Overview of the Goodnight Mommy Storyline
The film Goodnight Mommy is a version that has been remade from an Austrian film with the same name. The story centres on Elias and Lukas, who are identical twin brothers and pay a visit to their famous mother at her home in the country. After they got there, they found out that their mother was unusual in some way. In addition to donning a surgical mask, she has undergone a substantial transformation from the person she was previously. Her kind and caring motherly traits have completely disappeared. Instead, she maintains a cold and distant demeanour toward the boys and can even be rather hostile towards them at times.
Elias and Lukas have a sneaking suspicion that the woman hiding behind the mask is not, in fact, their mother. But who else might she be if she isn’t their mother? And does she have any intentions that would put her children in danger?
Let’s take a more in-depth look at the movie
Why is the so-called mother hiding her face with a mask?
They were taken aback when they arrived at their mother’s house and discovered that she was wearing a face mask. They are visibly taken aback by this information, but she explains that she recently underwent cosmetic surgery, and she is covering her face with the mask while it heals.
It should come as no surprise that their mother, who is an award-winning actress, is concerned with preserving her youthful appearance. Nevertheless, there is evidence to suggest that the woman in question is not actually their mother after all. As a result of this, it is possible that the potential imposter is using cosmetic surgery as merely a practical means of concealing their true identity.
Why do you think the boys suspect that their mother is a fraud?
Their mother goes through certain ground rules with them not long after they arrive. She warns them not to make any noise or enter her bedroom or office, and she also instructs them not to go into the barn.
Elias and Lukas are led to believe something is amiss because their mother would never impose such restrictions on the family.
When she refuses to sing them the goodnight ballad that she used to sing to them when they were younger, it further fuels their suspicions that she is hiding something from them. She claims that they are now too old for goodnight songs, but the boys are sceptical of her explanation since they believe that she is an imposter who is not familiar with the lyrics of the lullaby.
A picture of Elias’s family posing together that she had been given by Elias is also discarded by the masked woman. The fact that their mother used to maintain pictures of them is another evidence suggesting that she may not be who she claims to be.
The eyes of the woman are the next thing to consider. The young men recall that she had blue eyes, and they find a picture to back up their recollection. However, the woman with whom they are cohabitating has green eyes.
After some time has passed, when they decide to disobey the woman’s orders and check the barn, they find blood on the wall. At this time, the woman walks into the barn and immediately begins to behave belligerently toward them. Again, this behaviour is very different from what they observe in their mother.
The lads manage to escape, and they take refuge in the barn of a nearby neighbour. However, the boys are returned to their mother’s house after the owner calls the authorities and reports the theft. They claim to the authorities that the woman living there is a fake, but when the authorities actually see the woman, she is not wearing her disguise and appears to be the boys’ real mother.
Elias is ordered to his room by the woman, but he manages to listen in on the conversation that she is having with the police officers. The woman is heard saying, “He was playing by the pool and must have slid on some water.” She overhears this. It’s terrible to think that the boundary between reality and fiction no longer exists.
What exactly does this phrase mean? The truth is revealed much later on in the film.
Is the woman in question the mother of the boys?
The boys are not yet persuaded by the woman’s assertions that she is their mother. Instead, they believe that she is an unknown person who has undergone facial reconstructive surgery in order to seem like their mother.
They duct-tape her to her bed while she is asleep and keep her there. As soon as she comes to, Elias drenches her in ice water and interrogates her about the whereabouts of their biological mother. She reveals to them that she is their mother, and when they inquire about the difference in the colour of her eyes, she explains that she wears coloured contact lenses on occasion.
They are cut off by the police, who had called to check on them earlier. They inquire about the whereabouts of their mother, and Elias informs them that she has left the house to go somewhere. They leave the boys at home when they are summoned to another task, despite the fact that one of the officers has some reservations about the veracity of this account.
After that, Elias and Lukas escape the scene. However, before they travel too far, Elias informs Lukas that he has neglected to bring his toothbrush. Upon his return to the house, he discovers the coloured contact lenses that his mother had worn.
After coming to the realisation that the woman is his mother, he releases her from her restraints. On the other hand, there is still a mystery that has not been resolved. There is another person in Elias’s life who isn’t who they say they are, despite the fact that she turned out not to be an imposter after all. The answer to this question can be found in the barn, where Elias’ mother takes him when she wants him to face the reality of the situation.
What does Elias discover when he investigates the barn?
Elias’s mother instructs him to look at the wall in the barn that is stained with blood. Here is where both he and we discover a hole in the wall caused by a bullet.
We find out from Elias’s mother that when he and Lukas were children, the two of them used to play with a real gun when it was loaded. A sad event occurred as a consequence of this when Elias accidentally shot Lukas.
Elias is unable to come to terms with the fact that Lukas was murdered, and when his mother tries to force him to do so, he lashes out at her. She was injured when she landed on the ground after falling from the barn’s attic. The lamp she was carrying crashes to the ground, which results in the hay igniting spontaneously.
Elias escapes the barn just as the structure behind him begins to fire, trapping his mother within the blazing structure. Elias looks up while he is having a difficult time comprehending what has just taken place and finds both his mother and Lukas approaching him. After the embrace, his mother tells him that there is nothing wrong with what he has done.
Who is Elias’ mother, and does he have a brother?
No. It is quite evident that Elias is having difficulty differentiating between reality and fiction, which is something that Elias’s mother brought up earlier in her discussion with the police.
They are merely hallucinations by the time Elias encounters them at the very end of the movie. This suggests that the Lukas we see throughout the movie was likewise a figment of Elias’ imagination. Throughout the movie, Lukas is a figment of Elias’ imagination. If you watch the movie again, you will notice that the mother only talks to Elias and not Lukas, which is evidence that Lukas was never actually there. If you watch the movie again, you will notice that the mother only talks to Elias and not Lukas. You will also observe that Lukas appears to be Elias’ reflection rather than a living, breathing human being at times. This is something else you will notice.
The sorrow and anguish that Elias felt after the death of his brother contributed to the development of his delusion. He created an universe in which his brother was alive and well as a means of coping with the traumatic event that took place as well as the feelings of isolation that he experienced.
The behaviour that his mother exhibited earlier in the film was likewise a direct effect of the traumatic event. Because she was dealing with her own grief, she kept her distance from her son, which likely led to her harbouring resentment toward Elias for accidently killing his sibling. It’s likely that she got rid of the image that Elias created for her because she didn’t want to be reminded of her dysfunctional family when she looked at it.
The film is less of a horror movie and more of an examination of loss and how it can influence our lives. The movie that came out in 2014 featured the same ideas, but be forewarned that if you watch the Austrian original, you will find a film that is more darker and more violent than this one!