This Mother’s Day, why not treat the moms in your life to a movie?
But which movie? How about Mother’s Day? No, not the 2016 Mother’s Day starring Jennifer Aniston, Kate Hudson, and Julia Roberts. I’m referring to the horror movies titled Mother’s Day, one from 1980 starring Beatrice Pons and the other from 2010 starring Rebecca De Mornay.
But if you only have time for a single Mother’s Day film, which one should you watch? You don’t want to ruin the actual Mother’s Day by showing your mom an awful movie. So, for the benefit of you and your mother, here is a brief breakdown of the two films with an emphasis on some of their defining features. Which one is better? You decide.
Mother (Batrice Pons) laughs at other people’s pain and humiliation.
The original 1980 Mother’s Day is a horror and revenge film about a backwoods family who kidnaps and tortures three women. It’s a little like a cross between The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) and The Last House on the Left (1972). Three friends from college get together for a reunion, camping in the deep woods of rural New Jersey. They’ve unfortunately picked a spot near where a murderous woman lives with her two sons.
Mother (Rebecca De Mornay) prefers that her children do the dirty work, but she isn’t afraid to get her hands dirty when she needs to.
Mother’s Day (2010) is technically a remake of the 1980 film, but it is really a very loose re-imagining. It’s a home invasion movie that feels derivative of other remakes of its era, such as Funny Games (2007) and The Last House on the Left (2009). After a botched bank robbery, three brothers rush to what they think is their mother’s home in the suburbs. However, the house has new owners, so the brothers take them hostage while they wait for Mother to arrive. When she gets there, she employs mental and physical torture as a way to get money she believes the new homeowners have taken from her.
Tiana Pierce, Deborah Luce, and Nancy Hendrickson play friends Trina, Jackie, and Abbey.
The original has some distinct advantages over the remake. First of all, the story and protagonists are much more interesting in the 1980 Mother’s Day. With fewer main characters than the remake, the original is able to build the relationship of its trio of friends in a much more meaningful way. All three women have distinct personalities, and their friendship feels genuine. They’ve grown apart over the years, but when they are in a horrific situation, they are willing to put their lives at risk for each other. It’s a simple story, but it’s emotionally powerful because of its simplicity.
Maniac brothers Addley and Ike are colorful characters in many ways. Actors Michael McCleery and Frederick Coffin were both credited using pseudonyms, Billy Ray McQuade and Holden McGuire respectively.
Also, the visual style of the original is much more fun. Mother’s Day (1980) is a low-budget exploitation movie with a ton of character. It’s colorful and trashy, and it looks great for the type of movie it is. In contrast, Mother’s Day (2010) looks like a generic mid-budget horror film from around 2010 (because that’s what it is, but still). The colors are rather drab, and it doesn’t have a great visual appeal overall.
Deborah Ann Woll (Daredevil, Escape Room) plays Lydia, a sibling who wasn’t in the 1980 movie.
However, one of the biggest positives for the remake is the cast. Rebecca De Mornay (The Hand The Rocks the Cradle), Frank Grillo (the Purge franchise), Jaime King (Black Summer), Briana Evigan (Sorority Row), Lyriq Bent (the Saw franchise), Deborah Ann Woll (True Blood), and Shawn Ashmore (Frozen 2010) all lead a strong ensemble cast. That cast helps create villains that are more interesting. Both movies have characters named Mother, Ike, and Addley, but in the original they’re all very simple and flat. The remake expands the family with new siblings, and it adds a more complex relationship between them and their mother. That complicated mother/children dynamic actually plays a huge role in the story of the 2010 film.
The tension steadily rises as Mother calmly tells her hostages exactly what’s going to happen.
Also better in the remake is the pacing of the film. Both have an opening scene that sets the mood, but the 2010 Mother’s Day gets back to the action within minutes, while the 1980 takes a longer time to get back to the horror. Mother’s Day (2010) rarely gives its characters any time to relax, which translates to an exciting pace for the audience.
If you want better friendship drama and some really dark moments, go for the original.
Equally good in both movies are the kills. Neither is really a slasher movie, but both contain multiple death scenes. Many of the deaths are quite violent, but preferences for which is better will come down to the viewer and which era of horror they enjoy the most.
If you want a more complex story with psychological elements, watch the remake.
And really, the choice between Mother’s Day 1980 or 2010 comes down whichever era you prefer. Or rather, since we’re picking movies to watch with our moms, we should really consider which decade of horror they prefer. Is you mom a fan of cheesy yet brutal revenge movies from the 1980s, or does she like a better balance of psychological and physical torture as seen in the years leading up to 2010? That’s where you’ll find your answer.
Or better yet, just watch both. Mother’s Day (1980) is currently streaming on Shudder and for free on Pluto. Mother’s Day (2010) is streaming on Prime Video and for free on Tubi.
