Read Mixed User Reviews for Barbarian

6

moviemitch96Sep 10, 2022

This horror flick sees a young woman (Georgina Campbell) renting an Airbnb, only to discover that it has mysteriously been double booked and another man (Bill Skarsgard) is already there renting it as well. Soon she discovers a hidden door inThis horror flick sees a young woman (Georgina Campbell) renting an Airbnb, only to discover that it has mysteriously been double booked and another man (Bill Skarsgard) is already there renting it as well. Soon she discovers a hidden door in the basement where she makes a horrifying discovery and becomes trapped. I didn't have many expectations for this one, what would this being the kind of film that I don't normally get too excited for, several positive reviews it received didn't quite sell me on this one, but I decided to check it out nevertheless. And while I will say that it does have a genuinely frightening atmosphere to it throughout most of the film, along with some tense moments (particularly in the first half), and the performances from Campbell, Skarsgard, and even Justin Long (who doesn't show up till about halfway through) are all sufficient enough, in the end, it's still mostly felt like just another creepy basement/tunnel thriller to me. There was nothing too extraordinary to set it apart from other similarly-themed films within the subgenre. Even falling back on an old trick or two (such as shrinking the aspect ratio for a brief period flashback sequence 3/4 of the way through the film) didn't do much to help make things feel any fresher or unique, instead just making the film's editing and pacing feel disjointed. The drawn-out final act also left me feeling a little underwhelmed when all was said and done. So overall, though it starts out tense, eerie and atmospheric, and offers some great scared as hell performances from its three main stars, it all quickly starts to feel more and more generic and all over the place by the second half and especially the last quarter or so of the film.… Expand

6 of 6 users found this helpful60

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5

very_criticallySep 21, 2022

The one thing I can say to sum up my experience of this film is that it tries extremely hard to have a point, but doesn't in the end. It tries so hard to have your expectations subverted from the very beginning, but is met with a less thanThe one thing I can say to sum up my experience of this film is that it tries extremely hard to have a point, but doesn't in the end. It tries so hard to have your expectations subverted from the very beginning, but is met with a less than desired outcome. Characters have seemingly inconsistent levels of intelligence and situational awareness to an annoying degree. There are several plot holes and unexplained phenomena that leave more questions than answers.… Expand

5 of 5 users found this helpful50

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6

DronegoreOct 31, 2022

The film started out pretty strong and held my interest for the first third with great performances and tense directing. After that it slowly fell apart and became more generic the longer it went. Kudos for the nice cinematography.

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

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5

luisroman0233Sep 25, 2022

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This movie upset me a lot, and it’s not because of the “woke” allegations people are claiming it to be. It’s because the movie falls flat with a great premise and unique shots of cinematography but all around worthless plot. From the get go this movie presents extremely good tension and suspense, however it subverts your expectations well, unnerving yourself due to your own expectations. It presents interesting premise which is the main antagonist being not some hugely scary monster from outer space or demonic possession but a creation of inbreeding and rape, solidifying at least some form of tangibility with our real world. However that’s where my praises fall flat, as to the characters that aren’t directly in peril or at least when they aren’t have no real reason to be there at all. For starters, our main character presents herself to be a pretty successful, likable and all around inoffensive marry sue, with a partial plot line of her applying to a position for a film that is set within the location our characters are at. And that’s it, that’s all we get from her, there’s no self growth, there’s no expansion on her plot there’s nothing for her except being a person to be chased by said monster. Our second protagonist is a playboy tv star that is nothing more than the typical frat douche, he has no real personality other than that. With his plot line that’s presented is that he raped a woman and is being held accountable. Due to his expenses being too much for him to handle he ends up in his own rental property (the location of this film and main area where the horror takes place) he ends up believing there’s squatters in his house and proceeds to go look for them and then ends up in the situation with the first main character (don’t want to go too far as to spoil the entire movie as there is some playability and a reason to sit down and pay attention) and then he serves no purpose as to be another person being chased.

Over all, with how beautiful the movies horror plays itself out, how the tension is created and the cinematography for these shots are played out, it’s a strong contender to be considered a modern classic, but the plot brings it down so far due to its lack of consistency, the plot that is presented by each character and their turmoils and even some extra elements for the backstory of the monster itself, really make it fall short of being a classic horror movie, which is a shame truly due to it just presenting so much and doing nothing with it… Expand

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

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5

AlphaRebelNov 28, 2022

I can see how a lot of people would really like this, and I have to give kudos for trying something a bit different, although the structural problems, plot holes and characters plot induced stupidity make it a bit of a harder watch for me.

