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.

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

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,

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.