Mamá (2008) User Reviews (12)

Powerful Horror Short

[gavin6942 · 8/10 · 24 April 2013]

Little Victoria (Berta Ros) is waken up by her sister Lili (Victoria Harris) who insists on leaving the house because somebody unpleasant has come back.

Although I watched this through the tainted point of view of seeing the feature film first, I think I can judge and review it objectively. (At least I hope so.) In this very short film, we have two little girls scared by an unknown entity. We do get to see this "Mama" a bit, and she is indeed something to fear. I actually think the effects look far better here than they do in the full-length version.

This excels as a short film because it leaves us wondering: who are these girls, what is this Mama, and where are the parents? And despite leaving us with questions, it is very self-contained. The lack of plot is actually more effective than having a plot.

Little Mama

[kosmasp · 7/10 · 13 September 2013]

What started off as a short, became a feature length movie. And Guillermo Del Toro was the one who saw the potential in the movie. In both movies so to speak. The general idea is simple and yet very horrifying. Having two children in peril will work most of the time. Shooting this like it is one take (great effects doing that and the other things in the movie) was genius too.

Of course there are more takes, it's very complicated, but also very short and you get the feeling of dread and fear. Saying more about it, would spoil the "fun" you could have watching it. The good thing is, it doesn't matter if you watch this before watching the feature length movie or afterwards. The movie itself is kind of absorbed as one scene in the movie ... though it has a small difference ...

For a three minute short... this is impressive!

[logicproreviews · 8/10 · 26 July 2018]

I first saw Mamá on YouTube back in 2013 and I can remember having trouble sleeping afterwards. This is atmospheric, scary and in your face. The images you see here will stay in your head no matter what. There's no going back after watching this. Three minutes is the perfect length for this little horror gem.

This is far greater than the feature that followed.

I have revisited it many times and when you know the outcome, the tension is palpable.

Highly recommended.

Tip: watch it late at night and alone under a blanket with the lights turned off.

Good Horror Short

[Michael_Elliott · 18 January 2013]

Mama (2008)

*** (out of 4)

Andres Muschietti's three-minute short is what helped get his 2013 film made. Fans of that film (whick I'm one of) will certainly want to watch this just to compare how the sequence here looked in the feature. What we basically have is two little girls walking around their house when they notice mama and try to get away from her. This scene was actually redone in the feature to a very good effect and considering this thing just lasts three-minutes there's really no reason to try and treat it the same as a feature. With that said, I was actually quite impressed with this short as the director at least managed to build up some tension and the pay-off was nice. I will also admit that I actually liked mama from this short better than the feature, which was good but often times relied on too much CGI. Both Victoria Harris and Berta Ros are good as the children.

Goodnight mommy

[Rectangular_businessman · 6/10 · 30 March 2022]

It was an okay short. The atmosphere is creepy and well done.

Feels more like a "demo reel" or a preview than a proper short, but it was a decent watch.

The shape of things to come

[Horst_In_Translation · 6/10 · 3 August 2015]

"Mamá" is a short film by writer and director Andrés Muschietti and it runs for 3 minutes only and that already includes titles and about 25 seconds at the start before th film really starts. We see a girl move into her sister's room to tell her that her mother has returned. I quite liked the whole atmosphere in this one and the camera work was nicely done too and added a lot to the scare factor of this film. The second time that Mamá moves to the camera was a bit repetitive already still I have to admit. And I really did not understand why the sister would not let the other sister into the room before she was possessed. Anyway, still an okay short film and worth a watch for horror film fans. This short film was the basis of a full feature movie starring Jessica Chastain that Muschietti made 5 years later and which became quite popular. Unluckily for the three girls in here, they were not recast for that one. Still, they are doing a fine job here and all in all, I think the positive outweighs the negative. Recommended.

Exquisitely chilling

[I_Ailurophile · 10/10 · 17 April 2021]

'Mamá' is a powerful, masterful horror short. In 3 quick minutes it conveys a greater sense of terror than most full-length features can achieve. It does this with no background, no explanation, and not even a real narrative to speak of. What 'Mamá' does is to feed us horror built entirely from the quintessential elements of a picture.

