The Book of Henry
Director: Colin Trevorrow
Cast: Naomi Watts, Jaeden Martell, Jacob Tremblay, Sarah Silverman, Maddie Ziegler, Dean Norris, Lee Pace, Tonya Pinkens
Single mother, Susan Carpenter (Naomi Watts), works as a server alongside her feisty family friend Sheila. Taking care of everyone and everything in his own way, is Susan's older son, Henry (Jaeden Martell). Protective of his brother and his child-like mother, Henry blazes through the days like a comet. When Susan discovers that the family next door harbors a dark secret, she's surprised to learn that Henry has devised a plan to help the young daughter.
Identity is a powerful theme in this film, and nowhere is identity illustrated more perfectly, than in the character of Henry Carpenter and the different identities that Henry embodies throughout the story.
While Henry is the firstborn son in this family of three, he is also a father-figure, in separate ways, for both his mother and his little brother, Peter. The connection between Henry and his single mother, Susan, is not a typical parent/child bond. As we see this family dynamic unfold, we see Henry taking on the role of the responsible parent – being responsible for the family’s finances, as well as being his mother’s guardian – while his mother’s role is more that of a spoiled, lazy teenager. While she is playing video games and getting drunk with her friend, Henry is paying the bills and watching over his mother during her late-night alcohol binge.
Henry also plays the role of guardian and protector to his little brother, Peter, and his friend and classmate, Christina (Maddie Ziegler). When his brother is bullied at their school, it is Henry, not his mother, who must protect his little brother. When the family is at the grocery store, Henry is secretly replacing Peter’s junk food with healthier alternatives. Henry’s greatest illustration of protecting his brother comes when Henry must tell Peter his secret. In a sense, this moment is like a passing over of guardianship, because Henry makes his brother promise him two things…He also tells his brother that when he is gone, Peter must get their mother to read Henry’s red notebook…and he makes Peter promise that Peter will take care of their mother, when Henry has gone.
When Henry suspects that his friend, Christina, (Maddie Ziegler) is being abused by her alcoholic father, he does more than be a comforting shoulder for her…he becomes Christina’s protector. When Henry sees Christina looking pale and bruised at school, he confronts the school’s principle, and demands to know why she is failing to protect this child. When the principle tells Henry that she is unwilling to tarnish the reputation of Christina’s father, who is the Police Commissioner, without undeniable proof, Henry vows to protect Christina himself. Henry fulfills his heartfelt vow when he reaches from beyond the grave to protect Christina one last time. I think Henry’s red notebook, and his intricate plan to murder Christina’s stepfather, were both just a major red herring. Henry had tried other ways of protecting his friend from the abuse and humiliation she endured He told the Principal at school...he reported it to CPS…he told his mother…but nobody would listen to Henry, and because the man was the police commissioner, they wouldn't destroy him without undeniable proof.
The way I interpreted Henry’s fulfilling his vow - the Mom following Henry's detailed plan to murder the stepfather and the principal watching Christina do her beautiful dance – is twofold. When the principal is watching Christina dance, it is in that moment, where her eyes lock with Christina's, that she finally realizes the truth. Throughout the movie, Christina is seen wearing long sleeves, and her long hair falls over her face, like a curtain. When Christina is dancing, her arms are bare and her hair is pulled back in a bun…and in this moment, I'm sure the principal saw the bruises and scars…the undeniable proof of the abuse and pain that this innocent child had tried to hide for so long. It is in this moment, that she realizes Henry was telling her the truth all along, when he came to her all those times, pleading with her to protect this innocent child. That was the point of Henry's little red book. He never wanted his mother to kill Christina’s stepfather. His only wish was for Christina to be safe and loved. That is why the mousetrap went off when the mother was hiding there, waiting to shoot the guy. In that moment, the ball reveals a series of photographs; all snapshots of Henry, when he was just a little boy. In this moment, Henry’s mother realizes the truth: that her son was just a child, and not this perfect ideal that she made him out to be. The relationship between Henry and his mother was not a typical mother/son relationship. He was the parent in that house, and she was the child...and when Henry was gone, this was his final gift to her; the realization that now, she must step up and become the parent and protector for Christina and Peter. She can't rely on Henry to take care of her anymore. She must be the Mom now.
The song “Your Hand, I Will Never Let It Go” plays a powerful role in this story, for it is in this moment, that Susan is truly a mother to her sons. The first time she sings this lullaby to her sons, she tucks them into bed, reads them a story and sings them to sleep. In this moment, she is the mother, and they are her children. This moment comes again when Henry is in the hospital. His mother tells Henry that she is scared because she doesn’t know how to be a mother without Henry. Henry tells Susan that he never taught her how to be a good mother…she just is. Weeping, Susan tells her son that he is the best part of her. Later, when Henry is crying out in fear, searching for his mother, it is in this moment, when Susan cradles her son close and comforts him, by holding his hand and singing him this song, that she truly fulfills her son’s last words to her.
