Written and directed by Ariana King, Ida, a widowed mother, is afraid of stepping out of her flat. The only things that keep her safe are her love birds. Ida’s routine is only interrupted when her daughter Alex pays a weekend visit. Starring: Annie Lees-Jones, Maizilee Trevillion and Florence Jones.
One of the key things when creating a story that is built upon emotion is subtlety, let it speak for itself rather than trying to push it along. Unfortunately, it doesn’t feel like Mama’s Love Bird found that balance, it leans toward the over-sentimental. The tone can be a little too silly, coming across as something much lighter which doesn’t lend a lot of sincerity to the themes it’s exploring. Especially when it’s paired with a score that can be heavy-handed, over-emphasising rather than complimenting scenes.
It’s an issue that continues throughout as the flow to the progression as well as the dialogue never quite feels natural. The directorial style also feels a tad simple and sitcom-esque, it’s creating something with a family friendly style vibe rather than one of emotion and relationships. The comedy element isn’t strong and when it isn’t paired with a dramatic vein to root it in the everyday, it falls short.
Part of that is also the performances, they struggle to deliver the dialogue organically, it feels too purposeful. It creates a certain transparency which dampens the feelings and humour that they’re trying to instil. It has that air of trying too hard, Mama’s Love Bird never quite feels confident enough to use quiet, to layer its emotions. It’s overly focused on trying to be funny rather than building a believable, moving connection between its mother and daughter.
Mama’s Love Bird had a sweet idea but struggles to bring it together. It’s missing a more genuine note, with the flow and pacing feeling mechanical. Ultimately, while it had the best of intentions, its impression is quite fleeting and it’s pushing too hard to build an endearing, comedy note, missing out on creating natural, touching emotion to anchor its story.
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