But which movie? How about Mother’s Day? No, not the 2016 Mother’s Day starring Jennifer Aniston, Kate Hudson, and Julia Roberts. I’m referring to the horror movies titled Mother’s Day, one from 1980 starring Beatrice Pons and the other from 2010 starring Rebecca De Mornay.
But if you only have time for a single Mother’s Day film, which one should you watch? You don’t want to ruin the actual Mother’s Day by showing your mom an awful movie. So, for the benefit of you and your mother, here is a brief breakdown of the two films with an emphasis on some of their defining features. Which one is better? You decide.
What Are the Mother’s Day Movies About?
Mother (Batrice Pons) laughs at other people’s pain and humiliation.
The original 1980 Mother’s Day is a horror and revenge film about a backwoods family who kidnaps and tortures three women. It’s a little like a cross between The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) and The Last House on the Left (1972). Three friends from college get together for a reunion, camping in the deep woods of rural New Jersey. They’ve unfortunately picked a spot near where a murderous woman lives with her two sons.
Mother (Rebecca De Mornay) prefers that her children do the dirty work, but she isn’t afraid to get her hands dirty when she needs to.
Mother’s Day (2010) is technically a remake of the 1980 film, but it is really a very loose re-imagining. It’s a home invasion movie that feels derivative of other remakes of its era, such as Funny Games (2007) and The Last House on the Left (2009). After a botched bank robbery, three brothers rush to what they think is their mother’s home in the suburbs. However, the house has new owners, so the brothers take them hostage while they wait for Mother to arrive. When she gets there, she employs mental and physical torture as a way to get money she believes the new homeowners have taken from her.
Which is Better?
Tiana Pierce, Deborah Luce, and Nancy Hendrickson play friends Trina, Jackie, and Abbey.
The original has some distinct advantages over the remake. First of all, the story and protagonists are much more interesting in the 1980 Mother’s Day. With fewer main characters than the remake, the original is able to build the relationship of its trio of friends in a much more meaningful way. All three women have distinct personalities, and their friendship feels genuine. They’ve grown apart over the years, but when they are in a horrific situation, they are willing to put their lives at risk for each other. It’s a simple story, but it’s emotionally powerful because of its simplicity.
Maniac brothers Addley and Ike are colorful characters in many ways. Actors Michael McCleery and Frederick Coffin were both credited using pseudonyms, Billy Ray McQuade and Holden McGuire respectively.
Also, the visual style of the original is much more fun. Mother’s Day (1980) is a low-budget exploitation movie with a ton of character. It’s colorful and trashy, and it looks great for the type of movie it is. In contrast, Mother’s Day (2010) looks like a generic mid-budget horror film from around 2010 (because that’s what it is, but still). The colors are rather drab, and it doesn’t have a great visual appeal overall.
Deborah Ann Woll (Daredevil, Escape Room) plays Lydia, a sibling who wasn’t in the 1980 movie.
However, one of the biggest positives for the remake is the cast. Rebecca De Mornay (The Hand The Rocks the Cradle), Frank Grillo (the Purge franchise), Jaime King (Black Summer), Briana Evigan (Sorority Row), Lyriq Bent (the Saw franchise), Deborah Ann Woll (True Blood), and Shawn Ashmore (Frozen 2010) all lead a strong ensemble cast. That cast helps create villains that are more interesting. Both movies have characters named Mother, Ike, and Addley, but in the original they’re all very simple and flat. The remake expands the family with new siblings, and it adds a more complex relationship between them and their mother. That complicated mother/children dynamic actually plays a huge role in the story of the 2010 film.
The tension steadily rises as Mother calmly tells her hostages exactly what’s going to happen.
Also better in the remake is the pacing of the film. Both have an opening scene that sets the mood, but the 2010 Mother’s Day gets back to the action within minutes, while the 1980 takes a longer time to get back to the horror. Mother’s Day (2010) rarely gives its characters any time to relax, which translates to an exciting pace for the audience.
The Choice is Yours
If you want better friendship drama and some really dark moments, go for the original.
Equally good in both movies are the kills. Neither is really a slasher movie, but both contain multiple death scenes. Many of the deaths are quite violent, but preferences for which is better will come down to the viewer and which era of horror they enjoy the most.
If you want a more complex story with psychological elements, watch the remake.
And really, the choice between Mother’s Day 1980 or 2010 comes down whichever era you prefer. Or rather, since we’re picking movies to watch with our moms, we should really consider which decade of horror they prefer. Is you mom a fan of cheesy yet brutal revenge movies from the 1980s, or does she like a better balance of psychological and physical torture as seen in the years leading up to 2010? That’s where you’ll find your answer.
Or better yet, just watch both. Mother’s Day (1980) is currently streaming on Shudder and for free on Pluto. Mother’s Day (2010) is streaming on Prime Video and for free on Tubi.