Noites Brutais

For most I think this is one of those either you love it or you hate it movies. After viewing a couple of days ago I still am having issues deciding on which side of that divide I fall. For me, the opening act was exceptional. Skarsgård was fantastic in his role and Campbell also played her part excellently ( for the entire film really), but the two together had a perfect horror chemistry for me. I really was craving more screen time with both of them.

The movie then tries to combine a couple different backstories and attach them all together. I would say this was done with moderate success. The exposure of the character flaws was achieved through these backstories that helped the movie display the themes it set out to, however I felt a lot of time was wasted on irrelevant scenes. I suppose this was an attempt to keep you on your toes, but after knowing how the story ends I would have liked other areas of the story to be explored in a little more detail. Specifically, focusing a little bit more on "the mothers" history could have been quite powerful and informing. Instead, the audience is tasked with having to sort of use its imagination to envision exactly how "the mother" became what she is.

Overall, it was fine, loved some parts and hated others. However, I definitely don't see how this would ever be elevated to the level of a "classic".

I went in totally blind, with no expectations whatsoever as I only heard of this movie the day I decided to watch it. I think that's the best way to enjoy it.

This is campy horror film that has all the classic tropes from horror movies of a home invasion, with some fun twists and turns in it. This is definitely more of campy film though. Not quite as a campy as movies like Child's Play or Leprechan, but definitely not a true horror movie that will give you nightmares like the Ring or the Excorcist.

Bill Skarsgård really does a great job setting things up, and Georgina Campbell serves well as the classic "damsel in the distress." Justin Long is truly hilarious. This pokes fun at a lot of hororr movie tropes while still being scary enough to have audiences jumping out of their seats. It's a movie that's best seen with a lot of friends in a packed theater. But I don't think it will be a horror classic.

"Barbarian" is nerve-racking - from the opening seconds, not minutes, but seconds of the film, director Zach Cregger immediately immerses viewers in an experience that leaves knuckles white, nails bitten, and minds consistently wondering what on God's green earth could possibly happen next.

Viewing "Barbarian" without any knowledge of what it is about is the optimal viewing experience; however, even if you've seen the trailer for this film, you'll be happy to know that it spoils basically zero of the twists and turns this movie has to offer. Thus, I do not want to spoil anything either, which makes this an incredibly hard review to write! So, what I will do is attempt to explain the basic premise of "Barbarian," and what makes it one of the most thrilling theatre experiences I've had in a long time.

Starring the beautiful Georgina Campbell as a lone Airbnb renter who is staying overnight at a house in Detroit, Michigan, "Barbarian" opens with Georgina's character, Tess, arriving at her rental to find that another man - played by Bill Skarsgård - is already occupying the home. Claiming that this incident is the result of a simple mixup of double booking, Bill's character Keith invites Tess in to stay the night, promising that, in the morning, they will both get this situation sorted out. From that point on, the movie becomes a razor sharp thriller that will infect audiences with its inherent uneasiness.

Is Keith truly a stranger caught up in an innocent mistake, or is he someone, or something, more nefarious? And is the rental property all it seems to be, or is there a greater mystery to be uncovered beneath its welcoming surface? "Barbarian" begins by introducing question after question to its audience, ensuring that viewers remain on the edge of their seat trying to predict what will next occur. Second after second and minute after minute, this movie is full of surprises, to the point where, after the 45 minute mark, my expectations were blown out of the water to the point where it felt useless trying to guess what would happen next, because I hadn't the slightest idea what could possibly happen next. And that is the highest compliment I can give this movie because, regardless of how you choose to describe this movie, you cannot claim it to be predictable. And on a side note, the fact that the characters actually made intelligent decisions and thought things out only made the viewing experience more tense, because, since everyone was already doing what I assumed a smart person would do, I had no idea how the scenes and sequences would progress. And I also want to pay my compliments to the soundtrack, the direction, and the cinematography, all of which combined perfectly to create a truly chilling experience.

I feel like this is a vague and poorly written review, but only because I do not want to spoil anything for anyone. You may have seen the teasers claiming that this film is so scary that people are screaming, vomiting, and passing out in the theatre - while that is just false marketing at its finest, I will say that "Barbarian" did induce a physical reaction from me at parts - I could feel my heart practically beating out of my chest during certain sequences due to the suspense. So, while I don't necessarily find this film to be scary, it is one of the most adrenaline pumping experiences I have had in a long, long time. If you are at all a fan of thrillers, I'd recommend seeing this on the biggest screen you can find, and preferably late at night. This isn't the most horrifying movie you'll ever see, but it is sure to get your blood pumping.

No, they are not mutually exclusive.

First of all, props to the creators of this intensely riveting film for keeping us GLUED to the edge of our seats, in suspense, during the slow burn of a beginning, DESPITE thinking we knew what was going to happen.

Read that again.

In simple terms, even if this film had gone exactly the way we thought it would, the build-up to what we expected to happen, was masterfully handled.

Beyond that, the film declines in intensity during the second half, and expects more from the viewer in order to keep its believability factor.

I meant to add so much more, but I keep giving away too much and have to go back and delete it. I DETEST spoilers (unless I specifically ask for them) and those who think they actually gain something by revealing anything more than what is necessary. As such and as it is almost impossible to fully discuss the film without some reveals (and I possess tact enough not to spoil it for others), I will simply add that although there ARE a couple of "dumb" horror-film trope moments as in 'why did he/she do that' or 'why didn't he/she do that', they are in no way lastingly detrimental to the film. It is quite good, in that it quickly reels you back in and you all but forget about them - at least for the duration.

... It is also quite bad in the sense that it is off-the-wall bonkers.

It does gift viewers with a couple of funny/humorous moments, but they neither make or break the film.

In short, You will really like it, or you will hate it. Either way, see it before someone with less courtesy spoils it for you.

(The casting of Alexander Skarsgard was genius).

6.5-7/10.

I had really low expectations when it started because because it begins exactly the same as "Weekenders" did which really wasn't a great movie, different genres though. Over half an hour in I still wasn't sure where exactly the movie was heading, but when things turn dark the thrill starts, old school horror-esque.

My only complaint, which unfortunately seemed like it was done deliberately, is that once the horror starts, the movie introduces a completely new character arc and you have to wait for it to build up all again, it purposely teases the eerie stuff which is frustrating because you know the good stuff's coming but not yet. And it does this several times, keeps resetting which makes the second act seem off paced but it all comes together in the end.

It was a conventional horror like you'd remember in the 2010's, not really prismatic or director trying to reinvent the wheel; it's just people stuck trying to escape from something in a 'haunted' house. And I like how there was still logical explanation, albeit a disturbing one. A few details that weren't explained, didn't seem to have the time to as it tries to introduce all the characters properly.

The last act of the movie is all eerie, it however doesn't climax as hard as I anticipated, thought they'd have more fight but it still did a pretty decent job and the finale scene was sensible end. Almost everything about the movie was better than I expected, I suggest going in blind.