I’ve had so many bad Airbnb experiences that I’ve decided to never use the service and others like it ever again. From letters who gouge you with fees after leaving, to places not being as described, or even just leaving me stranded by cancelling shortly before my arrival; if you ask me, nothing beats a good old-fashioned hotel. Thankfully though I’ve never had an experience quite like that seen in Barbarian, a film that received rave reviews on its release last year but one I unfortunately missed out on. But with the film being available on Disney+ I recently checked it out and what a thrill-ride it was.
Tess (Georgina Campbell) arrives at her Airbnb booking late at night only to find that the place is currently being rented by Keith (Bill Skarsgard) who booked through another rental service. With neither of them able to contact the property management for assistance, Tess reluctantly stays the night with this stranger as she has no other option. Whilst stranger danger may be the biggest fear on Tess’ mind, unbeknown to the both of them the property hides something far more sinister than either of them could ever imagine.
The trailer and synopsis for Barbarian keeps its cards very close to its chest and never lets on what the story is actually about, but I think it’s safe to say without spoiling anything that Barbarian has multiple interweaving narratives other than Tess and Keith (which shouldn’t come as a surprise considering that Justin Long is in the trailer and named on the poster, yet has his own separate storyline). Each storyline reveals more and more about the property that Tess and Keith are renting, and when the storylines finally merge in the final act it’s spectacular how unexpectedly weird and creepy Barbarian suddenly becomes.
The horror that lies at the centre of Barbarian is nothing we haven’t seen before, but the way in which its executed is extremely refreshing, and really quite exciting. Despite being primarily a horror film, Barbarian frequently tips into comedy as the absurdity of the situation becomes apparent, and a lot of the early horror is built around the awkward stranger danger tension between Tess and Keith.
Tess (Georgina Campbell) arrives at her Airbnb booking late at night only to find that the place is currently being rented by Keith (Bill Skarsgard) who booked through another rental service. With neither of them able to contact the property management for assistance, Tess reluctantly stays the night with this stranger as she has no other option. Whilst stranger danger may be the biggest fear on Tess’ mind, unbeknown to the both of them the property hides something far more sinister than either of them could ever imagine.
The trailer and synopsis for Barbarian keeps its cards very close to its chest and never lets on what the story is actually about, but I think it’s safe to say without spoiling anything that Barbarian has multiple interweaving narratives other than Tess and Keith (which shouldn’t come as a surprise considering that Justin Long is in the trailer and named on the poster, yet has his own separate storyline). Each storyline reveals more and more about the property that Tess and Keith are renting, and when the storylines finally merge in the final act it’s spectacular how unexpectedly weird and creepy Barbarian suddenly becomes.
The horror that lies at the centre of Barbarian is nothing we haven’t seen before, but the way in which its executed is extremely refreshing, and really quite exciting. Despite being primarily a horror film, Barbarian frequently tips into comedy as the absurdity of the situation becomes apparent, and a lot of the early horror is built around the awkward stranger danger tension between Tess and Keith.
Campbell delivers a great central performance with a character arc that dramatically changes over the course of the film. She starts off very much on the back foot, stuck in a house in the middle of nowhere with a stranger. She takes the necessary steps to protect herself, but she’s very much on the defensive the entire time. Once the second half of the story rolls around she’s learned so much about her situation that she stars being on the offensive considerably more against this formidable threat. Campbell balances that transition well, it doesn’t seem forced because she’s always seemed headstrong and resourceful.
Skarsgard delivers an expectedly creepy performance as Keith, and I love how you can never really tell whether he’s a nice guy or not. He never does anything to explicitly telegraph that he’s a threat, but his mannerisms scream red flags and as a result you’re always on edge around him. Long plays the perfect douchebag too, he’s so despicable and it adds this whole other dimension to the story.
Something that stuck with me after the film finished though was that there were a number of threads just left hanging, small character details that went unexplained and unresolved. Like who keeps calling Tess? It might have been something addressed in a line of dialogue I missed, and it’s almost entirely inconsequential to the central narrative of the story, but why make such a point of having Tess keep declining unwanted phone calls if you’re never going to address why that is? This isn’t an isolated issue to Tess as all the characters have small moments that don’t add up or aren’t explained, and it just seemed strange to have so many moments of plot or character development just entirely glossed over and forgotten about.
Barbarian is a whole lot of fun. With some great scares, a fantastic twist, and also some surprisingly funny moments, it feels like something entirely fresh and original. Similar to 2021’s Malignant, Barbarian is a film that you feel you have sussed out in the first act, but it completely pulls the rug out from under your feet and leaves you reeling for the rest of its runtime. The perfect kind of horror to stick on with some friends for a great time, or for you to really engross yourself into whilst all alone. Absolutely worth checking out.
Skarsgard delivers an expectedly creepy performance as Keith, and I love how you can never really tell whether he’s a nice guy or not. He never does anything to explicitly telegraph that he’s a threat, but his mannerisms scream red flags and as a result you’re always on edge around him. Long plays the perfect douchebag too, he’s so despicable and it adds this whole other dimension to the story.
Something that stuck with me after the film finished though was that there were a number of threads just left hanging, small character details that went unexplained and unresolved. Like who keeps calling Tess? It might have been something addressed in a line of dialogue I missed, and it’s almost entirely inconsequential to the central narrative of the story, but why make such a point of having Tess keep declining unwanted phone calls if you’re never going to address why that is? This isn’t an isolated issue to Tess as all the characters have small moments that don’t add up or aren’t explained, and it just seemed strange to have so many moments of plot or character development just entirely glossed over and forgotten about.
Barbarian is a whole lot of fun. With some great scares, a fantastic twist, and also some surprisingly funny moments, it feels like something entirely fresh and original. Similar to 2021’s Malignant, Barbarian is a film that you feel you have sussed out in the first act, but it completely pulls the rug out from under your feet and leaves you reeling for the rest of its runtime. The perfect kind of horror to stick on with some friends for a great time, or for you to really engross yourself into whilst all alone. Absolutely worth checking out.