Barbarian (2022) spoiler free review
A year ago James Wang brought Malignant, a horror movie that divided horror fans in two groups: the ones who loved it and the ones who hate it. The reason behind this is that both the trailer and synopsis mislead on purpose the audience making them think that the film would be about something but ended being a completely different thing. Barbarian did the same thing but it has been well received, even better than Malignant. The trailer only shows a portion of the first scenes of the film leaving out many details that, if showed on the trailer, it would have taken away the element of surprise.
A young woman discovers the rental home she booked is already occupied by a stranger. Against her better judgment, she decides to spend the night but soon discovers there’s a lot more to fear than just an unexpected house guest.
Official plot
The cast includes Georgina Campbell (Black Mirror) as Tess Marshall, Bill Skarsgård (IT, IT: Chapter Two) as Keith Toshko, Justin Long (Jeepers Creepers, Tusk) as AJ Gilbride, and Matthew Patrick Davis (Dwight in Shining Armor) as The Mother. It’s directed and written by Zach Cregger (The Whitest Kids U’ Know) and produced by Roy Lee (The Ring, The Grudge, IT).
My opinion
I remember when Malignant came out I was so confused when it ended. How a film could trick the audience and then making it a ridiculous mess. I’m not a fan of Malignant, I don’t hate it but I don’t think that it was good either. Barbarian on the other hand does the same thing but better. It’s impossible to predict the film with just watching the trailer, and if you think that you know what it’s about, you’re wrong. The less you know about it the better the experience will be.
Campbell, Skarsgård, and Long are the perfect selections for their roles. Each one is able to stand out alone, even with Skarsgård having the least screen time. The cinematography is impressive and effective, it gives that extra touch to the film and is able to hold the tension on longer scenes. Additionally the soundtrack fits perfectly in the story increasing the anxiety on the viewer. The final moments turn the film into campy horror but its done so well that it won’t bother.
Barbarian is a fun and campy horror movie, and one of the best of 2022. Even with more horror movies that haven’t been released yet is safe to say that Barbarian will be part of that list. Don’t miss the chance to watch it on theaters this weekend starting Friday September 9, 2022.