It drives every ruthless action, every fearless step she takes.
However, Lopez boasts the skills required to deliver convincing badassery.
So, here are Lopezs most fierce lines as Zoes mother in, well,The Mother.
Jennifer Lopez in ‘The Mother’ | Doane Gregory/Netflix
Spoiler Warning forThe Motheron Netflix
You dont know how bad this gets.
The Motheropens with Lopez talking to the FBI in whats supposed to be a secure location.
In another perfectly trite but oh-so-delicious exchange, she asks, You think youre following him?
Hes following you with a stoic expression reminiscent of 1980s Rambo and Terminator.
Shes not Hectors and shes not Adrians.
Yet, this is because such information is of no consequence.
Jennifer Lopez and Lucy Paez (R) in ‘The Mother’ | Ana Carballosa/Netflix
Both of these men would use Zoe as a pawn.
Both of these men would risk an innocent childs life to get to Lopez.
Every time I look at you, Im scared.
Jennifer Lopez and Lucy Paez (R) in ‘The Mother’ | Doane Gregory/Netflix
Lopez is fighting so hard, remaining so fierce in the face of danger because she must.
She could lose her.
It is this fear that propels Lopez.
This neverending anxiety keeps her fighting when she has burnt through all of her reserves.
Her fear simply manifests outwardly as an unshakeable will.
Right before walking into a trap designed to end her, Lopez says this.
She doesnt care that Hector has designed a trap with endless guards to take her out.
She is going to enter his home guns-a-blazing and kill em all.
Its just as scrumptious as it is senseless.
The viewers knowledge of the impossible mission to follow suit gives this line its power.
It builds anticipation no matter how unoriginal it may be.
Such lines are trite for a reason…we eat them up.
We never had a safe word.
The mother is trapped.
Hector has a gun pointed at her.
Hector is aroused both by what awaits and the memories of their past romantic relationship.
He teases her, asking if she remembers the games they used to play.
He then asks her if she remembers their safe word.
Then, of course, she lets him burn down in the fire she leaves behind.
For, what is a dramatic exit without ferocious flames?
Im a killer, you know that now.
But Im also a mother, and I will die protecting you.
Lopez leaves a note for Zoe that she intends for her to read once she gets to safety.
Lopez, at last, opens up to her daughter in the manner Zoe has been craving all along.
Lopez lets Zoe know who she is.
She is an assassin.
However, murderer is not her sole label.
She is a mother; thus, she is a guardian.
