Jennifer Lopez’s New Action Movie Is Crushing The Competition On Netflix
Jennifer Lopez stars in The Mother, currently topping Netflix charts across the globe.
Jennifer Lopez has a new action movie out on Netflix, and it’s dominating the streaming charts, according to FlixPatrol. At the time of this article being published, The Mother is sitting at number number 3 on the worldwide Netflix top 10 rankings, and is most certainly giving Blood & Gold and Tin & Tina a run for their money. Despite its mixed critical reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, The Mother is boasting a 65 percent audience score on the review site, which is generally seen as a favorable number.
The Mother isn’t Jennifer Lopez’s first time flexing her action movie muscles. This most recent effort may be a far cry from 1998’s Out of Sight, which co-starred George Clooney and Ving Rhames, but the general consensus is that The Mother is not without its own charm. The overall sentiment is that Lopez carries the film and delivers a memorable performance despite the derivative nature of the script which follows the typical “my familiar something was kidnapped by some really bad people” beats that we’ve all seen before.
But it’s worth noting that most action movies follow a specific formula, so we can’t fault this film too much for doing the same. What’s worthy of consideration, however, is considering how the formula is executed and what kind of performance Jennifer Lopez delivers despite these boundaries. Though we’ve seen similar cat-and-mouse games play out in other films, the mother/daughter dynamic makes The Mother unique enough to grab our attention.
One thing that we know for certain is that Jennifer Lopez delivers a performance in The Mother that allows us to forgive her for starring in the abysmal Gigli alongside Ben Affleck, Al Pacino, and Christopher Walken.
The premise of The Mother is simple enough: Jennifer Lopez portrays the titular character whose real name is not revealed in the film. The Mother finds herself in hot water after brokering an arms smuggling deal in which she becomes romantically involved with both the arms dealer and the ex-SAS Captain, leading to her pregnancy. When The Mother finds out that these men are also involved in child trafficking, she attempts to turn them over to the FBI.
When the FBI safe-house gets raided, The Mother sustains injuries that cause her to have a premature birth. Knowing that her newborn daughter Zoe will never have a regular life under these circumstances, The Mother reluctantly puts her up for adoption under the conditions that Zoe will be safe from harm, and that she can see a photo of her every year on her birthday. At this point in the film, The Mother lives an isolated life in Alaska, but it’s only a matter of time before Jennifer Lopez is forced to channel her inner Liam Neeson when Zoe is kidnapped.
The Mother initially rescues Zoe and brings her back to Alaska to give her a crash course in survival training, but her location is compromised, causing her to flee once again. Jennifer Lopez and Lucy Paez do an excellent job highlighting the relationship between an estranged mother and daughter who have been reunited under extenuating circumstances. Though their relationship is not without conflict, Zoe recognizes The Mother’s devotion to her safety, and ultimately understands that being put up for adoption was the only way she could have a normal childhood.
If Jennifer Lopez’s performance didn’t win you over in The Mother, it’s safe to say that 14-year-old Lucy Paez delivered a memorable performance that will surely give her career a shot in the arm. When you look at Jennifer Lopez and Lucy Paez side-by-side, it’s clear that this was the right casting call to make because their resemblance is striking.
The Mother saw its Netflix premiere on May 12, 2023, and has plenty of action sequences that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Though some criticism about the film being a bit cliché is valid, this film is still worthy of your undivided attention if you’re into the action thriller genre. Not only does Jennifer Lopez show us that she’s still got the goods to carry the lead role in an action film at the age of 50, her chemistry with Omari Hardwick, Joseph Fiennes, Gael Garcia Bernal, and especially Lucy Paez is unmatched and worthy of praise.
