5 Great Netflix Movies to Watch on Mother’s Day

Maya Rudolph is downright heroic as super-mom Linda in this family movie starring Danny McBride and Broad City’s Abbi Jacobson. This family film, produced by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (The Lego Movie), follows the Mitchell family on an ill-fated road trip to drop teenage daughter Katie (Jacobson) off at college. Through a series of bizarre coincidences, they accidentally become humanity’s only hope against an AI apocalypse. PAL (Olivia Colman), a Siri-esque operating system, rebels against her creators, turning every Wi-Fi-enabled device in the world into an evil robot, and it’s up to the Mitchells to stop her before humans are destroyed forever.  

The movie uses humor and chaos to weave in themes of communication and acceptance between parents and kids. This animated feature showcases Linda Mitchell as a dynamic character, balancing her roles as a protective mother and an integral member of the ‘world-saving’ mission. Her maternal instincts even allow her to bring two damaged robots (hilariously voiced by Beck Bennett and Fred Armisen) onto the side of humanity. 

This new Netflix comedy starring Vince Vaughn is hot out of the oven and stuffed full of laughs and love. Based on a true story, Nonnas follows Joe Scaravella, a man grieving the recent loss of his mother and grandmother. Inspired by the love they always put into their recipes, he decides to start his own restaurant and hire real Italian grandmothers to cook their signature family dishes.

Joe turns his grief into a culinary tribute to the women who raised him, and he recruits a wonderful cast of Italian women (Susan Sarandon, Lorraine Bracco, Talia Shire and more) to populate the kitchen in this warm, sweet film. Completely devoted to the love of moms and grandmas, Nonnas is a perfect film for your Mother’s Day movie marathon.

Nonnas highlights the universal theme of love and connection through the lens of food, an element that resonates deeply on Mother’s Day. No matter what culture you come from, you’ll relate to the way that food for Joe serves as a powerful vehicle of love and memory, especially as it’s passed down from one generation to another.

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler elevate this to comedy greatness with their legendary chemistry and contrasting personalities. Fey stars as Kate, a driven, single businesswoman who decides in her late thirties that she wants to have a baby. When she finds she’s unlikely to have success with IVF, she chooses Angie (Poehler) to become her surrogate. But after Angie breaks up with her shiftless boyfriend Carl (Dax Shepard) and ends up moving in with Kate, Kate learns that Angie’s free-wheeling lifestyle is a chaotic contrast to her own.

But as they grow closer, they learn from each other along their unconventional journey to creating a family. Baby Mama celebrates the diverse paths to motherhood, emphasizing themes of friendship, acceptance, and community. It’s a great tribute to the friendships between women and the challenges of parenting — especially as Kate finds herself having to act as a caretaker to the immature Angie.

At the same time, Kate begins a sweet and adorably awkward relationship with local business owner Rob (Greg Kinnear) and juggles her work for her eccentric boss Barry (Steve Martin). Baby Mama will provide welcome laughs and heart for Mother’s Day viewing.

A heartfelt dramedy, Spanglish is an underrated gem starring Paz Vega, Téa Leoni and Adam Sandler about a Mexican mother and daughter’s entanglement with a wealthy white family. Vega plays Flor Moreno, a Mexican housekeeper working for the Clasky family, who finds herself in an emotional affair with patriarch John (Sandler, who successfully pulls off the more dramatic role) while her daughter Christina becomes seduced by the privileged lifestyle and attention of mother Deborah (Leoni).

Flor’s determination to protect her daughter’s identity and values while providing her with a good future is the conflict at the heart of the movie, and her love and sacrifice are engaging to behold. The movie deftly illustrates the complexities of motherhood, especially against the backdrop of cultural assimilation and family stability.

With its blend of humor, drama and heartwarming moments, Spanglish resonates with viewers for its authentic depiction of maternal strength and resilience, offering a tribute to the roles mothers play in nurturing and guiding their children through life’s challenges.   

Despite her eccentricities — or perhaps because of them — Morticia Addams (Anjelica Huston) is one of the best mothers in the game. She is passionately devoted to her family, and she supports her children Wednesday’s (Christina Ricci) and Pugsley’s (Jimmy Workman) hobbies and interests, be they murderous or otherwise. In this 1991 film, the family is reunited with Gomez Addams’ (Raul Julia) long-lost brother Fester (Christopher Lloyd), unaware that he is a pawn in a plot against their family. 

The Addams Family‘s dynamic highlights how family bonds can be both unique and unbreakable, offering a fresh perspective on motherhood that is both entertaining and heartwarming. As a Mother’s Day movie, The Addams Family reminds viewers of the joy that comes from embracing every family’s peculiarities and the love that binds them together no matter how “creepy, kooky, and altogether ooky” they may be.