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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4

teshiaNov 3, 2022

This movie bothered me. I feel like it's in a great position to open a larger discussion about poverty, which the film soaks itself in. Instead, it is somewhat unsympathetic. The setting and people in the midst of poverty are, for the mostThis movie bothered me. I feel like it's in a great position to open a larger discussion about poverty, which the film soaks itself in. Instead, it is somewhat unsympathetic. The setting and people in the midst of poverty are, for the most part, seen as things to be frightened of. Is this what we need right now when the US is facing a poverty crisis? In the end, I felt like the film just vilified poverty, rather than starting a deeper discussion about why poverty happens in the first place. Wasted potential.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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5

Computey18Mar 2, 2023

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I want to like it but I can't because its stupid people doing stupid things, and also its not explained well.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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4

imthenoobOct 26, 2022

It opens and plays out interesting enough and the twist about halfway through turns everything we thought we knew at that point on its head. It was an OK movie, not as great as people made it out to be, but I didn't hate it. I think theIt opens and plays out interesting enough and the twist about halfway through turns everything we thought we knew at that point on its head. It was an OK movie, not as great as people made it out to be, but I didn't hate it. I think the biggest problem Barbarian suffers from is an obvious pacing issue that ruins the second half, especially with the needless flashback and numerous exposition dumps.… Expand

3 of 4 users found this helpful31

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4

OlivierPielNov 1, 2022

Great start. Technically as good as anything out there. Deftly playing with the neurotic woke clichés of smug college-educated but still nearly uncultured 'Merican millenials. Mid-way changing course as it runs out of ideas by introducing aGreat start. Technically as good as anything out there. Deftly playing with the neurotic woke clichés of smug college-educated but still nearly uncultured 'Merican millenials. Mid-way changing course as it runs out of ideas by introducing a run-of-the-mill douche and pettered out with a lazy ending. What a shame, there were some nice shots and acting in this...… Expand

3 of 4 users found this helpful31

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4

pastor43Sep 30, 2022

Whatever the premise was for this movie, I would surely like to read it. The movie was absurd in my opinion beyond the normal Hollywood inventive stupidity of "let's see if this works" that we consistently receive. This was someone's actualWhatever the premise was for this movie, I would surely like to read it. The movie was absurd in my opinion beyond the normal Hollywood inventive stupidity of "let's see if this works" that we consistently receive. This was someone's actual creative story... Ok...… Expand

2 of 3 users found this helpful21

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6

anon973Sep 14, 2022

The people claiming this is "woke" make me want to /facepalm. In my opinion it is critical overrated because of it's early pacing but definitely decent. Wait for it to be streaming.

1 of 6 users found this helpful15

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5

Rebecca31Nov 9, 2022

If you arrive at a strange house and Bill Skarsgård opens the door just run the other way and keep on running. It really has been a great year for horror movies, and Barbarian has certainly received a lot of hype. Although it didn't quiteIf you arrive at a strange house and Bill Skarsgård opens the door just run the other way and keep on running. It really has been a great year for horror movies, and Barbarian has certainly received a lot of hype. Although it didn't quite live up to expectations if you're looking to be scared then Barbarian will do the job.

Tess (Georgina Campbell) arrives late at night in the lashing rain to her Airbnb only to find the place is already being rented to someone else. Handsome stranger Keith (Bill Skarsgård) agrees to let Tess stay as it's late in a dodgy neighbourhood and because he's such a gent. Tess continues to ignore the parade of red flags and spends the night in the Airbnb and sure wouldn't you know it, the place ain't quite what it seems.

Here's a horror movie that keeps you on your toes. There's a lot going on here but despite a very promising first act, it does lose its way only to descend into another generic horror movie ending. Tess bless her but she fell into so many of the horror movie tropes I lost count. If you're the type to internally scream every time the main character does something stupid well then you are going to be doing that for a good portion of Barbarian. You may have to restrain yourself from shouting at poor Tess to "run woman run."

Barbarian is a film that lives up to its title with the men portrayed in this ranging from borderline creepy to absolutely monstrous. It definitely had the right idea to try something new and a lot of it works, I can't go into too much detail as there's already lots of spoilers online. It's dark and twisted but doesn't reveal everything all at once, it tunnels deeper and deeper into more disturbing themes and images and by the third act you're guaranteed to be well and truly grossed out by that point. You'll also get your money's worth because it will scare you without being packed full of cheap jump scares. It's genuinely frightening particularly everything going on in the first act.

It's not the most horrific scary movie I've seen this year, that is well and truly going to Men, there's images in that movie that I'll never be able to unsee. Yet Barbarian is still an original horror that has done amazingly well at the box office. It's important to have more original scary movies like this, Smile, and The Black Phone and less of tired out horror franchises, yes I'm looking at you Michael Myers. Okay sure Barbarian didn't quite live up to my personal expectations but a lot of horror fans out there love it. The only way you'll know for sure is to see it for yourself, highly recommended for all the horror fans.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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6

MattyIce34Sep 12, 2022

Weird! Bonkers! Dark! Insane! Disturbing! “Don’t Breath” meets “Malignant”. A fun theater experience is nothing else.

0 of 4 users found this helpful04

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6

Voodoo123Sep 10, 2023

Corny b movie thrills with all the usual tropes in place. Some interesting twists and turns and some , at times, good pacing. In such an oversaturated genre its hard to make anything feel fresh anymore. This was a very good effort to do that.Corny b movie thrills with all the usual tropes in place. Some interesting twists and turns and some , at times, good pacing. In such an oversaturated genre its hard to make anything feel fresh anymore. This was a very good effort to do that. Cast and sound design were spot on. The plot was very silly! It was more lol than scary. I think if they had shown less of the threat it would've been more spooky.… Expand