“Barbarian” Review
When her Airbnb rental turns out to be a hell on Earth, Tess (Georgina Campbell) must escape with her life in “Barbarian.”
This Halloween, some of the newer horror films let you know exactly what you’re in for. With “Smile,” you’re getting a supernatural thriller with psychological horror. With “Halloween Ends,” it’s probably going to be a fun slasher. “Barbarian,” on the other hand, was a complete game changer because this film was definitely much more exciting and adventurous than what was promised.
While visiting Detroit for a job interview, Tess (Georgina Campbell) rents a house through Airbnb. However, when she gets there in the middle of a dark, stormy night, she discovers that it’s been double booked with another person named Keith (Bill Skarsgård) living there. After getting to know each other and with very few options left, the two decide to share the home only to discover that something sinister might also be living with them.
If you watched the trailers for this film, you would probably think that this is your basic contained thriller. However, “Barbarian” plays its cards incredibly close to the chest with an ever-changing story that keeps you guessing until the very end. To give away what happens in this film and what it’s really about is something that I don’t want to spoil. Let’s just say that this is a film where you must expect the unexpected.
Georgina Campbell is fantastic as the film’s lead and her tenacity to survive the events of the film is what always kept me involved. What I love so much about Tess is how smart she is as a horror protagonist. We all know the stereotype that horror characters are written to be dumb so they can easily fall into the clutches of whatever diabolical being is after them but Tess is different. She frequently makes smart decisions and, whenever bad things happen to her, it’s either because of bad luck or because she’s trying to help someone else.
Bill Skarsgård is also fascinating because, for the first ten minutes we see him, it’s unclear as to whether he’s a threatening presence to Tess or just a nice guy. In that sense, he embodies the awkwardly charming mannerisms of Anthony Perkins in “Psycho.”
Further adding depth to the small cast is Justin Long. While he’s very good in the film as a character that you are very split as to whether you want him to survive or not, I can’t say any more. In my opinion, what’s best about the film is what you don’t know about it. Like “The Cabin in the Woods,” you just want to go see this film with zero expectations and no idea what you’re going to watch.
What really drew me into ”Barbarian” was how much it reminded me of horror films of the early 1980s. While the font of the film’s credits kind of gives that away (I even heard a guy behind me whisper “That’s the ‘Stranger Things’ font.”), the overall atmosphere reminds me of monster films by John Carpenter and Wes Craven: slow and full of suspense and atmosphere. While writer/director Zach Cregger is more well-known for comedy, like being a member of the troupe The Whitest Kids U’Know, his entry into horror is expertly handled.
When you do find out what is in this house, both from the characters and flashbacks, there’s a great sense of dread. The film doesn’t reveal every detail about the origin of the evil entity but what is revealed allows you to connect the dots which makes your mind (or my mind at least) come up with some truly disturbing things.
Much of the film’s scares are hidden in shadow and all about what you don’t see. However, when the film needs to get gory, it’s absolutely incredible. In the end, many different camps of horror fans will be satisfied with “Barbarian.” If you want something slow moving, the film has that. If you want smart characters, they’re in the film too. If you want gore, be prepared to see some realistic looking corn syrup. “Barbarian” really surprised me with how much comedy was in the film. It’s not a straight-up spoof or even a dark comedy, but there are some laughs that do help diffuse extended sequences of tension.
“Barbarian” is one of the year’s most surprising films and there’s no doubt in my mind that it’s one of my favorite horror films of the year. Its ability to constantly surprise me is something I adored and I can’t wait to see what everyone who made this film does next.
