Dolan explores a hyper-intense, volatile, yet deeply loving relationship between a widowed mother, Die, and her ADHD-diagnosed son, Steve. Shot in a restrictive 1:1 aspect ratio, the film visually manifests the claustrophobia of their codependency. Their love is fierce, loud, and inappropriate, showing how structural poverty and mental illness strain the maternal bond to its breaking point. The Triumph of Survival and Softness
However, contemporary storytelling has moved past the Freudian trap. Recent works suggest that the healthiest mother-son relationships are those that defy the Oedipal pull—where the mother trains the son to leave. In Greta Gerwig’s Lady Bird (2017), the focus is on the daughter, but the brief scenes with the son, Miguel, reveal a quiet, uncomplicated love. He is adored, but not suffocated. This is the anti-Lawrence model. Mom Son Incest Comic
No discussion of mother-son relationships in art can ignore the Oedipus complex, the psychoanalytic theory Sigmund Freud proposed. In this framework, a son develops an erotic attachment to his mother alongside rivalry with his father, typically arising between the ages of three and seven. While many anthropologists have challenged its universality, the concept remains a powerful interpretative lens. In practice, it has become a master narrative for exploring the struggle between becoming one’s own man and remaining bound to the source of life and love. Even critics of Freud concede that the Oedipus complex “continues to explain many of the subtleties of the mother-son relationship”. Dolan explores a hyper-intense, volatile, yet deeply loving
In Bong Joon-ho’s South Korean thriller Mother (2009), an unnamed mother fights desperately to clear the name of her intellectually disabled son, who is accused of murder. Her devotion crosses ethical and legal boundaries, proving that a mother's protective instinct can be just as terrifyingly absolute as any monster. Bong challenges the audience by asking: how far should a mother go to protect her son? The Triumph of Survival and Softness However, contemporary
Shriver handles the ultimate maternal taboo: a mother who struggles to love her son, and a son who senses this rejection from infancy. The epistolary novel investigates whether Kevin’s psychopathy was innate or fostered by Eva’s ambivalence. It offers a chilling look at a relationship built on mutual hostility and an unbreakable, horrific shared history. 3. Cinematic Perspectives: The Camera as an Emotional Lens
