Barbarian is a pretty good horror movie so far. Excellent example of creating tension.
I'm a half-hour in and I still don't know if this is a serial killer or ghost movie.
At this stage, all I want out of a movie is creators who know what they're doing. And yes, this production is competent. Possible even good or great.. it has that potential. Time will tell.
The movie continues to be AWESOME.
From a filmmaking perspective, there's a brief, subtle acting choice at just over an hour in I want to comment on in the next twoot. Gonna try to say it super vague that doesn't really give anything away, but given that this movie's best charm is that it keeps you guessing, I'll put it under a spoiler tag, because I don't want my description to set any expectations.
That said, I hope if you watch this movie you'll notice it.
If you blink you'll miss it.
At around 1:09, as the actor scans around the scene, he looks directly at the camera, for just a moment. It is so brief that it really just is him looking around and the camera happens to be in his line of sight. Yet it breaks the fourth wall so subtly, so nonchalantly, without calling attention to itself as fourth-wall breaks often do. Yet it effectively put the viewer off balance.
Because this is *never done.*
Actors very intentionally avoid eye contact with the camera unless they're interacting with the viewer. Unless that's the context we're given, like a narrator, interview, or found footage.
So this is a very intentional directing decision that is chilling and I love it.
I totally recommend this movie (Barbarian, 2022), which manages to be a lot of things at once without being a comedy. Few quibbles. What a ride!
Mx. Luna Corbden 🐸