Mommy? What exactly was the entity trying to achieve? Where does Bella stand after everything that unfolds? The credits roll, leaving these questions hanging in the air. An ambiguous ending can be effective when it gives audiences something to debate. Here, the abrupt conclusion feels less like a deliberate mystery and more like the film has run out of time to finish its own story.

The performances offer some relief. Arabella Olivia Clark, who plays Bella, brings a convincing presence to the proceedings, helping ground a story that often struggles to make its supernatural elements feel coherent. Jessica Chastain as Ursula also holds her own, lending the character a sense of presence amid the confusion. Their work gives the film something human to hold on to, even when the narrative begins to lose its grip.