I remember when this movie came out, I saw the trailed and said to whoever I was with: “I know that some October, I am gonna be bored one night and decide to review this and probably hate a large of my time doing so just on the slim possibility that this is so bad that it’s good.” Well, it’s time to make that prophecy come true.
So who is in Ma? Octavia Spencer is a well-known actress, most notably for The Help and as a nurse in A Tie To Kill (#FreeCarlLee). Providing that you’re someone like myself who is more of a horror junkie and bad movie connoisseur, then you would more than likely know her for Pulse, Drag Me To Hell, and Rob Zombie’s Halloween II, and none of those were very good roles for her. We also have Juliette Lewis who is known for From Dusk til Dawn, Natural Born Killers, Cape Fear, and Old School. Missi Pyle was in Big Fish, Dodgeball, and Anchorman. Finally, there is Allison Janney who I mostly know for the underrated sitcom, Mom, which has Anna Farris who was in the Scary Movies and May. You can agree, it’s a good cast, but is it a good cast for this type of film? We’re gonna find out.
Start Film
Erica and Maggie have just moved it. Eric is the mom, played by Juliette, and Maggie is a teenage girl. We meet Haley who might be the bitchy girl at school, or the girl you want to hang out with, I can’t tell. Andy is a boy that seems to like Maggie. There was also a Darrell and a Chaz. How is the name Chaz still around? Her mom has to work, so time for Maggie to hang out with these crazy kids, and they need alcohol. They are taking turns asking people as they enter the store to buy for them. I never once did that. But I also didn’t drink until the end of high school. Eventually, they meet Sue Ann (Octavia) and she can relate, so she’s willing to do it.
They didn’t have Fireball, but they did have Aftershock. It isn’t the same, but both are tasty. This feels like a pro tip time. Go to McDonald’s or a local place that makes milkshakes. Get yourself a vanilla shake, and add some Aftershock. Maybe get some fries. You’re in for a treat, my friend. This is only if you are of legal age to drink……obviously. Sue Ann goes to her job at the vet and starts Facebook stalking the kids. She noticed the logo on the van.
Sue Ann calls Andy’s father, Ben, who is in the midst of getting a BJ from Mercedes (Missy), to rat on Andy for drinking at the Rock Pile. And I think the vet is Allison. The doctor is pissed that Sue was on her phone and not prepping a dog. A cop showed up to bust the teens. He lets them go because the cop played football with Ben. Maggie comes home and she smells like weed and Erica is pissed.
The next day, Erica drops her dog, Louie, off at the vet’s. The kids get Sue to buy for them again at night, so now they have to follow her before making the exchange. She leads them to her place and tells them that they can hang out in her basement. Haley needs to pee so she is down with it. Darrell says no. This place does look sketchy.
Sue has some house rules. No taking the lord’s name in vain, which Haley just did as she was startled. No spitting on the floor. Give her the keys so they can’t drive drunk. Finally, no going upstairs. Darrell actually asks her for some pizza rolls and she agrees to make some snacks and get them cups and ice. Darrell also calls her Ma, so I’m sticking with Ma.
Chaz tells Ma how to redecorate the basement with a couch, projector, table, a snack wall, and she shows him something cool. Her gun, and tells him to strip. Alright. Chaz, you need to hit the gym. He gets nude and Ma cracks up, and she says the gun doesn’t even work. Darrell is wasted. Time to leave.
We see a flashback to Sue as a teen getting invited to drink at the Rock Pile. Ahhh, memories.
Sue stalks Maggie on Facebook and sees that her mom works at the casino. so she goes. Erica and Mercedes see each other at the casino. They knew each other from school, the same as Ben. Mercedes makes a big scene because she’s a drunk. Erica and Stu have to go for work training. I like Stu in his very limited role.
Haley is offended that Maggie can’t have them over with her mom gone. Then there’s a box out by the van as they leave school It is a box of booze and it says “Love, Ma”. Now there are like 10 cars in the driveway, a bunch of teens there, and Ma is happy to host. She also really did a lot with the basement. Do I want to know how she afforded to renovate? Ma is reliving her youth, and we get some “Funkytown”. Nice. Yet, this is incredibly weird.
Another flashback to Sue at the Rock Pile. This feels like a Carrie situation.
Chaz does a toast to Ma. They hear a weird sound upstairs. She blames the ice machine. Ma gets a syringe from the fridge. Haley has to pee, but people are having sex in the bathroom. Haley drags Maggie upstairs to the bathroom. Maggie hears weird thumping and Ma saying “I told you” upstairs. Time to bail. Except Ma meets them at the door. She isn’t happy. They decide to leave.
Maggie wakes up with like 12 text messages. Andy asks Maggie out. Darrell needs a woman. The kids are leaving school and there’s Ma. She has a keg of Bud Light and a beer pong table. I love how feisty Haley is, and Ma is upset. Ma bought for some other kids and told them to follow her, and then they threw something at her window as they pass her. Oh no.
Juliette Lewis is a really good actress. I don’t think that she gets enough credit for how adaptable she is.
