Movie Review Mama (2013)

 

Mama | 2013 | 1h 40m
Genre: Supernatural Horror/Fantasy/Horror/Thriller | Country: Canada/Spain/Mexico
Director: Andy Muschietti | Writers: Andy Muschietti, Barbara Muschietti, Neil Cross
Cast: Jessica Chastain, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Megan Charpentier
IMDB: 6.2
My Rating: 8/10

Lucas finds his two nieces, Victoria and Lily, who disappeared five years ago, and brings them into his life, unaware of the dangerous dark figure that comes with them.

Warning:

Contains scenes of suicide, violence, and strong language.

 

Synopsis of Mama:

Lucas (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) searches for his two nieces, Lily and Victoria, who were kidnapped by his brother, Jeffrey. Jeffrey, facing financial hardship, decides to kill his co-worker and wife, and kidnap his two children. Jeffrey intends to kill his two children in a cabin he finds in the woods before killing himself. However, a dark shadow prevents this from happening and kills him.

After five years of searching, Lily and Victoria are found in the cabin, but in a chaotic state. They, who have been isolated for a long time, have an unhuman attitude. Especially Lily, who has been missing since she was one year old, cannot interact well. Victoria recognizes Lucas as her father after being able to see clearly using the glasses given to her.

Lucas, along with his girlfriend, Annabel (Jessica Chastain), struggles to care for both of them and ensure custody remains with them. However, this is not easy, especially with all the strange things they experience. Until Lucas has an accident due to an attack from a mysterious figure that appears in their house. Annabel has to struggle to care for them alone.

Annabel begins to suspect the figure of 'Mama' that Victoria and Lily keep mentioning. This suspicion is also felt by Dreyfuss, the doctor who treats them. Dreyfuss's investigation reveals a dangerous dark secret.

Who is Mama really?

 

Review of Mama:

Mama is an expansion of the short film of the same name. After Andy Muschietti succeeded with the short film, he took part in the film's production and made his debut as a producer. The story is quite interesting and systematic, raising the theme of a mother's love for her children. With the background of the 'Mama' character presented well as the foundation of the story.

Cinematography, camera movement, color composition, and music and sound effect selection are done well. The animation used is also quite smooth and looks real. The depiction of Mama is also done well.

The acting from the cast is also very good, especially for the actors who play Victoria and Lily. Because these two characters are not easy characters to play. But both managed to deliver very good acting at a very young age.

This film still has the potential to be developed into something better. Expanding a 3-minute short film into a film lasting almost 2 hours is not easy. The story feels rushed, the interaction to build chemistry between Annabel and the children feels lacking. It should have been explored further, which makes Victoria's reason for staying strong enough because of her connection with her uncle and aunt.

What's quite unfortunate is that each character doesn't stand out too much and doesn't leave a lasting impression on the viewers. There's not a big enough impact made by the characters. The conflict should have been built better. Additionally, there's something strange where Victoria gets glasses that fit her eyes perfectly, even though they were never retested.

Overall, this film has a good story and is interesting to watch.

 

Memorable Scene:

Victoria, realizing the situation she's in, begins to distance her interaction with 'Mama'. However, Lily still has a close relationship with her. One night, Lily invites Victoria to play and meet 'Mama'. Victoria refuses and says 'Victoria Stay'.

In this scene, we see how Victoria wants to try to live her life normally, but is confused because Mama has been taking care of her and Lily well. This dilemma is felt and depicted well in this scene.

 

Memorable Dialogue:

"You can't do that, cause she gets jealous."

 

Ending:

Happy Sad Ending

 

Recommendation:

Worth to Watch

 

(Aluna)