Amy Adams stars in this sharp-toothed film about the trials of motherhood and societal expectations around that role.

Delivering a biting inner monologue Adams is completely engaged as an exhausted and angry Mother. She’s left her aspirations of being an artist behind to be a stay-at-home mom while her next-to-never-there husband (Scoot McNairy) continues with his career, popping in now and again, thinking he’s being supportive but inevitably making things worse simply by not understanding.

As Mother deals with her toddler, she finds herself in events like Baby Book Time, and going to the park, and constantly making food, and questioning her parenting choices as well as her life choices. Things seem to be coming to a head, she’s angry, perhaps literally ready to bite someone’s head off, and oh! She may be turning into a dog.

An exploration of motherhood and the unrespected sacrifices that are made by them complement the story as her anger, her yearning to be more, to let loose hint at a secret that may have fur involved.

Empowering women, and supporting mothers in a way that most of pop culture doesn’t seem to be interested in doing, the film explores responsibility and balance with eye-tooth sharp commentary on repressing all aspects of womanhood that aren’t relevant to modern society.

Adams throws herself to the role, delivering an honest performance that shows a tired woman slowly becoming invigorated by her life again as she realizes she has one. She struggles to find herself, furred or not, and she may not be the only one, as hinted in the film.

There are some laugh-out-loud moments that truly deliver, and Adams has the ability to walk that line between comedy and pathos with apparent ease, which, of course, tells you it isn’t. This is Adams’ film, and she owns it, delivering a voice that has been pushed down, ignored, underappreciated, and now, it’s going to howl.

Heller adapts Rachel Yoder’s novel into a smart, funny, and important examination of what it means to be a mother, the inherent power that the role has, and that it be recognized.

Nightbitch is an important film and can be seen Thursday, Friday and Sunday at TIFF.