Barbarian
In town for a job interview, a young woman arrives at her Airbnb late at night only to find that it has been mistakenly double-booked and a strange man is already staying there. Against her better judgement, she decides to stay the night anyway, but soon discovers that there is much more to be afraid of in the house than the other guest.
- Released:
- Runtime: 120 minutes
- Genre: Horror, Mystery, Thrillers
- Stars: Georgina Campbell, Bill Skarsgård, Justin Long, Richard Brake, Jaymes Butler, Sophie Sörensen, Matthew Patrick Davis, Kalina Stancheva, J.R. Esposito, Trevor Van Uden, Kurt Braunohler, Rachel Fowler, Kate Nichols, Kate Bosworth, Brooke Dillman, Sara Paxton, Will Greenberg, Derek Morse, Zach Cregger, Devina Vassileva, Julian Stanishkov
- Director: Zach Cregger
Comments
- banguimikey - 4 July 2024
Boring Rehash of every bad movie you have ever seen
This is really boring. It just does not scare me at all. I love atmospheric horror movies. This one tries but fails. It takes 20 minutes of movie just to get to the first plot point. ALL they did in that 20 minutes could have been done in 5 minutes. The setup they were trying to do was a red herring. A door opened and we did not see it? Cheap film making! At least give us a little tension. It was boring from the very start. Too much time spent trying to open the door. The phone call that was not even answered. Why? Just a waste of film (or, these days, data bits). Anyway, there is nothing to recommend this. Zombie on the hood or the car and the car stalls out just then. Can you say CLICHE?!?! It has all been done before and done better and faster. Don't bother with this unless you are bored more than anyone has ever been bored before! - tylerrosin - 13 June 2024
Barbarian" had a lot of buzz and good reviews, but for me, it ended up being a mixed bag.
Barbarian" had a lot of buzz and good reviews, but for me, it ended up being a mixed bag. While it had many positives, there were some glaring negatives that brought the movie down.
Starting with the positives, I really appreciated the setting and the overall uneasy vibe the film managed to create. The idea of an Airbnb and the awkwardness of double booking set a unique stage for the horror to unfold. Bill Skarsgard's character initially seemed like he was going to be the villain, but turning him into a victim was a clever twist. The lead actress, Georgina Campbell, as Tess, was fairly engaging and played a smart protagonist, making it easy to root for her.
The film's villain, known as the Mother, was quite creepy and unsettling. However, she didn't have much screen time, and her backstory wasn't fully explained, which left me wanting more depth and understanding of her character.
Now, onto the negatives. The pacing of the film was a significant issue. The beginning set up an intriguing premise, but the middle part of the movie dragged and featured some weird editing choices that disrupted the flow. One glaring example was the sudden shift to Justin Long's character arc in the middle of the movie. While he played his role as an obnoxious character well, his storyline felt disjointed and out of place, almost like it belonged to a different movie.
Another major problem was the believability of some plot elements. For instance, the idea that Tess would stay at the only nice house in a crime-infested area of Detroit without considering going to a hotel seemed unrealistic. Additionally, the pristine condition of the house, given the horrors lurking in the basement, was hard to accept. Tess's decision to investigate the creepy basement also felt forced and against common sense.
Despite these issues, the movie had some decent practical gore effects and a few genuinely creepy moments. However, the inconsistencies in the story and pacing made it less effective overall. While "Barbarian" had good ideas and potential, it fell short in execution. That said, I am curious to see what this director does in the future, as there were flashes of potential in this film.
