TIFF 2024 Review: Nightbitch – “we all need to feel the freedom to run free”

Courtesy of TIFF

“What fresh hell awaits you today?” Amy Adams‘ character (known simply as Mother) asks herself in the mirror.

And haven’t we all been there?  Mother or not, sometimes facing the day ahead seems monumental.

For her, the day includes trying to entertain her young son, and just keeping it together.  She is, from all observation, a great mom, creating a nurturing and loving environment for the toddler.  She even takes him to a much dreaded sing-along group at the library where she has no interest in the banality of the songs or commiserating with the other mums, who only want to hear about her career as an artist.  But that life seems so far away.  And she misses it.

Her husband (Scoot McNairy) is away often for work and just doesn’t understand.  What’s so hard about bath time when you just have to scroll social media on the toilet while your toddler entertains themselves?  In fact, ‘Husband’ is pretty useless and doesn’t recognize that his wife is drowning and overwhelmed.  He means well enough, and McNairy doesn’t come off as completely unsympathetic here, not an easy task all things considered.  Yet, he doesn’t even recognize his own wife.  “She died in childbirth,” she notes.  She doesn’t know who she is anymore, her previous identity erased to now just be Mother.

But then strange things start happening to Mother.  Her sense of smell is heightened.  Her canine teeth seem to be sharper.  She even sprouts some extra nipples that weren’t there before.  The neighbourhood dogs seem super interested in her existence and start leaving ‘gifts’ on her doorstep.  Until finally one night, her transformation is complete, and she runs, fully formed as a dog, a primal urge and her deep-seated rage, rising up as she runs free under the moonlight.

So yes, Nightbitch asks you to suspend some belief here.  The transformation of Mother is somewhat explained through a book about magical women the local librarian (Stacey Swift) gives her.  And it’s never quite clear whether these things are overtly happening or all in Mother’s mind.  But it doesn’t truly matter.  Marielle Heller, adapting from the book by Rachel Yoder (that is sadly still sitting in my ‘to be read’ pile) isn’t here to convince you of the fantasy or horror elements of this story.  She’s here to provide a fresh, honest, and completely feminist discussion of, not only motherhood but womanhood.   You know, the less glamorous side that Instagram influencers and skin care advertisers don’t want you to think exists.  She shows and says things that are rarely discussed, let alone depicted in film (keep normalizing periods!).  And she wants to know that all those thoughts you have, well you’re not alone.

Her partner in all of this is Amy Adams, who is absolutely fearless in her performance, and game for anything.  Whether it is eating out of a dog dish, being covered in dirt, or just running with the pack.  She is the new queen of the death stare so far as I’m concerned but, she’s also incredibly funny, bringing humour to this ‘tail’ (sorry not sorry) of inner rage.  She also has incredible and essential chemistry with the very young co-star(s) playing her son.  Through everything, Adams’ commitment is the thread that holds all the elements of Nightbitch together.  People do seem hellbent on getting Adams her Oscar.  Is this the role that will do it? I’m not sure, but it’s certainly an admirable addition to her already impressive filmography.

My two cents is to completely ignore the absolutely horrendous trailer of Nightbitch that was released.  It does this film no favours, making it seem silly and nonsensical.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  The beauty of Nightbitch is that neither Heller nor Adams hold back.  And it’s that honesty that makes this film work.  “How many women have delayed their greatness while the men around them didn’t know what to do with theirs?” the script astutely asks.  Clearly Adams and Heller are not examples of this, but they’ve perhaps felt the pull, the difficult balance between motherhood and self-identity.  Their plea is for no one else to put their greatness on hold either.  Whether a mother or not, we all need to feel the freedom to run free and keep discovering ourselves.  For our greatness to be ‘unleashed.’

Nightbitch had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival September 7. 2024.  For more information head to tiff.net.

Animal warning with spoiler alert: For those sensitive to scenes with animals, there is a dead cat depicted as well as SEVERAL wild animals.  They are all killed off screen however.  However, know that the dog they used to depict Amy Adams’ character was found at a shelter, trained and adopted! So overall, a win.