Movie Man Darian Watching All Night Long

Barbarian 

This is one of the most bone chilling films I’ve seen all year! Now I’ve heard so much about this film all year long and finally got around to seeing it and wow does it live up to the hype. Barbarian has incredible sound editing and cinematography that will seep under your skin and terrify you. It’s quite a simple premise but it’s the way it’s executed onscreen that makes it so engaging as the scares aren’t in your face blood and gore but is psychological and creeps through you in the most effective ways that genuinely will terrify you. 

Firstly, This film takes on a lot of social undertones that is woven into the narrative in such a smart way. The film discusses following your gut and also ignoring red flags when you’re in a dangerous or sketchy situation. As the main girl we follow is thrust into a very odd situation and as the viewer you see all the glaring creepy things that are around her but she ignores them all and it keeps you on constant edge as you feel like anything can happen at any given moment. The writing is so strong here as it melds social commentary with twisted horror so greatly as once she steps in this house she rents for the night the film dose not let up and truly brings you in for a wild ride. As the audience we are introduced to Bill Skarsgard and the way the film presents him makes him at first glance seem like a very shady character and even after we spend some time with him theirs that uneasy feeling that he still could do something violent or sinister and that on edge feeling is constantly in your stomach. As he’s a stranger and she is just putting her faith he won’t do anything and as the film unfolds she learns more horrific things about the house and it takes on themes of judging people from first impressions and also doing selfless acts for selfish people who may not deserve it and also sexual abuse survivors now all of that is shown in sometimes very brutal ways and it’s not glamorized whatsoever. It’s not like Get Out or Hereditary but it walks that fine line of yes social commentary and horror and pulls you in with its amazing original story layered with some of the most unsettling horror images I’ve seen all year along with truly outstanding editing and genuine scares the themes and elements of this film is what makes Barbarian such a outstanding narrative that will have people discussing it for years to come about it’s meaning and depth of its story. 

Secondly, The Performances is incredible from everyone involved! Now you have a truly amazing breakout performance from Georgina Campbell delivering a strong and vulnerable performance that will blow you away. You can feel the fear in her heart and the anxiety she has as she will do whatever she can to get out and that determination and the selfless nature of the character is brought to life in a truly entertaining performance that will have you gripped from beginning to the final frame she is truly electric. Then you have Bill Skarsgard who is in a smaller role but still good regardless of how much screen time he has as I already mentioned he brings this uneasy feeling to the frame from the first time we meet him. Due to the fact he gives off this very mysterious and unpredictable nature even tho he proves to the main character that he is a good person and has no reason to harm her the way he played it was creepy but also charming and the way he walks that fine line between the two was explosively good I hope his work here dose not go unnoticed. Then for me the performance that really blew me away was Justin Long he plays this sleazy selfish guy who just cares about himself and dose not care about anyone else’s feelings and it’s so against type for Justin Long seeing him in this type of role was refreshing to see and he honestly delivered what I think is the best work of his career in this film. Overall the entire cast all give amazing performances but it’s the gripping turn from Justin Long that really stood out to me in a very unique and unfiltered performance of sheer ignorance. 

Lastly, Barbarian is one of the most shocking, unsettling, horrific and engaging films of the year with truly amazing performances from everyone involved. It knows how to scare you without using cheap scares and layers the narrative with such depth that will have you wanting to rewatch it the moment it’s over so you can deconstruct the images and themes woven into the story. It’s definitely one of the most compelling narrative horror films I’ve seen all year with truly striking imagery that will stay with you long after the film is over Barbarian is an outstanding film that left me speechless. I recommend everyone go check this film out. 

When a woman rents a house for a night stay she meets someone who booked the same house that same night but she quickly learns that’s the least of her concerns when she finds out more about the houses sinister and violent nature

Rated R : Nudity|Language Throughout|Disturbing Material|Some Strong Violence and Gore

Justin Long : Justin Long gives the best performance of his career with his turn in Barbarian! Justin Long is one of the most underrated actors working in Hollywood who I have always enjoyed seeing onscreen.  Now Justin long has been in a lot of movies but he is most memorable for playing very likeable characters and usually the best friend in movies or the relaxed supporting player in movies. Now to see him pop up in this was a great surprise as when I watched Barbarian I had no idea he was in this as I never saw any of the trailers for this film as I wanted to be genuinely surprised what this film had in store. So seeing him play this character that is an arrogant, self obsessed mean guy was so against type for Justin Long and I loved it. As the moment he comes onscreen he tells you Evreything you need to know about this characters personality within two minutes of watching him. He’s in a fancy car on a call giving people crap and talking about himself so right off the bat you know this character is going to be in for quite the ride in terms of what’s to come. Now Justin Long never looks down on the person he is playing he mostly approaches it from a way of the character being entirely tone deaf socially of others feelings. He cares only about his career and what is best for him and anyone who gets in his way regardless if they meant no harm to him or not means nothing to him. I have not felt so wanting to see a character fall flat on his ass so much like this guy as you just are waiting to see him get knocked down a peg. Justin Long you can tell is having so much fun here as he plays this unfiltered jerk greatly every time he is onscreen he is constantly making things worse out of an already horrible situation he is in. As the film progresses the film makes you think he could actually have a bit of a redemption arc in terms of caring for someone else but nope he learns nothing and is still the same arrogant person from start to finish. Justin Long captures the emotion of it so so well as the sheer frustration he has with people and verbal assault he puts on their hearts and mind goes a mile a minute and the only time he tries to care for others is when it benefits him to get himself to safety. Long relishes in each frame of this picture with great charismatic energy and fantastic delivery he is constantly entertaining if its from seeing what bull he will feed people to make them believe he even cares about them or if he will get killed off either way Justin Long has your eyes locked on him the entire time and its truly a fantastic performance that is unlike anything he has ever done before onscreen. It honestly is a truly amazing performance by him that will shock you and engage you the whole way through Justin Long is spectacular! 

Zach Cregger : Zach does an amazing job at brining this tale to the screen with some of the most frightening images I’ve seen in years! As this guy is known for doing raunchy comedies so to see him go into horror very new. After seeing what he has done with Barbarian he needs to do more social visual driven horror films like this again because my god does he excel in the horror genre. The film is not a a gore blood and guts fest but is a psychological horror which to me is more effective  because it has to get in your head without relying on cheap scares. He takes a very simple narrative and layers it with great seeping scares that will keep you on edge the entire time. A lot of the film also takes place in a singular location and he uses it so greatly as we learn as the film progresses the sheer horrors this house a girl rented possesses. As what intrigued me most about his take on this film is the ability for people to ignore red flags even when its right in front of them because as the main character we follow sure she questions what is going on around her but she never followed through on her gut she could have left but didn’t. That undertone of not listening to your inner voice and ignoring the warning signs and having that be an important aspect of the film really worked well for this tale. The thing is is that its not very obvious some of the thematic messages he puts in the frame some are very subtle and I love that just like how he made the lead character incredibly selfless and Justin Long’s character insanely selfish so you have two very different characters morally mashed together in this horrific situation. He captures the sheer anxiety of the situation so fantastically through the sharp editing choices and his ability to time the sound at the right moments to really play with the audiences head. It is a greatly directed film by Zach Cregger who brings some of the most skin crawling horror images to the screen while also building those scares around well written characters with truly sharp editing and sound choices that made the film stand out. The visuals in this film are eye catching and nightmarish and I hope he goes into the horror genre again because he has a great strength in the genre as proven with his genius work on Barbarian.