Movie Reviews

Mama

Movie 31: Mama (2013) ‘A mothers love is forever’

Cast:

Anabelle - Jessica Chastain

Lucas - Nikolaj Coster-Waldau

Victoria - Megan Charpentier

Lilly - Isabelle Nélisse

Movie Information:

Running Time- 100 minutes

Rating- 14A for disturbing content and frightening scenes

Horror film by Guillermo Del Toro

Based on the Spanish short ‘Mamá’

My Rating: 4 Stars

Movie Summary:

          A married man has just killed his wife and has taken his two daughters Victoria a six year old, and his baby Lilly. He drives fast on a snow covered road and when Victoria shouts for him to slow down he skids off the road and down a cliff. The car crashes but they are all okay, he takes them walking in the forest until he finds a wooden cabin, he takes them in and breaks down while they sit by the fire he made. He takes out a gun and takes off Victoria’s glasses so she can’t see properly and is about to shoot her when Mama interrupts. Mama grabs the father and kills him. That night she feeds the girls cherries.

          Five years later Lucas, uncle to Victoria and Lily has none stopped been searching for his nieces, his girlfriend Annabelle supports him searching but does not want any kids. One day when the men he has out are doing nothing and drinking in the forest they find the crashed car, they then spot the cabin. They go in to find lots of cherry seeds and they both find the girls who are covered in dirt and are walking like animals and screaming at them.

          Lucas is told about the girls and goes over to the institute where they are being kept. He is introduced to the man under the girl’s case. Lucas goes into the room with the two girls and is able to connect with Victoria and gives her, her glasses.

         At court Lucas gets custody over the girls but the girl’s aunt has visitation rights. Lucas and Annabelle move into a house given to them by the institute to look after the girls. Victoria is most 'normal’ but Lilly is very feral.

           Odd things happen in the house and one day when Annabelle and Lucas are going to bed she thinks she hears something and gets Lucas to go check it out. Lucas ends up finding a black hole forming in the wall. He then falls down the stairs. Lucas is then hospitalized.

          Annabelle must watch the girls while he is in the hospital but she thinks something really is up with Mama, whom the girls still talk to and love. Meanwhile the man taking care of the girls mentally digs into Mama’s identity. From what Victoria has told him Mama came from a ‘sad’ house. He finds an insane asylum close by that burned down in the 1800’s. He finds a woman’s story that matches Mama.

          Annabelle still feels scared in her house. She has a dream seeing through Mama’s eyes how she had kidnapped her baby ran from the men trying to take her baby away and then jumped off a cliff. Before she hit the water and died her baby was caught on a branch and she lost it. Annabelle wakes up terrified.

           In the hospital Lucas has a dream of his brother telling him to go to the cabin and to stop Mama before she takes the girls. The mental worker discovers Mama’s past and finds a box at a government building of her baby’s remains. He goes to the cabin but is killed by Mama.

          Annabelle knows something is wrong and steals the man who is now dead’s laptop and box containing the baby remains. She watches his videos and realizes everything that’s going on. Mama then shows up and scares the girls since they both have begun to bond with Annabelle. Mama knocks out Annabelle and takes the girls to the cliff beside the cabin where she had jumped many, many years ago. Annabelle heads there once she wakes up and bumps into Lucas she tells him Mama has taken the girls. They run over to the cliff to see Mama with Victoria and Lilly. Annabelle gives Mama the remains of her baby and Mama is finally at peace. Ready to jump over the cliff and vanish forever. Lilly though doesn’t want her to go and screams for her. Mama realizes she’s leaving the two girls and grows mad tossing the remains away. She knocks out Lucas and tries to put Annabelle down. Annabelle refuses to give up and holds onto Victoria’s bath robe. Victoria lets go of Mama’s hand and tells Lilly she wants to stay with Annabelle and Lucas. Lilly however wants to go with Mama. Mama takes Lilly into her arms and wraps her in her dress. The two fall off the cliff but before they hit the water they turn into dozens of black moths. Annabelle, Victoria and Lucas cry over the loss of Lilly but are happy to have each other. Lilly as a moth lands on Victoria. THE END!!

Movie Review:

            This was a good movie. I watched it on Youtube. I don’t know what to say, it was good. Nothing special, no wow, I would have liked to see Mama more, I think the previews they had for this movie looked better.

            I didn’t like that Lilly died, it was sad L

            If you have the time I would recommend this movie, I did not think it was scary at all. But hey I’m not scared of anything. The story line was good though, I did feel bad for Mama, but also hated her.

            Good movie, but nothing special…