Mārama

Play trailer

2:07

Mārama

Apr 2026

1h 29m

Horror

Mystery & Thriller

Drama

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

100%

Tomatometer

49 Reviews

81%

Popcornmeter

50+ Ratings

1859, North Yorkshire. When young Māori woman Mary arrives from New Zealand, she's trapped as governess to a wealthy whaler's granddaughter. Living among her ancestors' stolen artifacts, she uncovers Sir Cole's horrific crimes. Embracing her Matakite powers, Mary becomes Mārama and must save Anne and avenge her family by destroying him.

Watch on Fandango

Stream Now

Critics Consensus

Thoughtfully informed by Māori culture and the legacy of colonialism, Mārama is an unsettling gothic horror told with invigorating flair.

Read Critics Reviews

Alison Foreman

IndieWire

May 18

A-

Mārama bears a striking clarity of purpose -- suggesting the horror genre still possesses the ability to turn even a long-ago moment of righteous fury into communal confrontation and spiritual release.

Go to Full Review

Valerie Complex

The Nerds of Color

May 5

What Stoppard does beautifully is inject bits of cultural lore across the visual landscape of the film.

Go to Full Review

Richard Whittaker

Austin Chronicle

Apr 30

3/5

What makes Mārama intriguing is that this becomes the background for a story of cultural revenge, even if the conventions of the genre often threaten to engulf those more subtle aspects,

Go to Full Review

Soham Gadre

Film Inquiry

6d

What holds Mārama back a bit is that it relies heavily on overused dream/nightmare sequences and the mild (and frankly un-scary) jump scares to snap you to attention.

Go to Full Review

Fletcher Powell

KMUW - Wichita Public Radio

Jul 20

Even if nothing’s really changed on a societal level by the end, we do at least get to see some evil guys suffer.

Go to Full Review

Michael Talbot-Haynes

Film Threat

Jul 8

10/10

With Marama, Stappard shows the inhuman depths that colonization can plunge to

Go to Full Review

Read all reviews

Rett

May 6

The cinematography is beautiful

See more

Uriah Wesman

Apr 21

Outstanding Gothic Horror. With some brilliant shots. Highly recommend

See more

jose c

Apr 18

We loved the story. It was tragic and haunting. A great gothic horror to add to the collection.

See more

Farah R.

@Farah Jun 24

Although I was captivated by the exquisite cinematography and production design, my mind kept wandering as the movie is so slow. There’s no denying that Mārama is a beautifully-shot gothic horror film, but the dull pace makes it difficult to enjoy.

See more

nilufer E

@Nilicim Jun 14

A beautiful snooze fest. While the gothic atmosphere is beautifully dark and tense, Mārama suffers from an incredibly boring, painfully slow plot where absolutely nothing happens. It completely prioritizes visual mood over actual storytelling, leaving you frustrated and bored rather than scared.

See more

MBI M

@MNZGamerX Jun 12

Not much of a horror movie and not much of a telling of Māori history but in an attempt to do both becomes a feminist revenge story which is now a tiresome film genre done to death ...

See more

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

POST RATING

Taratoa Stappard

Director

Ariāna Osborne

Mary

Toby Stephens

Nathaniel Cole

Umi Myers

Peggy

Evelyn Towersey

Anne

Erroll Shand

Jack Fenton

Sinners

97%

96%

Sinners

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Sinners

Nightsiren

100%

74%

Nightsiren

Watchlist

Voice of Shadows

%

91%

Voice of Shadows

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Voice of Shadows

Impetigore

92%

79%

Impetigore

Watchlist

Bones and All

82%

63%

Bones and All

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Bones and All

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

Mārama: Trailer 1

2:07

View more videos

View more photos

Synopsis

1859, North Yorkshire. When young Māori woman Mary arrives from New Zealand, she's trapped as governess to a wealthy whaler's granddaughter. Living among her ancestors' stolen artifacts, she uncovers Sir Cole's horrific crimes. Embracing her Matakite powers, Mary becomes Mārama and must save Anne and avenge her family by destroying him.

Director: Taratoa Stappard
Producer: Sharlene George, RickyLee Waipuka-Russell, Rouzie Hassanova, Paraone Gloyne
Screenwriter: Taratoa Stappard
Distributor: Dark Sky Films / Watermelon Pictures
Production Co: MPI Media Group, Sweetshop Entertainment, Vendetta Films
Genre: Horror, Mystery & Thriller, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 17, 2026, Limited
Runtime: 1h 29m

Join The Newsletter

Join The Newsletter

Cookie Settings