If there’s one thing that modern horror movies love to use it’s creepy little girls and we get a big dose of them in “Mama”, the new horror picture from executive producer Guillermo del Toro and first time director Andres Muschietti. “Mama” steers clear of the cheap and often used blood and gore and instead goes the eerie ghost story route. But while it may stay away from one set of conventional, hackneyed horror movie gimmicks it fully embraces others. But that’s okay. There’s enough here to make “Mama” feel fresh. More importantly, it has it’s fair share of creepy moments.
Jessica Chastain gets her first movie of 2013 under her belt by playing a role that shows her incredible and impressive range. Here she dons a short black wig and fake tattoos to play Annabel, the bass player in a punk rock garage band. No, I’m serious! Her boyfriend Lucas (Nicolaj Coster-Waldau) has exhausted his resources in a 5-year search for his twin brother and two young nieces. His brother snapped, killed several co-workers and his estranged wife, then disappeared with the girls. We learn all of this in the opening sequence and it’s pretty effective table setting.
Lucas’ final search team stumbles across the wrecked car of his brother which leads to an old abandoned cabin. Inside they find Victoria and her younger sister Lilly. The two are nothing more than wild animals. They immediately go under the care of Dr. Dreyfuss (Daniel Kash) who is able to make progress with Victoria through the small bit of English she remembers. He ends up sending them home with Annabel and Lucas with hopes that the familiarity and love will help their progress. I shouldn’t need to tell you that something else comes home with them, something the girls simply refer to as “Mama”.
Now it won’t take you long to notice almost every familiar ghost story gimmick. There are flickering lights, mysterious slamming doors, eerie voices, terrifying dreams, loud bursts of music, and even a spooky closet and a “what’s under my bed?” scene. And of course horror movies can’t feature smart characters. Everybody does some pretty dumb yet standard stuff. I mean at what point do these people finally realize that walking towards the creepy screams, moans, and gurgling sounds IS NOT A GOOD IDEA!
But let’s be honest, these things are a given when it comes to modern horror pictures so you have to accept it. And despite these predictable devices, “Mama” still manages to deliver a ghostly good time. Like any good PG-13 horror flick, the scares in “Mama” generate in your head with director Muschietti often using what the audience doesn’t see. He works heavily in mood and tone and his skillful use of sound is one of his key instruments. But he also has a keen eye for visuals and I noticed several classic techniques taken from Hitchcock and other accomplished directors. All of this makes the movie a little unnerving when it needs to be and creepy throughout. It’s never ‘jump out of your seat’ scary but it doesn’t need to be.
Then there’s the way the story plays with the deep love of a mother for their child. Two opposite approaches to this collide head-on. I won’t go into spoiler territory but I found it to be pretty clever. In fact “Mama” as a whole is pretty clever. Yes, horror movie cliches abound and the ending may leave you scratching your head, but this is still a satisfying endeavor filled with strong performances and made by a director who knows what he’s doing. This may not break new ground or take the genre in new directions, but it’s a lot of fun and ultimately satisfying. That’s how movies should be.
Sounds good my man. I normally avoid horrors as most are pretty crap but this could be worthwhile. Nice review bro.
Thanks buddy. Oh and be sure to check out yesterday’s post – My most anticipated of 2013. I think you’ll like my #1!
Nice review. I was hoping for a little more from this after seeing the trailers but still sounds decent enough. Shame it descends into cliche a bit too often from the sounds of things though.
It definitely uses several gimmicks that you’ve seen in so many other ghost stories. But there’s still some good stuff here especially with the technique.
Great review. After watching the trailer, the film does seem promising. Though I’d probably wait for the dvd!
Thanks! I really don’t see this as something you MUST see in the theater. But it’s definitely worth a watch in DVD.
Pan’s Labyrinth terrified me, so so I think this’d be too scary for me Keith. Even with the gorgeous Nicolaj Coster-Waldau (lucky Jessica!) I don’t think I’ll be seeing this.
It doesn’t have near the devastation or emotional pop of Pan’s. But still, knowing your opinion of the horror genre, this one may not be up your alley.
By the way, my most anticipated post is up! Check it out.
I’ll admit that the movie was pretty effective (i.e. scary in a conventional way), but I’m still disappointed with the reliance on cliches and the writers’ refusal to dig deep and get creative. Jessica Chastain was probably the only thing that brought it up into “average” territory for me.
Chastain is quite good isn’t she? She has grown into a phenomenal actress even when the material may not be tops.
Good review. I think I might give this one a chance when it opens here next week.
Thanks my friend. Hey I don’t think I ever asked – where are you located?
Tijuana, México 😀
Gotcha. I thought you had said Mexico but I didn’t remember where in Mexico.
It works until the spirit is actually visualized. There were too many partial ideas being explored and then abandoned. The girls are terrific, including Chastain despite some ghost story stupidity.
I didn’t have a big problem with the spirit although I have to admit it wasn’t very memorable.