What a disappointment this movie was. I mean I already wasn't expecting it to be that good. But when I saw it was by the director of IT, I thought maybe it is better then I think, and yet it was not good overall. It is a average movie at best, with way too much relient on jump scares. That happen way to frequently and are pretty predictable that they are going to happen. Like oh the lights are flashing, here comes a jump scare, it has been 5 minutes, here comes another jump scare/loud noise. The dialogue is as a low volume, so I true it up to hear the characters talking and jump scare LOUD NOISESSSSS. Which honestly got super boring halfway throught he film. I think the first half of the move has more jump scares than your average horror films. It does get brownie points for having a Jessica Chastain as a gorgeous guitarist of a band we never see. But overall the story moves at a dragged out pace with way too many jump scares. They don't spend enough time building up the atmosphere to make the movie creepy or even the jump scares scare you. There is no suspense to build up scenes before the movie tries to scare you. The slow burn was perfected in Hereditary and there are movies like the Conjuring that have very effective and great jump scares. But seriously relying on constant loud noise to scare the audience is just lazy. Startling you to get reaction isn't the same as scaring you. The CGI is also very laughable and I actually laughed out loud at the first few mama first person shots and when she crawled on the bed. Having a practical effect of mama and not relying on jump scares so much and just a creepy character, who have been 1000x times better and more effective. Insidious did this well, I don't know if it was CGI or practical but they had suddle scenes of the demon only half show or moving a creepy way, or in Running Scared (2006) scene with the
pedophilias and the shadows that played in the bathroom window scene
was creepier than this movie.Not to mention plot points that make no sense
like the uncle just leaving the hospital fully clothed and renting a car to go find the cabin without any issues after being in coma because he landed on his head on stairs for a few days
. Potentially good story poorly executed that would have been better as a short film with practical effects vs a CGI film.
TLDR: Skip this and see IT chapter one, even IT Chapter 2 is better than this. Really shouldn't be on any best horror lists.
I like this. I think there's a weak section, from about 60% through to 80% of the way through the movie, where it fall into the too-long-drawn-out trap so common to the horror genre. But the ending is interesting, and worth sticking around for.
The opening third/half of the movie is very compelling, so definitely worth watching I think.
what you fear most at the beginning of the film turns into something you sympathize with at the end of the film. it was different, I liked it. Absolutely watchable film for the performance of children's players.
The story itself is a generic ghost story gussied up for the modern market with some jump scares. Jessica Chastain is pretty good and the film features some quite skilful camerawork, but at the same time there's nothing interesting about it - it looks slick and clean and like any number of spooky films. What really ruined it for me was the mawkish fantastical ending and the CGI ghost - it looks like a dementor witch from a Harry Potter film but without the quality.
Great start, but rather overblown by the end. The ending was somewhat lame and the music didn't fit at all--it would have worked for Harry Potter or something. Some good practical effects would have been superior to the cgi, although it wasn't awful, and would have really elevated the creepiness of the film. Mama looked too fake to be frightening, especially in the scenes where she was shown at length in more detail. Considering its strong first half, it was pretty disappointing--kind of like Jeepers Creepers actually.
Also, I'm not sure why everybody keeps mentioning Del Toro, he was just the executive producer. They mainly slapped his name on the credits to help sell the movie.
My second horror movie in the last 2 days.
Mama is an ok horror movie, it had some scary and creepy parts.
Jessica Chastain is so hot, minus the stupid tattoos, she was very hot in the movie.
The two girls were awesome, great performance.
I saw the trailer, I do not usually see the trailer of the movie before watching the movie, I've seen this time and do not recommend watching the trailer before seeing the movie, because this ruins the film a bit.
3.25/5
Two girls are abducted by their father and left in a cabin in the middle of the wilderness. The children are then raised by a mysterious spirit thing, that grows attached to them and tries to kill anyone, including the new parents who adopted them, who tries to become important in their lives. I don't get why evil is so needy....
More thrill and suspense than other recent big screen films in this genre. Good effects helped the creepy factor. It went a bit soft at the end but most movies do.
