It has been over a year since Lucas’s twin brother Jeffery had killed his wife and disappeared into the woods with his two girls. Now Lucas (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) and his girlfriend Annabel (Jessica Chastain) find the girls still alive in a cabin deep in the woods. According to the girls, they have been kept alive all of this time by the entity known as Mama.
It is now up to Lucas and Annabel to raise the girls and give them a normal life, while the entity known as Mama will do anything to see that she gets her girls back.
I found “Mama” to be one of the best PG-13 horror films I have seen in quite some time. What “Mama” excels in, is that it does not need to be bloody or gruesome to make one feel uncomfortable.
“Mama” though it is not a gruesome movie relies heavily on making the audience feel uncomfortable and making the character of Mama look absolutely terrifying.
“Mama” is produced by Guillermo del Toro who is famously known for his creatures in his movies “Hellboy” and “Pan’s Labyrinth.”
Even though Mama is more or less a ghost-like character, “Mama” does not really fall into the stereotypical ghost movie genre. Although at some points it does feel as if they are taking it in that direction, they quickly change it up to have the audience guessing on what will happen next.
Also, unlike most ghost movies where the first hour or so is just quick images of the ghost and chock full of jump scares, “Mama” does not hesitate to show you a good deal of the creature early on and use her grotesque face to scare you for the rest of it.
My only issue with “Mama” was that I wish it would have spent more time on Mama’s backstory and done a bit more with some of the main characters.
It is not that the film does not show you anything at all, but I was left wanting more.
“Mama” will shock you and have you at the edge of your seat up until the end. The ending is the best part, and stands out from most other ghost movie endings.
Overall I was a fan of “Mama,” even though I went in wearily as someone who is rarely impressed by PG-13 horror flicks and prefers his horror to be full of violence and blood.
For being a truly scary movie and not sticking with the typical ghost genre, I give “Mama” a well-deserved 4 out of 5 stars.