An idyllic love story quickly erupts into mean-spirited delusions. Kate, having needed to leave her job because of crazed hallucinations, feels spited against by her partner Chris, who seemingly enjoys withholding her medication. Seeking help from her friend Ama, she must decide if her delusions are worth killing over.
Kate Andrews’ perfect life in her dream home implodes under her partner’s sadistic psychological brutality and her medication fuelled hallucinations.
Beyond Mamushi, IMDB
From the beginning, Beyond Mamushi pushes us to the brink with a look into the Hell that Kate (Corina Jayne) experiences every day. She is a pushover for Chris (Gary Cross); one minute he love-bombs her with fancy dinners, then the next minute he is blaming her for everything from small accidents to not answering his calls soon enough. Ama Mamushi (Jemma Thompson) recommends the only way to truly free herself from “rotten bacteria” — murder. But as her lethal plans for Chris unfold, other facets of her life rise up to terrorize her. Beyond Mamushi has twists and turns that never make you certain of what is real and what is not.
As our main two characters, Kate and Chris have this insane dynamic that is both believable and also heartbreaking. Kate is doting but battered. Chris is ruthless and uncaring. Beyond Mamushi is wholly convincing. Aside from the character dymanics, Kate’s hallucinations give the film a solid entry into the horror genre; flashes of grimacing faces and splatters of blood make Kate’s terrified screams all the more poignant.
And by the time you reach the end, Beyond Mamushi delivers a punch to the gut. While I won’t be giving any spoilers, it is an ending that was both thought-provoking and a bit sad, realizing now how the whole story is framed differently.
Depending on what length you consider a feature, Beyond Mamushi could be considered a shorter feature or a longer short; regardless, it is just the right amount of storytelling to leave you feeling as emotionally drained as Kate is. Whether what happened in her story is real or not, she has suffered greatly. Beyond Mamushi‘s psychological angle doesn’t let up on that constant tension, rendering us prisoners of our own thoughts and what is truly beyond.
For more about Beyond Mamushi, follow writer/director M. W. Daniels on Instagram.
