If you feel the need to prove to your children (or yourself) what a wonderful mother you are, Pasatiempo has the perfect solution, just in time for Mother’s Day. Our "Mothers Who Murder" roundup spotlights a variety of feature films that set the maternity bar so low you’re guaranteed to sail over it with the panache of an Olympic high jumper ... and these movies are surprisingly entertaining as well.
To ensure that every reader feels at least somewhat better by comparison, we’ll start with the bar at its lowest possible setting — mothers who murder their children, or at least try to.
EVIL DEAD RISE
Alyssa Sutherland stars as a monstrous mother in Evil Dead Rise , the latest in the Evil Dead franchise.
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Angela Lansbury starred along with James Gregory in 1962’s The Manchurian Candidate .
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