Jake Shane’s Joke Is Why Rose Byrne’s Film Is Necessary

A study by Columbia University that came out less than a year ago found that of the almost 200,000 mothers who took part, only 25.8% had “excellent” mental health. The report concluded that wellbeing has declined in the last seven years for female parents. This research emerged at a time when a few other films exploring what it means to be a mother on the edge came out: Jennifer Lawrence starred in Die My Love, Taraji P. Henson led the cast in Straw, and Amy Adams played a mom-cum-dog in Nightbitch. While I loved all three of these films, the critics weren’t so kind, offering mixed reviews and critiques. If I Had Legs I’d Kick You was the first of these recent films on motherhood’s challenges to actually receive widespread critical praise (a film that Bronstein told the LA Times no one wanted to fund initially, unless she was willing to “pull back”). Rose Byrne won the Golden Globe for Best Actress and was nominated for an Oscar in the same category. That matters, because these issues are so seldom given the spotlight and accolades they deserve. And clearly, while people of influence like Shane continue to miss the point and make that known, these films must keep being produced.