Barbarian (Movie Review)

If you’ve been recommended to see Barbarian already, what I’m about to say will not come as a surprise. If you haven’t been recommended to go see Barbarian, stop reading this and go see it as blind as possible. This is a film that truly benefits from not knowing where the story goes, so as much as I’d love you to continue reading my review, it’ll still be here to read after seeing the movie.

Assuming most people reading have seen the film, I'm well aware there will be some others who haven’t taken my advice and continue to read on. Reviewing the film Barbarian, written and directed by Zach Cregger, is not easy to do without spoiling plot points. However, I’m up for the challenge and going to do my best not to expose the many twists and turns this film takes. However, there is still time to turn back and watch spoiler-free. You have been warned…

The film begins on a dark and stormy night. Literally. We follow Tess (Georgina Campbell) as she arrives at a small home in a neighborhood and finds out she is not the only one who has rented it for the weekend. Keith (Bill Skarsgård) is inside and seems to be just as thrown off by the double-booked situation as she is. After going through her options, Tess decides her safest bet is to sleep in the bedroom while Keith offers to stay on the couch. Their dynamic is slightly tense, awkward, and uncomfortable for both, as Tess understands she is putting herself into a potentially dangerous situation. Sleep in the house with a total stranger or sleep outside in her car in what Keith describes as a rundown neighborhood? Tess is rightfully cautious, not taking the tea offered to her and locking the door when using the restroom. Keith is self-aware, understanding of her wariness, and does his best to make the situation as comfortable for the two of them as can be. As a viewer, you’re not sure what to make of Keith. And then it begins to get weird.

This is the film I was expecting I would see. Following Tess and Keith as they navigate the dynamic of two strangers double booking a rental. Is Keith really who he says he is? What if this is his home and he’s just pretending to be staying here? As Tess begins to explore the house and stumbles across hidden areas, we get a slight glimpse that these two are in more trouble than they ever could have expected. And then BOOM, we’re driving along the ocean in California with a brand new character. I found myself still trying to make out what I just saw in the dark hallways underneath the home and now I’m wondering who this guy driving a convertible is and what he has to do with anything I previously witnessed.

This is as much detail as I want to go into about the film and plot itself. Let me tell you, it went places I was not expecting. At first, I thought I was watching a vampire film. Slight spoiler: there are no vampires. What unfolds is an unpredictable and chilling roller coaster, taking you into an underground world of trauma, monstrous motherhood, and shitty men trying to justify horrific actions. Vague? Yes, but believe me, dear reader, the less you know the better!

Barbarian is a refreshing and original movie that is not only filled with horror and revulsion but genuinely funny moments. It excelled in so many ways and surpassed any expectations I had going in. I went in to watch a modern horror about Airbnb and the danger of strangers and left thinking I’d never look at baby bottles the same way again. I did find myself concerned about how one problematic character was being written and some threads around the age of the underground dwellers didn’t make total sense. Ultimately I was able to overlook these sticking points for the genuinely entertaining experience I had watching this. Next time you find yourself in a vacation rental and come across a locked door, think twice before your curiosity about what’s behind it takes over. You never know what horrors you may stumble across.