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Comments 1 - 15 of 28
samoan
What a disappointment this movie was. I mean I already wasn't expecting it to be that good. But when I saw it was by the director of IT, I thought maybe it is better then I think, and yet it was not good overall. It is a average movie at best, with way too much relient on jump scares. That happen way to frequently and are pretty predictable that they are going to happen. Like oh the lights are flashing, here comes a jump scare, it has been 5 minutes, here comes another jump scare/loud noise. The dialogue is as a low volume, so I true it up to hear the characters talking and jump scare LOUD NOISESSSSS. Which honestly got super boring halfway throught he film. I think the first half of the move has more jump scares than your average horror films. It does get brownie points for having a Jessica Chastain as a gorgeous guitarist of a band we never see. But overall the story moves at a dragged out pace with way too many jump scares. They don't spend enough time building up the atmosphere to make the movie creepy or even the jump scares scare you. There is no suspense to build up scenes before the movie tries to scare you. The slow burn was perfected in Hereditary and there are movies like the Conjuring that have very effective and great jump scares. But seriously relying on constant loud noise to scare the audience is just lazy. Startling you to get reaction isn't the same as scaring you. The CGI is also very laughable and I actually laughed out loud at the first few mama first person shots and when she crawled on the bed. Having a practical effect of mama and not relying on jump scares so much and just a creepy character, who have been 1000x times better and more effective. Insidious did this well, I don't know if it was CGI or practical but they had suddle scenes of the demon only half show or moving a creepy way, or in Running Scared (2006) scene with theTLDR: Skip this and see IT chapter one, even IT Chapter 2 is better than this. Really shouldn't be on any best horror lists.
Tidorith
I like this. I think there's a weak section, from about 60% through to 80% of the way through the movie, where it fall into the too-long-drawn-out trap so common to the horror genre. But the ending is interesting, and worth sticking around for.The opening third/half of the movie is very compelling, so definitely worth watching I think.
lovequinn
what you fear most at the beginning of the film turns into something you sympathize with at the end of the film. it was different, I liked it. Absolutely watchable film for the performance of children's players.Dawizz
Don't waste your time with this movie, the youngest girl is DUMB AS A DOORNAIL, and Mama wins. Yeah no spoilers.shaveen
Average movieChrisReynolds
The story itself is a generic ghost story gussied up for the modern market with some jump scares. Jessica Chastain is pretty good and the film features some quite skilful camerawork, but at the same time there's nothing interesting about it - it looks slick and clean and like any number of spooky films. What really ruined it for me was the mawkish fantastical ending and the CGI ghost - it looks like a dementor witch from a Harry Potter film but without the quality.Oneironaut
Let down by the subpar CGI. Average, watchable, forgettable.acoltismypassport
The best thing about this film was Jessica Chastain, and even her shitty tattoos ruined an otherwise excellent aesthetic choice.Ilikechicken
Horror movies aren't exactly my cup of tea, but this film felt very generic to me. I thought the ending was slow and boring.the3rdman
Great start, but rather overblown by the end. The ending was somewhat lame and the music didn't fit at all--it would have worked for Harry Potter or something. Some good practical effects would have been superior to the cgi, although it wasn't awful, and would have really elevated the creepiness of the film. Mama looked too fake to be frightening, especially in the scenes where she was shown at length in more detail. Considering its strong first half, it was pretty disappointing--kind of like Jeepers Creepers actually.Also, I'm not sure why everybody keeps mentioning Del Toro, he was just the executive producer. They mainly slapped his name on the credits to help sell the movie.
samfenn
Not much to say. I thought it was ok, if a little slow paced. I was slightly bored by the end.Joker of Gotham
My second horror movie in the last 2 days.Mama is an ok horror movie, it had some scary and creepy parts.
Jessica Chastain is so hot, minus the stupid tattoos, she was very hot in the movie.
The two girls were awesome, great performance.
I saw the trailer, I do not usually see the trailer of the movie before watching the movie, I've seen this time and do not recommend watching the trailer before seeing the movie, because this ruins the film a bit.
3.25/5
Amuda
Kosmo Film
Two girls are abducted by their father and left in a cabin in the middle of the wilderness. The children are then raised by a mysterious spirit thing, that grows attached to them and tries to kill anyone, including the new parents who adopted them, who tries to become important in their lives. I don't get why evil is so needy....http://kosmofilm.com/kosmo-film-blog/2013/6/20/mama-2013
audiopile
More thrill and suspense than other recent big screen films in this genre. Good effects helped the creepy factor. It went a bit soft at the end but most movies do.Showing items 1 – 15 of 28