A door opens, and a child steps in backwards, fearfully watching the hallway outside. An alarmed whisper: "Mom is back." The two sisters step slowly and silently downstairs. The door leading outside is locked. Music greets our ears in the form of building discordant strings that immediately raise our hackles. Sounds from the kitchen. Then we see it: a horrific apparition given unnatural form, moving in a very unnatural way. The girls run, deeply scared.

And that's it. That is the entirety of 'Mamá.' Unless I should give great detail of every frame, there is nothing to spoil. Yet in its simplicity it is instantly, wholly chilling in a way that so few horror pictures have accomplished.

Andy and Barbara Muschietti crafted a delightfully succinct tale without any need for elaboration. We don't need to know what this spirit is, or how it is tied to these girls, that they are familiar enough to know to fear it. We don't need to know what happens next, if there is any resolution, if the girls are safe or if the spirit is vanquished. No additional characters are necessary. 'Mamá' is short, potent, and effective. It is all that it needs to be.

I've not yet had opportunity to watch the 2013 full-length feature based on this, backed by Guillermo del Toro as executive producer. I'm generally skeptical of longer films adapted from shorts, and the same is true here. On the other hand, it inspires confidence that the Muschietti's are also involved in the 2013 movie's production. I may have to eventually give it a try after all.

Until then, there will always be 'Mamá.' This is an outstanding short horror film, carrying as much of a punch now as it did when it first found an audience. Do not pass this up!

Atmospheric

[Fernando-Rodrigues · 6/10 · 18 February 2021]

Great short, but it lacks some explanations (Did the girls live alone?) and the CGI effects are not good.

Mamá hosts the most peculiar looking mother ever.

[TheMovieDiorama · 5/10 · 5 October 2018]

Open your eyes kids! No innocent mother would open up her crusty arms and tilt her body in an unspeakable shape, rapidly looming in for a hug. None! Muschietti manages to build enough tension within the short two minute runtime, so much so that a feature film was produced years later. Slow camera movement through dark claustrophobic corridors, crafting an adequate amount of suspense. The minimal use of lighting also enhanced the atmosphere, further illustrating the bleakness of the house. However aside from his technical prowess, it simply is just a horror sequence. A clip if you will. Not exactly a complete short, and unfortunately not a memorable one. Sure, "Mamá" herself is eerie and needs to eat a hamburger or five. But with no substance, it is just a disposable short that really doesn't give enough scares. Think of it as teaser. "Oh, that would make a good film!" is what Muschietti was aiming for. To which he succeeded. Alas, a few more minutes to further set the mood and create some memorable scares were required, and could've set a high bar. Mamá creeps on in, and yet quickly creeps out of your mind. Thank God the film was better...

Hilarious

[iwjgamer · 4/10 · 24 July 2019]

I don't have much to say here, but I just wanted to say that the entire second half of Mamá made me chuckle because it was just straight up ridiculous. I'm giving it a four as a horror film, but it honestly works better as a comedy. Also, the mom looks like crappy late 2000s CGI even though all logic says to make her appearance practical effects.

A really short 'short', the genesis of a horror movie.

[TxMike · 2 June 2013]

I saw this film short as an "extra" on the DVD for the feature length movie of the same name, by the same writers. The extra, with Del Toro's introductory comments, is about 5 minutes. The short film itself is right at 3 minutes.

It's really only an idea, actually. We see two small girls in a large, two-story house. The atmosphere is spooky. Then we see the ghost figure "Mama" rushing towards the girls as they run up the stairs to safety. Hopefully.

Del Toro came across this short and was impressed enough to contact the writers, a brother and sister team, to see if they might write a feature length film on the same theme.

And they did, the 1 hour 40 minute horror movie "Mama." Which I enjoyed, BTW, even though it is not a genre that I am usually drawn to.

What's the point?

[injury-65447 · 3/10 · 22 May 2020]

I liked it at first, a very creepy and unsettling atmosphere was created with the two little girls in the empty house. Unfortunately it devolves into horror cliche nonsense and becomes stupidly goofy and predictable. Haven't directors learned? Imply the horror, don't show it.