Barbarian (2022) movie review

A good genre movie hits every note of the genre to achieve the expected thrills and excite the audience but a great genre movie transcends that genre to redefine it so that all future movies will be measured against it. Barbarian is one such fantastic horror film wrapped in its tight 102-minute form. 

To truly enjoy it, one must get into the experience with as little information as possible. Don’t even watch the trailer. Don’t read anything about it too, except for this review, which is carefully crafted so you don’t miss out on the entertainment value. Create an ambience to immerse yourself in it completely with no disturbances as that’s the way to watch a fine movie. Not on a phone while you are commuting to work (just something one of my colleagues told me he does).

On a late, rainy night, Tess (Georgina Campbell) reaches the house she has rented online, in an obsolete neighbourhood in Detroit. With keys missing from their location, she rings the doorbell to find Keith (Bill Skarsgard) opening the door and looking at her quizzically. Turns out, it’s a classic case of double booking which is the beginning of many fictional love stories. Based on the movie’s poster and the background music though, their meeting isn’t like one of those stories. Instead, we are suspicious of Keith, as is Tess, or even more so when she hesitatingly agrees to spend the night in the house with him. Keith decides to sleep on the couch while Tess takes the bedroom. She is woken up in the middle of the night by unfamiliar sounds to find her bedroom door half open.

The movie is split into three parts. Justin Long is the protagonist of the second part in what will be remembered as a career-defining performance. Interlaced with humour, his character is regular yet someone we rarely see in movies. Despite the movie treading in familiar territory the story keeps subverting expectations, every step of the way because of the commendable writing.

Tess is an intelligent horror movie character and the movie’s uniqueness lies in the fact that she does everything the audience can think of doing in her situation, but better. Her only vice is that she is a decent human being and in a society full of monsters, she may not stand a chance.

The three main characters are layered and far from stereotypical. Zack Cregger has written and directed this film on a low budget, but you don’t see that as the production provides such an immersive experience. The movie toys with common cinematic tropes and audience expectations superbly to offer an experience that’s a definite conversation starter. Barbarian is not only a must-watch for horror movie fans but for everyone that’s not afraid of horror movies as it’s one of the best movies of 2022.