Spoiler free (read: intentionally vague af).
On Thursday I had the honour to watch one of my most anticipated movies of the year, Barbarian – and, boy, was it an honour.
There were only three of us at the venue, so the practically empty cinema lounge already had this eerie feel to it that made me uncomfortable right off the bat.
It got to the point where whenever something would happen, it hit just a little bit harder than it would have had the lounge perhaps been packed.
I don’t know about you, but I usually prefer watching movies alone, so everything was working in this film’s favour – and what an experience this movie was.
Usually, I’d be fine with unpacking a film, but this is one of the rare instances I am going to try and be as vague as possible.
See, Barbarian is the type of movie you go into as blindly as you possibly can.
Even though I’ve been incredibly tempted to watch commentary videos on the film on YouTube or read every review out there, practically everyone pled that I watch the film first.
Given that it’s international release was in September, I was in agony.
And you know what? I’d say my stubborn instance to not have anything spoiled paid off big time.
So, I’m urging you to go watch this film and come back just to be safe.
To start off, I’d just like to say that this has been an incredibly solid year for horror, particularly for original films. From X, to Nope, to Bodies Bodies Bodies, to Barbarian, at this point horror is just showing off.
I guess, what I’d characterise this year as, is that this seems to be the year of the twist.
An overwhelming majority of horror had some sort of twist that elevated it (or made it flop) in a way that I haven’t seen in a while.
If you haven’t been able to tell right now, Barbarian did exactly that.
Again, I’m going to be as vague as possible, but, loosely, Barbarian follows a woman (Georgina Campbell) who goes to an Airbnb in Detroit and finds that it’s already occupied by a stranger.
She decides to stay the night and it all goes downhill from there.
The film is expertly made: the directing is incredible (especially for a relatively unknown director), the cinematography and colour grading is appropriately jarring, every single cast member eats their role up, and it has some of the best writing a film like this could ask for.
But beyond its technical brilliance, it is one hell of a journey that you can’t help but, marvel at (and shudder away from).
I can firmly say that there were multiple occasions I had not a clue what was going on or where the film was going.
It would literally change tones in a heartbeat, flip expectations without a moment’s notice, and honestly unafraid to just rip the rug from right under your feet. When I tell you it left me bald and quivering before it even reached the halfway mark, I truly am not exaggerating.
I literally left the film audibly saying, ‘What the hell did I just witness???’.
Barbarian honestly did what she needed to do and showed the other girls what they shoulda did.
It’s also a masterclass in misdirection and, when used correctly, misdirection can be one of the most effective storytelling tools a horror movie can have.
There are a number of occasions when I thought I knew what was going on and thought I was used to its unconventional structure, and then, just like that, it said, ‘b*tch you thought’.
It’s also thoroughly disturbing. If you’re looking for a movie to unnerve you long after you’ve left the cineplex, this is the one for you.
Though it really has been one of the best years in horror this century, there are only a handful of films that actually left me feeling super icky.
Listen, Barbarian doesn’t care if you’re down for the ride it takes you on or if you’re ready for the drastic turn it’s about to take. It doesn’t even bother to answer any questions you may have in a conventional sense.
For that alone, this is one of the best film releases this year.
I’d also really like to delve into its themes – because this is a big reason for how truly jarring the film is – but I am not willing to risk revealing anything that may spoil your viewing experience if you haven’t seen the film.
I’ll just say that Barbarian will challenge you in the most conflicting ways possible.
The only criticism I’d have is that the characters sometimes make some really dumb choices that took me out of the film for a bit and I’m truly conflicted about its ending and its utter lack of desire to make any sense immediately.
Final verdict: if you don’t at the very least appreciate this movie for what it attempts to do, meet me in the parking lot. I just wanna talk.
Giving it a strong 9/10.
Barbarian is out in theatres now.
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