Ohhhhhh everybody was Kung Fu Fighting. They are having a birthday party for Stephanie. Maggie upsets Ma. So it is shots time. Then it is Saftey Dance time. Ma doesn’t like this budding relationship between Andy and Maggie, and she intentionally got her drunk.
Maggie wakes up in her bed, but no earrings. Maggie tells Andy that she doesn’t want to hang out at Ma’s anymore. Erica comes home when Andy and Maggie are making out. We learn that Andy’s mom died 5 years ago and that Mercedes is his dad’s new toy. Andy swears a lot in front of Erica, and I find that to be almost out of character. Maybe he just doesn’t like Mercedes. Ma is texting all the kids and they are blocking her. Haley posts a video on Facebook telling everyone to block Ma. Ma sees this at the salon.
Flashback to Sue in school coming into a dark room and a boy whispers for her to come in.
Okay, random thought here, but we are gonna find out that the black girl in the wheelchair that maggie helped in the very beginning is gonna be Sue’s daughter, right? And that is who she was talking to, right? Ma sends a bunch of messages from a new number and asks the kids to meet her at the Rock Pile after school, it’s an emergency. I bet it is.
Ma tells them that she has pancreatic cancer. Maggie’s hair game is not on point. Ma has the bracelet that I think Stephanie had earlier. Haley notices, I think. Ma invites them over on Saturday. Haley tells Maggie about the bracelet. She has also been missing her grandma’s ring and she thinks Ma has it. Of course, Maggie is missing her earrings. While Ma is at work, the girls break in. No gloves. Amateurs!
They go upstairs and there’s a weird gate. They are in Ma’s room, and it is covered in pictures. Ben sees Sue at the vet’s. His cat needs his shots. He offers to take her to a pub tonight.
Flashback to Ben giving her a note to meet in the closet. The flashbacks are fun.
The girls are scouring the room, and suddenly a girl with a big ass Tiki-looking mask, I am sure that isn’t correct, but it’s a big mask. It is the girl in the beginning!! Her name is Genie! Maggie is shocked that Genie can walk. Ma keeps her home because Genie’s spine is getting worse. Genie is very awkward but sweet. Genie asks if the basement parties are fun. Ma is pulling into the driveway. Genie says they should get out because Ma doesn’t like people in her room. The weird thing is that Haley may be the most relatable character in this film to me. I’m scared.
Ma immediately notices some stuff moved. Genie wants to go back to school and gets an injection from Ma. Ma says no, and that Genie’s hair is getting too long and they should cut it before it starts falling out, and then the kids will make fun of her. Okay, I feel like I can speak on this. Teenagers are total pricks, right? But if they know that there is something medically messed up, they usually aren’t that bad unless it’s in the damn movies. I lost my hair at 13. Nobody said shit to me. Yes, I was larger than they were, but if they wanted to be pricks, they still would have. So Ma is injecting Genie with something bad and filling her head with lies, presumably. I hope I’m not wrong because I’m not coming back and fixing this. I want some Fritos, both the original and chili ones, and mix them together.
Ma is at the pub and flashback time. A girl gives her advice on how to suck a dick. It’s young Mercedes and she puts lipstick on Sue while giving her the pro tips.
Ben shows up, a little late. Cancer got his wife. Ben pulls out a tracking device, and he has them on all of his vehicles, including Andy’s. He asks why Andy is spending time at her house. Ben thinks that she is trying to get back at him. He calls her a loser and that she’s pathetic. Ben warns her that if Andy is at her house again, he will handle it himself.
At work, Sue is looking up how to find a tracker on a car. Maggie tells Ben about Genie. Maggie thinks that Ma used to be in love with Ben and is now in love with Andy. Maggie gets home and finds Sue visiting with Erica. Sue came to check on the dog. Sue and Maggie pretend to not know each other.
Flashback of the boy saying don’t stop. She asks him if he will talk to her tomorrow. She walks out and all the kids are standing there, including Ben. She just sucked off some random boy. Everyone is laughing.
Ma gets pissed and sees Mercedes jogging her way and Ma just sped up her truck and destroyed Mercedes. Okay then. Then she turns up the radio and we get “September” by Earth, Wind, and Fire. Good song.
At night, Maggie hears Louie whining. Louie is bleeding. She uses her flashlight and she sees a figure, it was definitely Sue. At work, the doctor is in a cage dead and bleeding. Louie isn’t doing well. Erica says that she’s gonna call Sue and Maggie admits having gone to her house.
Ben is knocking at the door of Sue’s place. That was inevitable. She shows him the tracker and then injects him and he passes out. Erica loses her shit. Oh Mags, you got grounded.
Ben wakes up nude, tied to the bed with a towel over his junk. And Sue has a sharp instrument in her hand. Well, she just grabbed his cock and suggests cutting it off. We see a bag of Louie’s blood. She releases the blood to transfuse, then slits his wrist horizontally and injects him. Still preferable to cutting his cock cut off.
