‘Barbarian' (2022) Review
The film brilliantly parallels the literal and metaphorical in a gripping horror-comedy that is sure to be a crowd-pleaser for the masses.
★★★½
R - Horror (102 minutes)
dir. Zach Cregger
Starring: Georgina Campbell, Bill Skarsgård, Justin Long
“A woman staying at an Airbnb discovers that the house she has rented is not what it seems.”
— Official Synopsis
Almost instinctually, we mask the absurdity of being a human being to conform to the cultural standards we are bound to. There’s a certain guise we must fabricate to blend into the environment created by modern society. Writer-director Zach Cregger asks, “What happens when we are confronted with a situation in which the fabric that protects our true nature as living creatures deteriorates?” Perhaps, like me, your first thought is how some treat customer service workers—but Cregger goes a little further. If you’ve seen Barbarian you know there’s a very literal embodiment in response to that question, but I implore you to think beyond the obvious and examine a few of the characters we meet along the way. Because in one way or another, those less obvious characters loosely fit the moniker of “barbarian.” The film brilliantly parallels the literal and metaphorical in a gripping horror-comedy that is sure to be a crowd pleaser for the masses.
It’s true what you may be hearing from critics, Barbarian is the type of film you probably want to know as little as possible about. That doesn’t necessarily mean that it won’t be as enjoyable knowing what could happen. However, what makes Cregger’s directorial debut so arresting pertains to the structure of the story itself. It purposefully changes pace to keep the audience guessing as to what lies in the next few frames but it also flips the switch on perspectives by using light, or lack thereof, to deceive and force a change in the viewer’s perception of physical space. Georgina Campbell stars as Tess, who arrives at her Airbnb on a dark, stormy night. She soon finds that she may not be the only one who booked for that night. When she attempts to retrieve the key, it has already been taken by Keith (Bill Skarsgård). While they work through the obvious conflict at hand, there’s an uneasy feeling being exacerbated by the script and Zach Kuperstein’s intentional focus behind the camera. Just when you expect something to go wrong, Joe Murphy’s editing completely shatters your expectation using very skilled jump-cuts.
Cregger discusses the intention behind some of the film’s subversion which is important for understanding why Barbarian takes so many twists and turns. In an interview with Looper he claims that, while each misdirection was intentional, the story had to almost write itself: “I knew that if I didn't know what was going to happen, the audience wouldn't know what was going to happen. Writing it, that was the deal. I had to surprise myself.” So for all the screenwriters and storytellers out there, give your narrative the means to evolve organically and you might just end up with a hit. Needless to say, while Barbarian may seem turbulent at times it does serve a purpose—and its motivations aren’t always apparent without reflection. Subsequently, the film will have endless replayability, both for the people who were able to catch it during its theatrical run and for people discovering it on streaming in the future.
Beyond the tactful filmmaking techniques, the performances from Campbell and Skarsgård are alluring for different reasons. Skarsgård almost certainly heightens the creep factor (though for some it will come naturally in knowing of his turn as Pennywise the Dancing Clown in Chapter One and Two of It) while also effusing boy-next-door charm. You can’t help but like the guy, even knowing he might be too good to be true. Meanwhile, Campbell posses the sheer strength of her character and her persistence to do the right thing. Tess has an urgency to her that, in a situation like this, ultimately will favor her chances of survival. Meanwhile, Justin Long (AJ) is clearly having the most fun he’s had in quite some time. The material written for his character, as nutty as it is on paper, seemed to brighten the in-theater experience. Not only was the audience in my screening enjoying the palpable entertainment and ridiculousness, they were enthusiastically engaged in the narrative journey; it reminded me of the first time seeing Jordan Peele’s Get Out with a large crowd. Pure, unrelenting entertainment.
Without succumbing to the multitude of Airbnb or rental jokes, I’m here to tell you that you won’t regret watching this one. Barbarian is out now in theaters.