Horror Movie Marathon Day 2: Barbarian
The 2022 film Barbarian really caught me off guard, as a huge fan of the new It series I was stoked to see Bill Skarsgård being another creepy character. I went in blind and came out a huge fan.
There will be minor plot-point spoilers ahead, I’ve avoided deep details for anyone who wants to check this one out. It’s so much better to enjoy without knowing the plot details.
“Do I look like some kind of monster?”
The story begins with a mix-up over an Airbnb which thrusts two strangers, Tess (Georgina Campbell) and Keith (Bill Skarsgård), into an overnight stay together.
Everything about this movie screamed “stalker flick”, from the trailers to the poster, to the chatter about it. And that is exactly what this movie was… for the first half anyway.
Every actor in this movie knows exactly who their character is, or HOW their character should come off, and they play their roles perfectly. Barbarian is a masterclass of horror acting and tone.
Without spoiling too much of the plot, the movie takes a hard shift in the end half and we realize that every preconceived notion we may have had about the characters’ situation was incorrect. This is truly where the movie begins to flourish into a backstory that is beautifully in-depth and creepy as all hell.
Barbarian: a review
I came out of the theater after watching Barbarian as an absolute fan. Knowing very little going into the movie was the best way to enjoy it. The twist was effective and worked on every possible level for me.
I cannot recommend this movie enough, if you haven’t seen it, give it a shot. If you have seen it, watch it again and you’ll find even more nuances the second time around.
5 skulls.
Barbarian is available to stream on Hulu & Max.
