Mafia Mamma – Film Review

A mild-mannered suburban mum unexpectedly inherits her late grandfather’s mafia empire in Italy. Guided by the firm’s trusted consigliere, she hilariously defies everyone’s expectations as she finds herself stuck in the middle of a deadly mob war.

Toni Collette – you’re so much better than this! Her newest film Mafia Mamma makes me sad in ways that I didn’t expect. Only five years ago, she delivered one of the best performances of all-time in one of the best movies of all, Ari Aster‘s Hereditary.

Fast-forward to now and she’s starring in… this? Perhaps she really needed the extra bit of money to scrape by or, somehow, she read the script and thought it sounded great. To be fair, Collette usually tends to star in more comedic stuff rather than anything too deathly serious, which is why it’s surprising she even starred in Hereditary at all.

But it definitely does suck to see her star in one of the worst movies of the year – Mafia Mamma. This is a painfully boring movie that never knows exactly what it wants to be. It’s almost completely devoid of laughs as well, which is a problem since this is supposed to be a lighthearted comedy.

With a weak script, unconvincing performances, and poor direction, this movie falls flat in every possible way. The script lacks coherence, and the storyline is poorly developed, making it challenging to connect with the characters or feel invested in their story. The dialogue is clunky and often feels forced, with characters saying things that feel out of character or unrealistic.

The film also suffers from poor direction, with Catherine Hardwicke failing to create a cohesive vision for the movie. The pacing is slow, and the film drags on for what feels like an eternity, making it hard to maintain interest in the story. The cinematography is also lackluster, with many scenes feeling poorly framed or lit. The result is a movie that is visually unappealing and fails to capture the viewer’s attention.

Honestly though, the film’s attempt at comedy is what bothered me the most, with most of the jokes feeling forced and falling short of the mark. The humor is much more likely to make the viewer cringe than laugh. The result is a movie that fails to elicit any emotional response from the audience, leaving them feeling indifferent or uncomfortable.

Mafia Mamma is a disappointing film that fails to deliver on its promise. With a weak script, poor direction, unconvincing performances, and low production values, this movie falls short in every possible way.