Umma
Sony Pictures Entertainment | Release Date: March 18, 2022 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
51
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 13 Critic Reviews
Positive:
3
Mixed:
9
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
83
ColliderTherese LacsonApr 25, 2022
Umma is a solid entry for Shim's debut with a strong story and standout leading performance from Oh. It examines generational trauma, identity, and what it means to confront your past, and it does so effectively. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesTracy BrownMar 17, 2022
Think more classic Gothic horror than ghastly over-the-top occult. But that’s plenty to keep viewers such as me, who frighten easily, on edge as the story progresses. Read full review
63
RogerEbert.comPeter SobczynskiMar 18, 2022
The film bizarrely takes what could have been a touching and powerful drama about the traumatic family ties that bind (and occasionally choke) and attempts to refit it as a straightforward, if mostly low-key horror exercise chock-full of scenes involving various things popping up out of the darkness with numbing regularity. Read full review
58
Original-CinJim SlotekMar 21, 2022
Despite Oh’s solid fear-filled performance, Amanda’s inevitable possession seems to take forever in an 87-minute movie, and the inevitable maternal-love-powered dispossession seems rushed. Read full review
58
IndieWireKate ErblandMar 17, 2022
Despite its flaws, Umma is an impressive debut for Shim, the kind of outing that hints at plenty more under the hood or tucked inside a massive suitcase, just bursting with secrets. Read full review
55
TheWrapFran HoepfnerMar 17, 2022
The most frightening part of Umma is not the ghostly apparition of Amanda’s mother, but Amanda herself. Under Shim’s direction, Oh’s Amanda is haunted and taut, an unpredictable force of nature. Read full review
50
Movie NationRoger MooreAug 16, 2022
Umma turns out to be a “quality” thriller that can’t be bothered to get down and dirty and scary. Read full review
50
The A.V. ClubMartin TsaiMar 18, 2022
Until we’re a bit further removed from the current wave of anti-Asian hate crimes, Shim’s film underplays the potential nuance that might come from a proper exploration of that idea, instead reinforcing the idea that nonwhite language, imagery, and faces are to be feared—worst of all, to the people bearing them. Read full review
50
VarietyAndrew BarkerMar 17, 2022
Oh aces her leading role with customary aplomb, and Stewart makes for a game scene partner, but Shim’s economical-to-a-fault screenplay rarely allows them enough downtime to fully flesh out their characters. Read full review
50
The Hollywood ReporterFrank ScheckMar 17, 2022
Writer-director Shin’s labored attempts to use genre tropes to explore the complexities of domineering mother-daughter relationships never fully develops. Read full review
40
Austin ChronicleJenny NulfMar 22, 2022
There are so many interesting components of Umma that never click, wasting a completely original idea on banality. Read full review
40
IGNLaura SirikulMar 17, 2022
Umma isn’t scary, but the themes behind it are terrifying as it deals with generational trauma and guilt. Though the cultural references run deep, it’s overstuffed with symbolic imagery that is never fully explained. Though Oh and Stewart give solid performances, the tone and tension of the story ends up being choppy and underwhelming. Read full review
34
PolygonJesse HassengerMar 18, 2022
Throughout its slim but slow 83 minutes, Umma piles up missed-opportunity scenes that cry out for a ghoulish sense of humor or an audience-rattling jump. Read full review
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