‘Other Mommy’ Review: Jessica Chastain Commits Admirably to an Otherwise Flimsy Supernatural Chiller

Following 2013’s Mama and 2024’s Mothers’ Instinct , Jessica Chastain returns yet again to the Matri-verse for one last job in Other Mommy , a demon horror about a not-so-imaginary, and not-so-friendly, imaginary friend. Directed by Rob Savage ( Host , The Bogeyman ) and written by Nathan Elston (based on Josh Malerman’s novel Incidents Around the House ), Other Mommy is a fanciful, only occasionally spooky portrait of a young child processing domestic strife while being stalked by a nefarious entity.

It’s a clever conceit, to anthropomorphize a child’s sense that something is wrong in her family unit. All too often, it’s assumed that little ones aren’t able to perceive what’s happening around them, but of course they are osmosing information all the time and can be quite sensitive to ripples of discord and the furtive whisper of secrets even if they don’t fully understand their meaning. In the case of 7-year-old Bela (talented newcomer Arabella Olivia Clark), vague discord surrounds her parents’ marriage. Mom Ursula (Chastain) is busy with her career and mostly leaves the childcare to her husband, Russell ( Jay Duplass ), a fun-loving goof of a dad who seems a little sad in the presence of his wife. Ursula and Russell are tense and pinched around one another; a few context clues soon tell us what is ailing their union. Related Stories Movies 'Other Mommy' First Reactions: "Jessica Chastain's Worst Movie in a Long Time" Beyond the Book 'Other Mommy,' 'Whalefall' and 'Victorian Psycho': The Authors Behind the Page-to-Screen Nightmares Compare Notes Other Mommy The Bottom Line Not possessed of a good story. Release date: Friday, October 9 Cast: Jessica Chastain, Jay Duplass, Arabella Olivia Clark, Arian Moayed, Karen Allen Director: Rob Savage Screenwriter: Nathan Elston Rated R, 1 hour 33 minutes

Because Ursula is often off doing mysterious things (like her job, and maybe something else), Bela entertains herself by talking and playing with something she calls Other Mommy, a spirit or demon of some kind who looks just like Ursula, but is more doting and loving than the distracted, chillier real thing. Well, at least we’re told that Other Mommy has been a good companion to Bela in the past. In the scope of the film, Other Mommy starts creepy and only gets more so. In that way, the film is missing a sense of dreadful build-up that might help its scares sink in deeper. As is, Savage’s film is an attractive but mostly vacuous collection of jumpy bits and half-baked mythology.