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Master Review: Mariama Diallo's Debut Feature Is A Striking Horror Film [Sundance]
Writer-director Mariama Diallo’s debut feature film, Master, sets out to explore the institutional racism in Ivy League universities. Centered on three Black women, a student, a dean, and a professor, the film explores the characters’ experiences navigating such a historic institution and how its unsavory history affects their lives and relationship dynamics. Diallo’s script doesn’t always work, especially as Master gears towards an ending that has a lot going on at once, but the everyday horrors add to the layers of unease that are built into every scene of the film. The combination of supernatural and real-life horror, as well as the cast's solid performances, elevate a film that isn’t so quick to provide answers.