Erica confronts Sue at the liquor store. Sue thinks that Erica is jealous. Hahaha. Sue sends a message to Maggie showing that Andy is at a party there and she is wearing the earrings. Maggie is being foolish and steals her mom’s car. It is Chaz’s birthday. Haley just kissed Mags. Ma gives Genie some medication. She checks to make sure the pill went down. Ma takes a metal bar and seals everyone in. And the punch is making everyone pass out.
Maggie sneaks up to the front door, but everything is locked up. Maggie goes to find Genie and hears a voice say “help me”. Instead, she finds Ben, and Sue is behind her and injects Maggie. It’s now morning time and Erica wakes up. Sue has Maggie and Andy tied up and restrained. Sue has been using Diazepam. Everyone is down there in the group, plus the preacher’s daughter who goes to parties and pretends to be asleep. She is arguably my second favorite character just for how absurd the role is.
Ma cuts open Cha’z shirt and uses an iron on his belly. Oh no, the preacher’s daughter gets freaked out and tries to run, but the leash around her throat stops her and she gets an iron to the back of the head. Erica is getting pissed that Maggie isn’t getting up. Ma is going after Haley now, to shut her up, she sews her lips shut. Erica calls Stu to come over. “Sorry Darrell, they only got room for one of us.” Ma then paints Darrell’s face white. That is pretty cold. Andy wakes up. He asks her if she is mad at them. She picks him up and she dances with them. She says that they are the cutest couple. Andy professes his love for Sue. They start kissing. She then stabs him in the ribs with a butcher knife.
There’s someone at the door. It’s a cop. he is concerned about the cars in the driveway and cups on the lawn. He hears Maggie, but Genie comes in and he thinks the sound was her. He accepts this and walks away but Maggie screams. Sue just shot the cop! She is very upset at Genie for that. She makes Genie help her drag the cop’s body inside.
Sue wants Maggie to arrange all the kids together near or on the couch for a nice picture. Maggie shall not be in the picture, she has to take it. This is so silly but fun in its own demented way. After the pictures, Sue ties Maggie up with the leash so she is practically hanging from the ceiling. Genie freaks out saying that the cop is moving. Genie smacks Sue in the face with a frying pan. This causes Sue to fall back downstairs, tipping over a candle in the alcohol-drenched basement.
Hold up. I have been mindlessly enjoying this movie, but this one is too much. There ain’t no way that Sue would be so careless to have a candle down there like that. It is conveniently out of character.
Haley and Darrell wake up but they can’t save Maggie. Genie saves her. Genie is undoing all the restraints. But now the stairs are on fire and they are trapped. Erica and Stu arrive just in time to remove the bar to open the cellar doors. Sue is up and has grabbed Genie. Erica apologizes to Sue for what happened all those years ago. Maggie sees the butcher knife and stabs Sue in the back. Genie escapes. The basement exploded a bit. But Sue had no issue walking up the stairs and casually looks outside to see all of her victims. Maggie sees Sue and then Sue makes her way upstairs to Ben. She kisses ben on the cheek and cuddles with him. The room is on fire, but Sue seems content.
End Film
Huh, this really wasn’t all that bad. It was cheesy and love the top, but not exactly what I expected. Gosh, did I actually enjoy this? I think I did.
A lot of the acting was good for what the roles were. Octavia did great in her role as Sue. I already praised Juliette. McKaley Miller played the role of Haley, and she stood out to me for some reason. Not only her acting, but she’s the type of brash female that I have known for so long that doesn’t watch her mouth at inappropriate times.
By and large, the pacing was pretty spot on, and never felt like it weighed down too much. Even some of the scenes that I didn’t love served their purpose. The song choices were fun. This is perhaps more of a thriller than a horror, but I know they are very close, so that is nitpicking. All the violence happens in the final 30 minutes, which is often the case in thrillers. It’s the slow build to the breaking point into the grand finale.
I will recommend this if the idea intrigues you and you can shut your brain off for 95 minutes and enjoy the ride, the way most thrillers are meant to be seen. The biggest question that I am left with is: will I ever watch this again? I can’t say for sure. If it was on in the background and I was busy, cool. If someone wanted to watch it, I may say okay, but I would probably push for a better movie. I often do when it is time to select a film. I certainly wouldn’t hate seeing this again. I don’t think that there is much replay value to be had here. For that reason, I don’t expect to see it again.
I want to add one final thought. I know that my rating system isn’t for everyone, but it has practical reasoning. You may see a 4 or 5-rated film and think, oh this is gonna be a waste of my time. On the contrary, I love films that are a one-time viewing experience that leaves me entertained. there is no shame in making a very good one-time viewing film.
Final Rating: 5.0 – Very enjoyable but I don’t anticipate seeing it again. If I do, the rating bumps to like a 5.3-5.5 range.
All the pictures used in this blog are for review purposes. They are the property of:
- Blumhouse Productions
- Dentsu (presented in association with)
- Fuji Television Network (presented in association with)
- Wyolah Films
Please go find a copy and support the creators.