The Red and Black

By JOSH MASSEY Staff Writer

"Hush," the new thriller starring Gwyneth Paltrow and Jessica Lange, begs the question: Who would volunteer to move in with her mother-in-law?

That's only one of the stupid ideas in this brainless mess in which Helen Baring (Paltrow), the pregnant wife of a New York businessman, gets attacked in the city and wants to move to greener acres.

Her husband, Jackson (Johnathon Schaech), grew up in an upstate manor that's now home only to his mother, Martha (Lange). The couple are convinced it would be a perfect place to raise their first child, who is six months away.

Never mind that Martha still lives there, and has creeped Helen out in the past. At her wedding, she was warned of Martha's weirdness by Jackson's paternal grandmother (saving grace Nina Foch).

When the couple moves in, Martha and Helen immediately face off. It only gets worse, as Martha's habits include peeking around corners, spying on the couple having sex and spreading false rumors about the new bride. Oh, and she partakes in the ultimate movie sign of evil: praying. Egad!

Helen and Martha's relationship worsens as Helen's stomach gets bigger and it becomes clear Mommie Dearest won't let go of her son. After all, since her husband died (mysteriously) 20 years ago, Jackson has been the only man in Martha's life.

The women's bitterness toward each other isn't helped by the fact that Jackson is a first-class momma's boy. As the months go by, it's clear Helen and Martha aren't getting along, but Jackson simply stands by and refuses to take sides.

It's obvious Martha will become a complete nut-job. Waiting for that, though, is excruciating.

"Hush" has gone through many title changes since its original release date of last fall. One would think that because of the delays, during which the film was known as "Bloodline" and "Kilronan" (the name of the house), somebody would have fixed something.

Quite possibly the powers-that-be could've realized Schaech plays the stupidest man alive, or that Lange conveys evil simply by squinting and speaking in a southern accent (in New York). Possibly they would've noticed that the morning after going through horrifyingly bad labor, Helen walks around like she only had a splinter removed from her finger.

By the end, "Hush" is the antithesis of enjoyable. Similar movies like "The Hand That Rocks the Cradle" were fun and played on cheap fears, but "Hush" goes for the gut while pandering to its PG-13 rating. The climactic birth scene is one of the hardest to watch in recent memory.

It's true Hollywood doesn't offer many parts to actresses her age, but it's hard to believe Lange has to stoop to this. It's harder to believe Paltrow's involvement, seeing she has her pick of parts these days.

It's likely that the actresses hope "Hush" goes away without a word.

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