[vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”23045″ img_size=”800×450″ alignment=”center”][vc_column_text]I’m currently picking my jaw off of the floor after being stunned by ‘Ma‘ the psychological thriller. The Blumhouse produced film, directed by Tate Taylor takes place in a small town in present-day Ohio. It follows Maggie (Diana Silver), a new student as she adjusts to her new town and her new friend group while learning about the past along the way. While there isn’t much to do in small towns the group of teenagers do what most do, try to find alcohol. The teens befriend Ma (Octavia Spencer) as she buys alcohol for them on multiple occasions and christens her basement, the party pad. Ma has rules and doesn’t like it when they are broken nor does she like to be ignored or made fun of. She simply just wants to relive the good times that she never had or were they taken from her?
Acting
This film features Octavia Spencer as you’ve never seen her. She’s sadistic, manipulative, and cunning all making a perfectly dark monstrous villain. However, you also want to feel compassion for her circumstance leaving you conflicted. Her acting is top tier throughout the film. From her chilling stares to her personality switches, she carries the film on her back.
The other star, Diana Silvers as Maggie plays a shy teen doing what she needs to do to fit in. While still being relatively new to the silver screen, she’s a good innocent balance to Octavia’s malevolence.
Pace
The film moves at a steady pace after the first few scenes. The first few move quickly with the teenagers becoming friends with Maggie very fast. It was constantly building a story without trying too hard. It is very easy to keep up with leaving very few unanswered questions. The questions you do have ultimately don’t matter in the end.[/vc_column_text][vc_images_carousel images=”22949,22950,22956″ img_size=”500×384″ speed=”3000″ autoplay=”yes” wrap=”yes”][vc_column_text]
Climax
This is when things get their darkest. It was creative, twisted and felt original. I left feeling slightly uncomfortable, but in the way the filmmakers would want. Think Quasimodo and Lorena Bobbitt, you’ll see. Remember, don’t make Ma drink alone.
Rating
3.5 out of 5
Synopsis:
A lonely middle-aged woman befriends some teenagers and decides to let them party in the basement of her home. But there are some house rules: One of the kids has to stay sober, don’t curse, and never go upstairs. They must also refer to her as Ma. But as Ma’s hospitality starts to curdle into obsession, what began as a teenage dream turns into a terrorizing nightmare, and Ma’s place goes from the best place in town to the worst place on Earth.
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Senior Critic. Observing the human race since 1988.
