The Nightbitch is a Swiss Army knife of maternal psychoanalysis. The joys and sorrows that come with giving up an artistic career to raise children are on full display, as a mother finally realizes the downsides of motherhood while an oblivious father goes to work most days. While her former colleagues grow up happily, the reality of her unpaid, sleepless job merges with her maternal fantasies of becoming a dog. Enjoy this movie on Afdah Stream.
The wilder aspects of this motif are expertly handled by writer-director Marielle Heller, and the film is far less horror than the title suggests. Any middle-aged woman can empathize with the conflicting emotions that arise periodically, even if they have to care for aging parents rather than children.
The Night Bitch shows how even the all-powerful love of her caregiver is not enough to stave off the resentment that can corrode her happiness. The image of the mother clawing the ground for food like a starving dog nicely makes a point about the primitive nature of survival.
In most cases, the loss of one's own calling seems to be the biggest turning point for the mother as an artist. But our society has yet to fully embrace the idea of maintaining or redeveloping one's talents during or after child-rearing. At one point, the father admits that he never considered it necessary to nurture his mother's talents any more than he nurtured them.
To his credit, the father was not trained to investigate her motives and was completely blinded by her desire to quit her job. The Night Bitch avoids the analysis of fatherhood, perhaps because it would draw attention to the film's central theme: motherhood. The film is part character deconstruction and part physical horror (see her discover a story sticking out of her ass!), but surprisingly reveals different aspects of parenthood through common sense, a bit of horror, and a touch of magical realism.
Amy Adams should be nominated for her ninth Oscar. She's so good, she might even win this one. For the audience, the journey home is sure to be filled with conversations about the complicated responsibilities of parents, and by extension, caregivers: it's "a bitch," and it could be the greatest calling of all.