Youtube recommended Vivarium's trailer to me and it got me really curious. After watching it, I can say it was one of the weirdest, most exciting and relatable show that I can find. Specifically, it does depict to a certain extent how parenting can be like to most new parents.
Wait, are you calling your child an Alien?
Oh right, I should at least give a bit of a background to the show. Vivarium is a show that takes place within a Vivarium-like dimension created by aliens. This Vivarium takes the form of a housing development. For those who are unaware, a vivarium is basically a confined space that we use to keep pets or plants. Something like this:
So the aliens go about trapping unsuspecting couples in this Vivarium to help them raise babies who are actually aliens in disguise to blend perfectly into human society. These couples were promised freedom if they help raise these baby aliens.
These babies resemble a human child in every single way except that they grow incredibly fast. So, as you can guess, these couples were all faced with troubles raising a child. This includes the child yelling for food and asking some really annoying questions.
Its similarities with real-life parenting
The child runs around making some really annoying noises such as imitating the sounds of animals that he had learned from the female lead in the movie played by Imogen Poots. This really annoyed the male lead played by Jesse Eisenberg. I resist calling them parents because really, they are more like forced caregivers. The similarity here comes from when a child gets his/her voice. They start repeating songs and noises again and again and again.
From personal experience, this reminds me of the time when my child heard about the wheels on the bus and kept asking for us to play the song. Of course, it may not be to the level of that alien kid making the noise of animals in the movie, but one thing that they both would do is their cries when they are hungry. The alien child gives off a high-pitched cry that goes on and on whereas my child-caring experience is a bit different. My little ones would run up to me and remind me to cook whenever they are hungry. They do it constantly and while it can be rather adorable, the high pitched cries in the movie are scarier and I have heard of parents who complained that their children are like that.
The lesson about parenting
While I can go on and on about the similarities seen from the movie, I think what is important is the lessons that can be learned. Take one example, at one point, Jesse Eisenberg snaps and tries to "get rid" of the baby. That was because of how he was not able to take the constant cries and weird antics of the child. Without spoiling the movie any further, the couple even started turning on each other due to all the stress involved.
I think this in a way is a clear reflection of the stress between parents when a newborn child or just taking care of a child can become too stressful. What is important is that parents stick together through thick and thin no matter how hard things get. I think that if both the characters stuck together in the show, they could have easily taken out their alien captors.
Do check out the movie, its a real good watch but overall, if you are a parent, stay strong and you can overcome anything, including evil aliens.