Mama Retreat (2021) Review: A Motherhood Retreat Turns Anxiety Into a Dark Horror Mystery

 

Mama Retreat | 2021 | 16m
Genre: Horror/Short | Country: United States
Director: Eileen Álvarez | Writer: Eileen Álvarez
Cast: Annie Gonzalez, Nicole Garza, Laura Campbell
IMDb: 3.8
My Rating: 7/10

Mercedes attends an exclusive glamping retreat designed to prepare women for motherhood, only to uncover a dark mystery beyond anything she could have imagined.

Warning:

None

What if a place designed to help you prepare for motherhood becomes the very place that makes you question whether you are safe?

That was the thought I had while watching Mama Retreat (2021). The short film has a simple but interesting premise: a woman joins an exclusive retreat to deal with her worries about becoming a mother, only to discover that something strange is happening around her. The idea immediately caught my attention, although I also felt that the concept had much more potential than what could be explored in its short runtime.

Mercedes (Annie Gonzalez) is preparing to become a mother. Following her doctor's advice to deal with the anxiety she is experiencing, she travels to a remote location to attend a special retreat.

The retreat is attended by several women who are encouraged to share their worries about motherhood. The sessions are led by Julie, who tries to create an atmosphere where everyone feels comfortable enough to open up.

At first, Mercedes feels that she has come to the wrong place. She does not want to talk about the concerns she has been keeping to herself. But Julie manages to persuade her to participate, and little by little, Mercedes begins to open up.

Then something strange happens during a group meal.

The women are served live insects and are expected to eat them.

Mercedes immediately becomes suspicious and wants to leave the retreat. But once again, Julie manages to convince her to stay until the evening session.

That decision leads Mercedes into something much darker than she expected.

Will she make it out alive?

What I like about Mama Retreat is the basic idea. A retreat for women preparing themselves for motherhood already provides an interesting setting because becoming a mother can naturally bring many worries, expectations, and fears.

Then the film adds horror to that situation.

For me, the concept has enough potential to become a much longer film. A feature-length version could explore the background of the characters, explain why the retreat exists, and build a stronger foundation for the mystery.

The short film itself is presented reasonably well, but I think that is also where its biggest limitation appears. There simply is not enough time to develop everything that the concept seems capable of offering.

The beginning is actually quite promising. Mercedes is introduced as someone who is anxious and reluctant to talk about what she is feeling, and the retreat immediately creates a slightly uncomfortable atmosphere.

But the conflict does not develop strongly enough for me.

Once the strange behavior begins, I can already predict where the story is going. There is not much that genuinely surprises me along the way.

The ending is more interesting because of the twist. It is not something I completely expected, and it does make the short film more memorable. At the same time, I am still left wondering exactly where the story is supposed to go beyond that point.

That is probably my biggest feeling after watching Mama Retreat: I can see the potential, but I want more.

I think the characters' backgrounds could have been explored further. The story also needs more information about the retreat itself and the reasons behind what is happening. Those details could have made the mystery much stronger and given the ending more impact.

The acting is quite good, although I would not say that any of the performances are particularly outstanding. The cinematography, color composition, and music are handled well, and I also like the location chosen for the retreat. The setting has a certain aesthetic quality that makes the experience visually interesting.

One scene that stayed with me is when all the participants gather in a circle to exercise together. During the activity, they are encouraged to express themselves freely and scream to release their anxiety.

Mercedes seems to completely lose herself in that feeling of freedom.

For a moment, she lets out everything she has been carrying in her mind.

I find this scene interesting because it shows another side of Mercedes. Until then, she has been hesitant and uncomfortable about expressing her fears. Here, however, she finally lets herself release the emotions she has been holding back.

Watching her made me think about how much anxiety can be hidden behind the excitement of becoming a mother. Preparing for motherhood is often presented as something joyful, but it can also come with many fears that are not always openly discussed.

People may worry about whether they will be good parents, whether they are ready, or whether they will be able to handle the responsibility.

The scene captures that emotional release quite effectively for me, even though the film does not explore those concerns in great depth.

The dialogue, “You wanna be mom material?” also fits the atmosphere of the film because it immediately makes motherhood feel like something that can be measured or judged.

And perhaps that is part of what makes the retreat unsettling.

When someone is already worried that they are not ready to become a mother, being placed in an environment where they feel they must prove themselves can make those fears even stronger.

Overall, I think Mama Retreat (2021) is still an interesting short horror film. The concept is strong and could potentially become much more compelling as a feature-length story. The conflict could be developed more, the characters need stronger backgrounds, and the mystery could use more details, but the film still manages to create an intriguing atmosphere in its limited runtime.

What stayed with me most is the idea behind Mercedes' journey. Before becoming a mother, she is already carrying so many questions about whether she is ready.

And maybe that is something many people can understand beyond the horror itself: when we are preparing for a major change in life, are we giving ourselves enough space to admit that we are afraid, or are we too busy trying to prove that we are ready?

(Aluna Uwie)

Previously published on Alunauwie.com.

"This article was originally written in Indonesian and has been adapted into English for international readers."