‘Mārama’ review: Striking debut sees a Māori woman confront her past in 19th century Yorkshire

Dir/scr: Taratoa Stappard. New Zealand. 2025. 89mins

The year is 1859. The family history of Mary Stephens (Ariāna Osborne) is shrouded in mystery. So when the young Māori teacher from Aotearoa New Zealand receives a letter summoning her to North Yorkshire to learn “the truth”, Mary – whose Māori name is Mārama – embarks on the perilous journey. This glowering allegorical gothic thriller by first time feature director Taratoa Stappard meets the violence of Britain’s colonial legacy with an equally savage and bloody retribution, to atmospheric, if at times uneven, effect.

Moments of shocking potency

Aotearoa-born, London-based Stappard’s previous work includes the short films Goalie (2016) and 2024’s Taumanu (Reclaim); the latter shares with Mārama themes of colonial abuses and revenge. The use of genre techniques, in tandem with the ferocity of Osborne’s performance, makes for unsettling and at times chilling viewing. Horror fans might wish that Stappard pushed the story even further, either in terms of the supernatural scares or the climactic blood-letting. But this is, nonetheless, a distinctive and original work. Dark Sky Films and sister company Watermelon Pictures picked up North American rights in advance of the film’s premiere at Toronto, and it now screens in competition at Zurich in one stop of what should be a healthy festival journey.

Shot in New Zealand, which doubles fairly convincingly for the sweeping hill country of Yorkshire, the film deposits the self-possessed and serious Mary in a world that immediately feels hostile. “You walk from here,” snaps a carriage driver, all but chucking her case into the mud at her feet. So walk she does, to the small cottage of the man who wrote to her. She finds it empty, but catches a glimpse, through a mirror, of a prone body in a bed.

For Mary, who is the granddaughter of a seer, mirrors often show more than a reflection. It turns out that the author of the letter that drew her to England died of the pox some months before she arrived. But Mary is given a warm welcome – too warm, perhaps – by the lord of the local manor, Nathaniel Cole (Toby Stephens), who offers her work as a governess for his 9-year-old niece, Anne (Evelyn Towersey).

Mārama is a striking work. The shadows in the permanent dusk of the manor house interiors have an almost velvety quality; what colours there are in the frame – crimson plays a key role – have a vibrant, saturated intensity. Osborne’s expressive face glows like a candle flame against the ominous gloom of the snaking corridors.

But even the shadows can’t hide the secrets in the house for long. Nathaniel, who speaks the Māori language, claims to hold Mary’s people in the utmost respect. But his collection of Māori cultural artefacts – including a wharenui, or traditional Māori communal meeting house, in the grounds of his home – has little to do with respect and everything to do with claiming ownership over something that is not his to possess. Mary, quite reasonably, questions the motives behind the job offer. Is it a legitimate opportunity? Or does Nathaniel see her as just another object to be added to his collection?

Exposition revealing the grim truth about Nathaniel’s link to Mary and her family can feel a little blunt at times, and the flow of the story is uneven. But there are moments of shocking potency: a stand out is a pivotal grotesque birthday party performance that parodies Māori rituals, followed by Mary’s fearsome and righteous fury. Osborne, powerful throughout, is thrilling to watch as her character’s vengeful anger scorches everything in its path.