© 2022 Keriane Kellogg All Rights Reserved
Director: Colin Trevorrow
Cast: Naomi Watts, Jaeden Martell, Jacob Tremblay, Sarah Silverman, Maddie Ziegler, Dean Norris, Lee Pace, Tonya Pinkens
Single mother, Susan Carpenter (Naomi Watts), works as a server alongside her feisty family friend Sheila. Taking care of everyone and everything in his own way, is Susan's older son, Henry (Jaeden Martell). Protective of his brother and his child-like mother, Henry blazes through the days like a comet. When Susan discovers that the family next door harbors a dark secret, she's surprised to learn that Henry has devised a plan to help the young daughter.
Identity is a powerful theme in this film, and nowhere is identity illustrated more perfectly, than in the character of Henry Carpenter and the different identities that Henry embodies throughout the story.
While Henry is the firstborn son in this family of three, he is also a father-figure, in separate ways, for both his mother and his little brother, Peter. The connection between Henry and his single mother, Susan, is not a typical parent/child bond. As we see this family dynamic unfold, we see Henry taking on the role of the responsible parent – being responsible for the family’s finances, as well as being his mother’s guardian – while his mother’s role is more that of a spoiled, lazy teenager. While she is playing video games and getting drunk with her friend, Henry is paying the bills and watching over his mother during her late-night alcohol binge.
Henry also plays the role of guardian and protector to his little brother, Peter, and his friend and classmate, Christina (Maddie Ziegler). When his brother is bullied at their school, it is Henry, not his mother, who must protect his little brother. When the family is at the grocery store, Henry is secretly replacing Peter’s junk food with healthier alternatives. Henry’s greatest illustration of protecting his brother comes when Henry must tell Peter his secret. In a sense, this moment is like a passing over of guardianship, because Henry makes his brother promise him two things…He also tells his brother that when he is gone, Peter must get their mother to read Henry’s red notebook…and he makes Peter promise that Peter will take care of their mother, when Henry has gone.
When Henry suspects that his friend, Christina, (Maddie Ziegler) is being abused by her alcoholic father, he does more than be a comforting shoulder for her…he becomes Christina’s protector. When Henry sees Christina looking pale and bruised at school, he confronts the school’s principle, and demands to know why she is failing to protect this child. When the principle tells Henry that she is unwilling to tarnish the reputation of Christina’s father, who is the Police Commissioner, without undeniable proof, Henry vows to protect Christina himself. Henry fulfills his heartfelt vow when he reaches from beyond the grave to protect Christina one last time. I think Henry’s red notebook, and his intricate plan to murder Christina’s stepfather, were both just a major red herring. Henry had tried other ways of protecting his friend from the abuse and humiliation she endured He told the Principal at school...he reported it to CPS…he told his mother…but nobody would listen to Henry, and because the man was the police commissioner, they wouldn't destroy him without undeniable proof.
The way I interpreted Henry’s fulfilling his vow - the Mom following Henry's detailed plan to murder the stepfather and the principal watching Christina do her beautiful dance – is twofold. When the principal is watching Christina dance, it is in that moment, where her eyes lock with Christina's, that she finally realizes the truth. Throughout the movie, Christina is seen wearing long sleeves, and her long hair falls over her face, like a curtain. When Christina is dancing, her arms are bare and her hair is pulled back in a bun…and in this moment, I'm sure the principal saw the bruises and scars…the undeniable proof of the abuse and pain that this innocent child had tried to hide for so long. It is in this moment, that she realizes Henry was telling her the truth all along, when he came to her all those times, pleading with her to protect this innocent child. That was the point of Henry's little red book. He never wanted his mother to kill Christina’s stepfather. His only wish was for Christina to be safe and loved. That is why the mousetrap went off when the mother was hiding there, waiting to shoot the guy. In that moment, the ball reveals a series of photographs; all snapshots of Henry, when he was just a little boy. In this moment, Henry’s mother realizes the truth: that her son was just a child, and not this perfect ideal that she made him out to be. The relationship between Henry and his mother was not a typical mother/son relationship. He was the parent in that house, and she was the child...and when Henry was gone, this was his final gift to her; the realization that now, she must step up and become the parent and protector for Christina and Peter. She can't rely on Henry to take care of her anymore. She must be the Mom now.
The song “Your Hand, I Will Never Let It Go” plays a powerful role in this story, for it is in this moment, that Susan is truly a mother to her sons. The first time she sings this lullaby to her sons, she tucks them into bed, reads them a story and sings them to sleep. In this moment, she is the mother, and they are her children. This moment comes again when Henry is in the hospital. His mother tells Henry that she is scared because she doesn’t know how to be a mother without Henry. Henry tells Susan that he never taught her how to be a good mother…she just is. Weeping, Susan tells her son that he is the best part of her. Later, when Henry is crying out in fear, searching for his mother, it is in this moment, when Susan cradles her son close and comforts him, by holding his hand and singing him this song, that she truly fulfills her son’s last words to her.
© 2022 Keriane Kellogg All Rights Reserved