Editor’s note: The below contains spoilers for Barbarian.
Zach Cregger’sBarbariantook the horror genre by storm just in time for the 2022 Halloween season, witha box office opening of $10 million in just over two thousand theatersand rave review after rave review. Cregger,formerly of The Whitest Kids U' Know,brings to life a horror movie with a basic concept that follows your standard horror tropes while also packing it to the brim with subtle social undertones and commentary.Barbarianbrings to light deeper issues in gender and socioeconomic disparity as well as urban decay. While you’re watching this movie, the surface level feels like any old horror film. It’s about a woman traveling to Detroit for a job interview to find that her Airbnb has been double-booked and there’s a man already inside. That seems simple enough, right? Digging a little deeper into the guts of the film, it isn’t just scary because of the monsters lurking below or the jump scares. There is a genuine feeling of uneasiness because that simple premise unfolds down a rabbit hole, revealing issues beyond a creepy guy being creepy.
The movie starts off in the Brightmoor neighborhood of Detroit, which has been entirely dilapidated over time and ultimately viewed as broken beyond repair, where Tess (Georgina Campbell) is attempting to check in to her Airbnb for the weekend. Much to her dismay, the house she booked is currently occupied by Keith (BillSkarsgård), who insists she stay in the rental with him while they figure out what happened. After a series of awkward exchanges, unsettling camera views, and your typical slasher tropes (dark rainy nights, doors opening and slamming on their own, and secret doors and passageways), you’re expecting a typical run-of-the-mill slasher where the man is going to watch the unsuspecting lead character sleep and try to kill her when she least expects it. Instead, we find underground lairs, a naked mother, a decrepit old man with a sinister stash of VHS tapes, cops who can’t be bothered to patrol a dying area, and the movie star property owner, AJ (Justin Long), who will do anything for the preservation of his image. When all of these are unveiled, it becomes obvious that the classic horror formula is getting tossed right out of the window.
Nothing Is As It Seems
On the surface,Barbarianis absolutely bonkers. From the beginning and even the trailer, the movie makes it seem as though Keith is the one who is about to prey on Tess in some capacity. As we move through the movie, a secret room in the basement is found with a single dingy bed and an old-school video camera. Weird, right? Not as weird as the rocky staircase descending even further underground beyond that. On top of that, enter a naked woman who smashes Keith’s head into a wall to kill him and holds Tess captive. That woman is the product of incestuous relationships with a man who had been abducting women in the 1980s and forcing them to have his children. Then, once you’re absolutely shocked and asking yourself what just happened, cut to a scene of AJ in California. How is this connected? Well, he evidently owns the house and is about to flee to it to avoid a lawsuit. He then gets captured by the underground woman, and we just continue to spiral deeper and deeper into madness with every turn.
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Not Like Other Elevated Horrors
Compared to other elevated horror films,Barbariantakes a slightly different approach. From its inception and marketing of the trailer, we get the feeling that it is some sort of slasher or serial killer film. The typical elevated horror film will rely on heavy dramatics, lots of close-ups of the actors or actresses, and a heavy reliance on the undertones of the film instead of making it an all-out blood-fest like other horror films might. One of the most credited films for creating the elevated horror genre isThe Witch, directed byRobert Eggers.Elevated horror films feel more sophisticated. Their thematic elements are more deliberate and there is more time spent on setting the scene and invoking a feeling without the use of blood or even sometimes words.Barbarianhas these thematic undertones, but still successfully intertwines gore, obvious kills, and jump scares. Instead of making it obvious from the start that there are some psychological elements,Barbariankeeps you guessing the whole time.
The Woes of Women
Beyond the twists and turns ofBarbarian, what makes this movie so great is that itdoesfollow the simple horror premise but also manages to color outside the lines with deeper issues to give perspective on how our society has evolved, while also remaining the same over time. One of the biggest pieces of social commentary in this film is aboutgender disparity and misogyny. From the beginning of the film, the uneasiness is palpable for the situations that Tess is in. After agreeing to enter the rental with Keith, Tess feels the need to watch her every move. Every room she enters, she closes the door and locks it, she refuses to drink anything that she hasn’t seen Keith open or pour in front of her and goes above and beyond to confirm that what Keith is saying to her is the truth.
The disparity lies in the fact that if the roles were reversed, it is unlikely that a man would have to be concerned about his well-being or be worried that he would be taken advantage of or harmed. This is even something that is joked about in the dialogue between Tess and Keith, and he acknowledges that men wouldn’t have to be as hyper-vigilant as Tess has to be to protect herself. Later in the film, flashbacks to the 1980s reveal the original owner of the home was using the disguise of a handyman to kidnap and abduct women and take them to his super secret lair and force them to have his children. This parallel between the victims in the 1980s and Tess shows that although women’s rights have progressed in the past few decades, women everywhere are still faced with the same problem of constantly having to look over their shoulders and stay protected at all costs in the presence of strangers.
The Future Isn’t So Bright
Another theme outside the standard horror genre takes place a little later in the film when Tess escapes the underground lair and attempts to get help for AJ who is still stuck in the basement. Tess climbs out from the grime and dirt of the lair and hobbles into the street and down the road as fast as she can. She eventually runs into a service station where she calls the cops, but when they show up, it doesn’t go exactly as planned. As mentioned previously, theBrightmoor neighborhood has fallen apartand is perceived as riddled with drugs and viewed as entirely dejected. As Tess is explaining what happened and how there is still someone who needs saving, the audience starts to get the feeling that the cops assume she is homeless or on drugs because of her tattered and dirty appearance as well as where she is in Detroit.
They reluctantly agree to follow her to the rental to see what’s going on, but cannot be convinced to actually investigate because of their skepticism. The social commentary here is that urban decay and socioeconomic disparity continue to worsen because it is presumed that the area or the people residing in those areas are hopeless and beyond repair. Instead of addressing those issues, they get swept under the rug and ignored. The resources that could be used to turn rundown cities around are being used in other areas to keep them thriving, vibrant, and in order. This is something anyone can see in big cities across the U.S., and these less-than-ideal neighborhoods are viewed as a stain on the map of an otherwise perfect city.
Moving Past the Formula
When watching horror, we know what to expect. There’s a formula, and that formula is repeated over and over again in classics likeHalloween,Scream,andFriday The 13th. Every once in a while, a film comes along that follows those rules but chooses to break out of the mold to give the audience something to think about and relate to.Barbariankicks down the door and demands to be enjoyed by horror lovers everywhere. This film is witty, scary, and unique, but it also allows the audience to dive a little deeper than monsters under the bed. The obvious formula, coupled with the moments of subtle social undertones, makes for one crazy ride from start to finish.Barbarianis horror for those who are more scared of how the world is progressing than they are of the Boogeyman.
