In My Mother’s Skin Review: Written and directed by Kenneth Dagatan, this folk horror film is produced by Bradley Liew, Huang Junxiang, Bianca Balbuena and Stefano Centini and stars Beauty Gonzalez, Felicity Kyle Napuli, James Mavie Estrella, Angeli Bayani, Ronnie Lazaro, Arnold Reyes, Noel Sto. Domingo and Jasmine Curtis-Smith. The film has a runtime of 97 minutes.
In My Mother’s Skin Trailer
In My Mother’s Skin Plot
Set in the Philippines during World War II in 1945, a young Tala and her family find themselves stranded in their isolated mansion when their father, a merchant, is accused of stealing Japanese gold and hiding it away. After he leaves to seek protection and refuge, Tala’s mother, Ligaya, falls horrifyingly ill, prompting the little girl to find seek a solution that will keep her mother safe. In her quest to find refuge and protection, unfortunately, she falls victim to a flesh-eating fairy whose solution, although takes away Ligaya’s ailment, results in her getting infected with something worse that might just wipe away their entire family.
– In My Mother’s Skin Review Does Not Contain Spoilers –
In My Mother’s Skin Review
How far would you go to save your family from absolute ruin that you know is imminent? When that horrifying reality rests on the shoulders of a young girl who just wants her family’s safety, you know things are not going to go well! In My Mother’s Skin is a surprisingly gory and atmospheric horror film that rests on the shoulders of three people and takes place in the confines of a mansion. We never really go out of it, and when we do, we feel as claustrophobic outside in the dense jungles as we feel at home.
Tala’s (Felicity Kyle Napuli) desperation is understandable. She’s scared for her future, and with her father gone and her mother so vehemently sick, it’s understandable that she goes outside looking for some kind of hope. Hope, especially when things look so bleak otherwise, is a dangerous thing when there are entities desperate to trick you and rob your very soul when you put your guard down. The movie is dark but also breathtakingly beautiful. The costumes and set designs are just so beautiful that they create sort of a juxtaposition with the otherwise darkness that surrounds the film.
Sometimes, the beauty adds to the sinister atmosphere because as it ups the fantasy, it just makes everything look and feel something straight out of a book, just lying in wait to trick you into believing the lies. As scary as it is to watch the movie, it’s also a devastatingly haunting watch that is emotionally charged as you see poor Tala’s will slowly being broken down by the evil entity who hides behind her sparkling exterior that also looks somewhat like Mother Mary’s outfit that we see quite a few times in the movie.
Other than that, the friendship and love between the sibling is portrayed really well, as Tala’s concern and love for her brother Bayani (James Mavie Estrella) comes up constantly throughout the movie. Thankfully, the sibling relationship in the movie, although not the highlight, isn’t awful as we have come to see in media these days.
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The last scene of the film is a horrifying reminder of Hereditary, in a way, a film that has scarred me emotionally. The sounds of the cicadas are almost maddening, and you will be able to relate to Tala almost completely because the sound design and the cinematography are done so well. They all mesh together to give a bone-chilling film that nails its atmosphere as much as it makes you squirm and leaves you sitting at the edge of your seat, wondering what will happen next.
Solid performances from everyone around are also one of the main reasons this movie works. In My Mother’s Skin features some wonderful performances from the child actors, and Felicity Kyle Napuli and James Mavie Estrella truly shine. Napuli, especially, delivers the desperation, hopelessness and fear that a child in her situation would feel, and your heart breaks for the adult decisions that she is forced to make at her age. Beauty Gonzalez, as Ligaya, is mostly either sick or possessed, but she’s scary as all hell, and she will give you goosebumps in every scene she is in.
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However, the real scare is probably delivered by Jasmine Curtis-Smith, who, although doesn’t have any traditionally scary scenes, still manages to exude that aura because she represents false hope in times of horrifying reality and the last bit of peace that Tala clings on to. She’s the exact opposite of Mother Mary, whom Tala’s family vehemently puts their faith in, but she masks herself as someone reliable and trustworthy, implicating something so very scary, especially to a little girl with little to no outside knowledge.
In My Mother’s Skin Review: Final Thoughts
Filipino folk horror In My Mother’s Name lives up to its expectations and is truly a chilling atmospheric watch with real-world elements wrapped around it. Its depiction of hope, trust, and desperation is very on-point considering the time it takes place and will leave you heavily impacted after the movie is over.
In My Mother’s Skin is streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
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