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'Goodnight Mommy' a chilling look at our own darkness

"Goodnight Mommy," from Austrian directors Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala, doesn't want to merely scare us.

It intends to absolutely horrify us, send us out of the theater with the screaming meemies, cause us nightmares and even incite anger. And it could force us to consider the thin line separating our civilized selves from our darker natures.

Promotional materials claim that "Goodnight Mommy" is on par with "The Shining" and "Dead Ringers." I say it's closer to "Lord of the Flies" and a disturbing 1976 Kris Kristofferson drama "The Sailor Who Fell From Grace With the Sea."

After opening with what appears to be a field homage to "Children of the Corn," "Goodnight Mommy" introduces us to twin brothers Lukas and Elias (played by brothers Lukas and Elias Schwarz). They begin to suspect that the bandaged woman who came home from the hospital following a terrible car accident may, in fact, not be their actual mother, as she claims.

Mom (Susanne Wuest) slinks around the house, demanding silence and darkness. She is rude, even dismissive of the boys, who become more convinced something has happened to their real mother.

How can they make her tell them the truth?

The rest of "Goodnight Mommy" devotes itself to that question, first answered when the boys tie the woman to her bed and begin interrogating her in ways that make waterboarding seem like kind treatment. (Let's just say things get really nasty after the boys super-glue her lips together.)

At times, the boys wear tribal masks, contrasting with the bandage mask worn by Mom. (The film asks, are we real, or do we mask our true natures in daily life?)

Cinematographer Martin Gschlacht's richly saturated widescreen shots contrast the woodsy outdoors with the family's sterile upscale house, significantly adorned with what appear to be blurred portraits of Mom. Who is she, really?

I cannot possibly reveal my biggest disappointment with this film without messing up its narrative integrity. Yes, it's a haunting work superbly edited for maximum effect, scored (by Olga Neuwirth) with nerve-jangling precision, and performed with chilling, deadpan seriousness by its cast.

I only wish the filmmakers had been less transparent in the beginning for the sake of what happens at the end. But then, I'm masking my point.

<b>"Goodnight Mommy" opens at the Music Box Theatre, Chicago. Rated R for nudity, violence. 99 minutes.</b> ★ ★ ★

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