Mammoth (MOD)

I watched Lukas Moodysson's latest film Mammoth on Movies on Demand last night. It did not get good reviews but I thought that it was a good, but not great, film. It held my attention and I was not bored.

New York City power couple Leo (Gael Garcia Bernal) and Ellen (Michelle Williams) appear to be happy. He is some kind of creator/computer genius. She is a surgeon. They have a young daughter Jackie (Sophie Nyweide). When the film begins Leo is off to Thailand to make a deal for one of his creations. Ellen will soon be off to the hospital to work her shift. Jackie is taken care of by her nanny Gloria (Marife Necesito). It seems that Jackie is more attached to Gloria than her mother. And it is no wonder - she spends more time with Gloria.

The film goes back and forth between NYC and Bangkok. Leo is lonely and wants this deal to come through quickly. He is also lonely and takes off by himself. He becomes involved with a prostitute named Cookie (Run Srinikornchot). Of course, this will never amount to anything real.

Some of the film also takes place in Gloria's homeland The Philippines. We see how her sons live and we find out that she is in the US to help her sons have a better life. There is also one more strand to the film - a young boy with multiple stab wounds that Ellen tries to save.

So we see that things are connected. Moodysson does a good job structuring the film but he is not on the level of the great Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu. But still and all, Mammoth (which is named for the elephant) is worth seeing. In the end, people do things to help their children but it might not be the best thing to do. Human contact and love are more important than material wealth.