‘Four Mothers’ Review: James McArdle Delights in a Toasty-Warm Irish Mother-Son Comedy

variety.com:

Guy Lodge Film Critic That the mother-son film movie remains, for some reason, the least-covered quadrant when it comes to parent-child relationships on screen may say something about patriarchal bias in the industry — though the best examples say plenty themselves about how men are raised and made.

A modestly framed domestic comedy with surprising reserves of wisdom and sadness, Darren Thornton‘s thoroughly disarming sophomore feature “Four Mothers” earns itself a place in the mother-son pantheon only a few minutes in, as mild-mannered writer Edward (James McArdle) helps his disabled mother Alma (Fionnula Flanagan) select and put on an outfit for the day, drily hamming up the routine to distract from the pain of her dependency.

A simple scene of reversed care roles, it’s nonetheless rare in its everyday tenderness, and sets the tone for a film packed with similarly lovely, unforced observations.

A world premiere at the London Film Festival, where it played in the main competition, “Four Mothers” marks a welcome return for Irish writer-director Thornton, whose 2016 debut “A Date for Mad Mary” wasn’t quite the breakout it deserved to be after winning hearts on the festival circuit.