The Voices of Our Mother, on Shudder

About all the only thing Harriet spared her children was wire-hanger trauma. Indeed, the damage done while she stood by, watching disinterestedly as her husband beat her four children, has probably irreparably poisoned their relationships. Not surprisingly, when she suffers a stroke, none of them is keen to care for her. However, they soon start to suspect Harriet might have literally had the devil in her. It will be a rough family reunion in director-screenwriter Mark O’Brien’s The Voices of Our Mother, which premieres this Friday on Shudder.

Only the family matriarch, Johanna, ever provided her grandchildren any degree of protection. Yet, she always coddled Harriet, to the point of infantilizing her. When she finally dies, Harriet predictably reacts badly. At first, her doctor assumes she suffered a stroke, but tests prove she is remarkably healthy physically.

Of course, once they reluctantly take her home, Harriet starts exhibiting Reagan MacNeil like behavior. Unfortunately, the dissension between the grown children makes them especially ill-equipped to deal with the crisis. William is on the verge of bankruptcy, so he resents every potential expense. He also resents his twin sister Theresa for stealing his girlfriend, who eventually became her now deceased wife. Younger brother Martin is a hopeless drug addict, who resents his siblings for a shameful secret to be revealed later in the film.

The youngest, Annika, took nun’s vows, so she might be the best prepared for the demonic terrors, but she somewhat resents herself, for largely abandoning her family when they most needed each other. However, helpful Father Roslovic might have insight into Harriet and Johanna that will help Annika confront the evil plaguing her family.

Honestly, O’Brien’s family dysfunction might be more terrifying than his demonic horror. That’s because his mercilessly and unforgiving dialogue is so believable. Judging from this film, O’Brien might be able to remake Mommie Dearest and somehow make it work (but he’s probably much better off sticking with the horror genre).

As it happens, the film also has an unusually strong message regarding the power of faith. It is almost tempting to recommend it to the Evangelical community, but pretty much every other aspect would likely put them off. Oh well.  Regardless, it shares a very Blatty-esque perspective on the existence and nature of good and evil.

O’Brien (who was terrific in the cancelled Copenhagen Test) also gives himself a considerable assist playing the extremely abrasive yet acutely sympathetic William. Likewise, Alex Ozerov-Meyer depicts Martin as a complete mess, but a very human mess. Plus, Shawn Doyle supplies a stabilizing down-to-earth counterbalance as the conscientious Father Roslovic, while Anna Ferguson appears almost eerily otherworldly in her scenes as Grandma Johanna.

As a result, there is constant tension, even when the characters are not directly in demonic harm’s way. To his great credit, O’Brien found ways to give the possession horror subgenre at least a couple of new twists. Highly recommended for horror fans, The Voices of Our Mother starts streaming this Friday (6/19) on Shudder.