'Barbarian' review: Horror movie a perfect primer for Halloween
Date night at the movies can mean fright night for fans of horror movies, and those folks have a new one in theaters this weekend.
"Barbarian" is set in a run-down area of Detroit, where a young woman is forced to spend the night in a rental with a strange guy.
That's when creepy stuff starts happening to both of them.
As the movie begins, "It was a dark and stormy night," just like the old book says. But this is not a 19th century novel -- it's a very modern horror story that starts when two strangers meet at a house.
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Unbeknownst to each other, they've each rented the same place at the same time, and "a double booking nightmare" is what The New York Times calls it when the newspaper listed "Barbarian" as a Critic's Pick.
Keith (Bill Skarsgard) seems a bit creepy at first, but it's more like he's just ill-at-ease around Tess (Georgina Campbell).
It turns out they both have a lot more to worry, about after he goes missing in the basement and she follows him there.
She truly throws caution to the wind when Tess goes down a dark stairway and curses him further underground.
Watching Tess, it's hard to fathom why she keeps going, but without her pursuit, there would be no movie -- and then no reason in involve the owner of the house.
He's an absentee landlord played by Justin Long, and he has the home as an investment.
Now, he's looking to sell it to help pay his legal debts after being sued for sexual harassment.
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The sleazy director from Hollywood finds himself literally out of his depth as he is drawn down those dark steps.
I'll be honest with you. I scare quite easily, and I jumped out of my seat a few times while watching "Barbarian."
I can't think of a better way to get in the mood for Halloween.
The movie, from 20th Century Studios -- owned by Disney, the parent company of this ABC station -- is in theaters everywhere now.
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