Nightbitch takes a clever approach to its titular metaphor, and Marielle Heller approaches the film’s themes about the messiness of motherhood and wifehood with raw truth. Amy Adams is the film’s central magic, weaving in the film’s narrative about a woman whose upsetness with her life and anger waiting to burst out is hidden underneath her love for taking care of her family. But is that really all there is to life?
The film will also resonate with audiences, especially women, for its perspective on motherly strength and sacrifices, and the messy emotions that come with them. Alongside Adams is Scoot McNairy as her husband, whose heart is in the right place but is clueless to where he can be doing better. Where the film stumbles is in its uneven execution of is strong vision. The humor misses the mark as much as it’ll make you laugh out loud, and the narration from Adams’ character is overblown and breaks the golden “show don’t tell” rule. It’s a film that’s nowhere near as tedious as it is entertaining, but does occasionally feel irritating for all its audacity, occasionally remaining too comfortable in familiar family drama territory. The commentary may hit home for many mothers in the audience, but it doesn’t end up as consistently daring as it thinks it is, and though it’s more risky than some of Heller’s other films, it doesn’t pack the same heft, either.
3/5
Review by: Gal Balaban