Our Mother's House Reviews

Seven children live in a large Victorian home with their bedridden mother, taking care of the finances and upkeep themselves. Every evening they allow time to listen to their mother read to them from the Bible--"mothertime," as the children call it. When their mother dies, they secretly bury her in the backyard in an effort to avoid being sent to an orphanage. They set up a shrine in a backyard shed and continue their "mothertime" tradition. They go to school, do their chores, and meet nightly to discuss money matters. A visiting schoolteacher is about to find out their secret when long-lost father Bogarde arrives. He is far less responsible than the children, however, and begins to spend their money frivolously and bring home women. He eventually reveals to them that they are all illegitimate, shattering the saintly illusions of their mother. Furious, one of the girls deals Bogarde a fatal blow with a fireplace poker, an act that forces the youngsters to face reality and leave the house.