Mother Tongue, A 36-Minute Australian Film With Blood, Gore, and Comedy

Australian director Glenn Fraser’s 36-minute short film, Mother Tongue, is an example of an indie gem that doesn’t have a wide release yet. Lucky for you, I’ve already seen it and am here to tell you to add it to your watchlist for when it does. Biology and witchcraft combine in an unusual narrative about a couple Alexandra and Jade, wanting to have a baby.

How Far Would You Go to Get What You Want?

But this super cute same-sex couple isn’t giving up that easily. Alex (Chiara Gizzi) and Jade (Foxton) try again and again to get pregnant. A highlight of the production is the way the sex scenes are both orchestrated and filmed, with many of the scenes both romantic and erotic without being exploitative. However, Jade watches as her partner Alex becomes more and more depressed about the ordeal.

When modern medicine tells them their dream of a baby of their own is but a pipe dream, they utilize someone else’s talents to try and do it another way.

Enter Brian (Stephen Hunter.) Brian sits in what looks like his mom’s basement but with all the confidence of someone with a healthy sense of self-worth and self-respect. He promises to be able to conjure up a “little man” or homunculus for them lickety-split. In a swift change in tone, “Mother Tongue” 2023 takes a sharp comedic turn while still throwing in shades of the seriousness of suburban occult remedies. As homunculus grows inside an ecstatic Alex, other changes that begin to manifest aren’t as appealing.

What is a Homunculus

A homunculus refers to a “miniature human.” During the 17th century, preformationists proposed that human life starts as a minuscule, fully formed individual — a homunculus — enclosed within the sperm or, according to some, within the egg. Brian knows more than his superficial embodiment of a loser suggests.

Another drawcard for the Mother Tongue short film is just how likable and relatable the characters are. Despite a small cast, each of the key players is engaging and believable in their respective roles giving substance to the film overall.

Bringing the dark arts into the follies of parenthood has been done before. Think Rosemary’s Baby, Anything For Jackson, Blessed, Devils Due, Still/Born, and a favorite of mine, Grace 2009. Mostly titles about getting in contact with the Devil either on purpose or by accident. Here the narrative evolves around a specific entity that can be created if you know how to tap into it.

Foxton’s (who also plays Jade) screenplay is a roller coaster ride through the parenting journey and delivers beats of drama with comedic value alongside some vicious violence and torment. And if you like a score and soundtrack that lifts the film instead of dragging it down, Mother Tongue has that in spades too.

Mother Tongue is rated

4 great soundtracks out of 5

Mother Tongue Movie Trailer

Watch the teaser trailer while you wait for a distributor to pick up this excellent Australian independent movie gem. Produced by 9th Circle Entertainment (Lilith TV series.)