Mama

IMDB
First time viewed: Yes
Current Release: Yes

Spooky times. The film starts with a Once Upon A Time caption. It's good to keep in mind that kind of fairytale story because the climax doesn't play out much like a horror film.

Actually it plays out more like a classic monster movie rather than a ghost story. I can see why Guillermo del Toro would want to put his name on the material. This isn't some vague blur hiding in the shadows, you quite clearly see Mama right upfront and during the rest of the film. Thankfully the design of her is quite intriguing and the all important freaky movement is executed aplomb. But it does change the nature of the kind of scares they can get away with. The jump scares grow tiresome after a while but they do manage to keep the tension up and the mystery of what she actually is.

Jessica Chastain is the unwitting surrogate mother and she's great but it's the performances of the two young girls that really stands out. They have to sell some pretty wild and complicated stuff and are fascinating character in their own right. You could have made a horror film just about them.

The audience I saw the film with were very fidgety and squirmy, but I guess that just goes to show the film was doing its job well. 

Andrés and Barbara Muschietti do a great job with their first feature, adapting from their own short film. There is a deft touch to the staging of the suspense set pieces and even though a few feel like cheats, the majority are pretty thrilling despite all being in the same location.

I really enjoyed thins one, it wasn't exactly what I was expecting and that could hamper it in some peoples eyes, but most of the scares in the middle were effective and there was a strong beginning and a nice little fairytale story end.