Master (2022)
68%RT Audience Score: 48%
Awards & Nominations: Nominated for 3 Oscars
75 wins & 187 nominations total
It can be didactic rather than truly suspenseful, but Master is an impressively well-crafted horror outing with a lot on its mind.
Master” is a horror movie that’s not just about jump scares and creepy ghosts, but also about the real-life horrors of racism and discrimination. It’s a film that will make you think and feel, and maybe even scare you a little bit. The plot twist at the end might not be for everyone, but overall it’s a well-made movie that’s worth watching. Plus, it’s got a little bit of Jordan Peele in it, so you know it’s gonna be good.
Production Company(ies)
Castle Rock Entertainment, Detour Filmproduction Filmhaus Wien Universa Filmproduktion,s
Distributor
Amazon Studios
Release Type
Streaming, Streaming (Prime Video), Theatrical, Theatrical (Limited)
Filming Location(s)
Mare Island, Vallejo, California, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for sexual content, graphic nudity and language
Year of Release
2012
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Datasat Dolby Digital70 mm 6-Track
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:1h 31m
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Language(s):English, Filipino
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Mar 18, 2022 Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 18, 2022
Genre(s)
Keyword(s)
starring Regina Hall, Zoe Renee, Talia Ryder, Talia Balsam, Amber Gray, Ella Hunt, directed by Mariama Diallo, written by Mariama Diallo, horror, drama, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Mark Kermode, Tim Cogshell, Robert Levin, Lawrence Ware, Odie Henderson, Simran Hans, Ema Sasic, Diego Batlle, James Kendrick, Pete Vonder Haar, Andrew Osborne, Brian Costello, produced by Joshua Astrachan, Brad Becker-Parton, Andrea Roa, MPAA rating R, elite New England university, Salem-era gallows hill, politics, privilege, haunted past, present, racism, horror movie conventions, institutional racism, Jordan Peele, spooky ghost stories, character nuances, tragic, ambiguous, plot twist, symbol, sound mix Dolby Digital, Amazon Studios
Worldwide gross: $28,258,060
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $36,430,981
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,479
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 3,972,844
US/Canada gross: $16,377,274
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $21,113,982
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,396
US/Canada opening weekend: $736,311
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $949,270
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,286
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $32,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $41,255,182
Production budget ranking: 938
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $22,215,915
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): -$27,040,116
ROI to date (est.): -43%
ROI ranking: 1,639
Zoe Renee – Jasmine Moore
Talia Ryder – Amelia
Talia Balsam – Diandra
Amber Gray – Liv Beckman
Ella Hunt – Cressida
Director – Mariama Diallo
Producers – Joshua Astrachan, Brad Becker-Parton, Andrea Roa
Writer – Mariama Diallo
Director(s)
Mariama Diallo
Writer(s)
Mariama Diallo
Producer(s)
Joshua Astrachan, Brad Becker-Parton, Andrea Roa
Film Festivals
Sundance, South by Southwest
Awards & Nominations
Nominated for 3 Oscars
75 wins & 187 nominations total
Academy Awards
All Critics (151) | Top Critics (40) | Fresh (113) | Rotten (38)
A really interesting film, with more than a little Jordan Peele in it.
April 15, 2022
Mark Kermode
Kermode & Mayo’s Film Review
TOP CRITIC
What this film wants to do is convey how all of this feels like a horror movie… It maintains that tone throughout.
March 30, 2022
Tim Cogshell
FilmWeek (KPCC – NPR Los Angeles)
TOP CRITIC
“Master” is a genre picture that works as well as it does because it’s rooted in everyday horrors.
March 28, 2022 | Rating: 3/4
Robert Levin
Newsday
TOP CRITIC
What’s amazing about this film is that the literal demons depicted in the movie are less scary than the things it shows that happen in the real world.
March 26, 2022
Lawrence Ware
Slate
TOP CRITIC
It is not even remotely scary, and its story and lore are confusing and underdeveloped.
March 21, 2022 | Rating: 1.5/4
Odie Henderson
RogerEbert.com
TOP CRITIC
Diallo utilises the visual language of horror… to express the terror of racism and the rot of its legacy.
March 20, 2022 | Rating: 3/5
Simran Hans
Observer (UK)
TOP CRITIC
“Master” is best when it leaves the spooky ghost stories behind and focuses on the real horrors of society.
June 27, 2022 | Rating: 7/10
Ema Sasic
Next Best Picture
Gruesome elements from past, dark legends… tied into a present that is perhaps more sinister, traumatizing, and terrifying than the old days. [Full review in Spanish]
May 16, 2022 | Rating: 3.5/5
Diego Batlle
Otroscines.com
a deeply effective film, one in which black viewers will likely recognize a great deal of their own experience and one that white viewers should take to heart
May 10, 2022 | Rating: 3/4
James Kendrick
Q Network Film Desk
Rather than ending on a tragic and ambiguous note, we’re instead confronted with a ridiculous plot twist that introduces an unwelcome “ripped from the headlines” perspective.
April 19, 2022 | Rating: 2/5
Pete Vonder Haar
Houston Press
Intriguing character nuances are continually brushed against without deeper exploration, all in service of an ending that’s not really scary, sad, or disturbing so much as a resigned shrug of abnegation.
April 18, 2022
Andrew Osborne
culturevulture.net
This is an effective if not quite successful use of horror movie conventions to make an old New England university a symbol of institutional racism in the United States.
April 11, 2022 | Rating: 3/5
Brian Costello
Common Sense Media…
Plot
At an elite New England university built on the site of a Salem-era gallows hill, three women navigate politics and privilege while encountering terrifying manifestations of the school’s haunted past and present in the horror/drama film “Master.”
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Regina Hall stars as Gail Bishop in Master.
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