Ma (2019) Review – A Squandered Octavia Spencer Performance in a Dull Thriller

Welcome to Knockout Horror. Today we are reviewing Tate Taylor’s Ma (2019).

Welcome to Ma’s

Ma kicks off with Erica (Juliette Lewis) and her daughter Maggie (Diana Silvers) moving into a new home. Maggie starts out in a new school and, in what is perhaps the most unlikely thing to happen in this movie, is invited to hang out with the “cool kids” on her very first day. Who needs character development, right? Looking for a night of partying, they enlist the help of a woman known as Ma (Octavia Spencer) who agrees to buy them booze and even let them party at her place. Little do they realise that Ma has much more sinister intentions than just helping them out.

“Ma is dull, poorly acted, terribly scripted, repetitive and not remotely scary. In a world of unremarkable horror plots, Ma’s is somewhere near the top.”

This is an incredibly simple concept. A group of teens want to party, a woman offers them a place to party, she starts to act a bit strange so the kids bail. When said kids bail, Ma reveals that she doesn’t take rejection well and that’s when things start to get really serious. In a world of unremarkable horror plots, Ma‘s is somewhere near the top. It’s best to think of it as a modern re-imagining of Misery but with a cast of teens rather than a famous author.

It’s the same type of bunny boiling separation anxiety that Annie Wilkes had but from the perspective of a middle aged woman who just wants to be seen as cool. Still, it has Octavia Spencer so it must be good, right? Nope, not really. Ma is dull, poorly acted, terribly scripted, repetitive, and not remotely scary. At its heart, this is an exploitation movie that never manages to actually lean into the carnage that sub-genre demands. It’s really disappointing as I loved the trailer. Let’s start with the most glaring problem, the script and the awful characters.

A lot of terrible performances

The performances of the majority of the teenagers in Ma were just awful. Not all, of course, but almost all of them. I thought McKaley Miller was excellent as Haley. I am sure we aren’t supposed to like her character a great deal but she does a great job with what she is given and brings a lot of energy. Diana Silvers, as Maggie, was passable I guess. I think she needs a lot more experience but she does okay. We’ll get to the actually great performances in just a sec, for now let’s focus on the bad.

Corey Fogelmanis is very lacklustre playing Andy, Maggie’s non-threatening love interest. His voice is very fragile and I kinda had the feeling he is lacking in confidence. This leads to some of his scenes seeming really forced, awkward, and unnatural. There is zero chemistry between him and Maggie, as well, which detracts from the story.

Dante Brown, as Darell, was unremarkable and really added little to the movie. That has less to do with his acting and more to do with how the plot pushes him to the background. He did have a line that made me laugh so I’ll give him credit for the delivery there. Again, he seemed lacking in confidence and uncomfortable at times.

The absolute worst of all the bad acting offenders was Chaz played by Gianni Paolo. Chaz as a character is just the worst of the worst and Paolo compounds that. Every time he is on the screen he is overacting and the way he delivers his lines is like something out of a deliberately camp kid’s sitcom. He is almost like an over the top Wayne’s World character.

There is one scene where Chaz suggests changes to Ma’s basement and challenges whether she wants to be cool. The way he delivers the line and how he interacts with Ma is beyond cringe and horribly unnatural. It’s hard to blame the young cast though, because there is a much bigger reason for it.

Even more issues

Ma features some terrible script work and some awful direction. Some of the conversations are so awkward and the dialogue doesn’t feel at all natural. Sure, Gianni Paolo overacted but what else was he supposed to do when he read a terribly written line in the script? Let’s not forget that someone directed him to interact with Ma in that way. It is the director’s job to get the most out of their cast and they failed in a big way.

“These issues with direction permeate every scene, as well. Reactions are unnatural, extras act awkwardly and, at times, really wooden, and scenes are often messy. Characters are head-scratchingly dumb and the logic leaps are some of the worst I have seen..”

These issues with direction permeate every scene, as well. Reactions are unnatural, extras act awkwardly and, at times, really wooden, and scenes are often messy. Characters are head-scratchingly dumb and the logic leaps are some of the worst I have seen.

Events happen in a bubble with seemingly no consequences and the story drags on for so long that the ending comes spilling out of nowhere like a painful prolapse. There is over an hour of build-up for a 10 minute ending sequence that amounts to one of the most disappointing payoffs in recent memory.

With all of the above being said, the absolute biggest problem of all is that Ma just isn’t scary. If it was, you could forgive much of the above but it just isn’t. There are a few jump scares here and there but any sense of tension or dread is non-existent.

Ma is an intimidating character but nothing ever manifests from it. There is never any reason to feel concerned for the cast or to fear what might be around the corner. Not that it would matter if the movie was scary. The cast is so unlikable that it wouldn’t matter if they were chilling with Norman Bates on Mike Myers’ sofa as he hosts a BYOB Halloween party. There is no way you would root for them.

On the plus side… in other words scraping the barrel

It is so hard for me to recommend Ma at all but I do feel as though it has a few merits. First off, Octavia Spencer is great. I can’t say enough how much I enjoyed her performance. She was absolutely fantastic and played every element of the Ma character with finesse and brilliance. I would almost advise people watch this movie just for her performance… almost.

“Octavia Spencer is great; I can’t say enough how much I enjoyed her performance. She played every element of the Ma character with finesse and brilliance.”

Some of the supporting cast are really good, too. Juliette Lewis doesn’t have a particularly huge role but she was great. She really nailed the subtleties of her character and portrayed a seemingly genuine affection for her onscreen daughter Maggie. Allison Janney had a disappointingly tiny role as Sue Ann’s boss but she was great when she was on screen.

One thing that I feel does deserve some praise is the music. Some of the music used in Ma was excellent and would be very fitting in an 80s slasher movie. I really liked it, especially the track that plays as the film ends. This style of music is really coming back into fashion with the recent 80s revival and Gregory Tripi definitely shows a lot of promise when it comes to this style of music.

Our Scoring Philosophy: A Fair Fight

Horror is a genre that thrives thanks to indie film makers and low budget creators. At Knockout Horror, we firmly believe that every movie that we review deserves a fair fight. That's why we grade on a curve. Our star ratings are all about context, judging a film on what it achieves with the resources it has.

A 4-star rating for a scrappy indie horror made for $10,000 is a testament to its ingenuity and raw power. A 4-star rating for a $100 million blockbuster means it delivered on its epic promises. We don't compare them side-by-side; we celebrate success in every weight class, from the back-alley brawler to the heavyweight champion. Please keep this in mind when considering star ratings.

Support the Site Knockout Horror is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. Basically, if you click a link to rent or buy a movie, we may earn a tiny commission at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This helps keep the lights on and the nightmares coming. Don't worry, we will never recommend a movie purely to generate clicks. If it's bad, we will tell you.

Disclaimer: Images, posters, and video stills used in this review are the property of their respective copyright holders. They are included here for the purposes of commentary, criticism, and review under fair use. Knockout Horror makes no claim of ownership and encourages readers to support the official release of all films discussed.