Eric sure if happy with what feels like a never ending stream of horror movies, but some of us are getting tired and risking heart problems from the jump scares (Josh). We have another horror film this week from yet another YouTuber turned visionary filmmaker. However, next week all the beloved horror movies are on the chopping block in Scary movie 6. No one is safe from the Wayans, and we’ll be sat.
Till then, read about the terror of liminal space and listen to yet another freaky Robert Patterson voice (highly complimentary) in his next feature. We don’t know who’s working harder in 2026, R Patt, Anne Hathaway, or Zendaya but we’re not complaining. Keep em coming, gang.
Here’s what we have for you this week:
Concession Stand Scorecard: Backrooms
Watchlist Worthy: New R Patt Voice Unlocked!
This week’s movie - Backrooms
Letterboxd Description:
You are not supposed to be here.
A strange doorway appears in the basement of a furniture showroom.
Best Watched With
Generation Z and anyone who knows what creepypasta is
End Credit Thoughts
This was… something. . .
Kane Parsons is the youngest director A24 has worked worked with to date and he extends and pushes the Backrooms lore with this feature film. The Backrooms can be found by way of a portal of sorts, or better explained would be, for anyone who played N64 games like Goldeneye 007, by experiencing a glitch (noclip) where your character would move freely through solid objects like walls.
In the Backrooms, endless liminal space; passages, doorways, rooms, a labyrinth inhabited by the uncanny. Rumor has it, the production built such a large set that crew members actually got lost while filming.
The movie does an extremely well job building a world of familiarity that invokes curiosity but not without hesitation and eeriness. We were in it with the characters. Both wanting to lurk around, go venture to into the next space, but also disturbed by the bleak and bland yellow walls. The constant white noise hum reverberated in our chests making us uncomfortable in our AMC signature recliners making our desire to explore in contention with wanting the characters to get the fuck out ASAP.
The storyline involving a therapist and client immediately invokes a psychological aspect that lead us to asking questions. Is this a metaphor? What needs to be reveled? What doesn’t? Where are the connections to the therapy or is this a red herring? The Backrooms gives you plenty to ruminate on, and wonder whether your overthinking or need to crank the gears into overdrive.
The cast is elite and everyone came to play. Chiwetel Ejiofor gives an emotional and manic performance as Clark, the patient of Mary (Renate Reinsve). We don’t think Reinsve can give a subpar performance. She is a titan of a thespian. Her acting never feels forced but always a force to be reckoned with.
The found footage POV style the movie implements adds claustrophobia to the viewing. Wanting to turn, but you can’t. Wanting to see the context of the character but are limited to seeing what they are seeing. It was like the auditorium atmosphere was putting pressure onto our chests and bodies, weighing us down into the seats.
The movie definitely shows more than explains, which is always nice. It assumes we are smart enough to put things together, but also, the story starts to fray in the final act. We were unfamiliar with the lore and Youtube series of the Backrooms. We knew of Kane Parsons, or better his online alias Kane Pixels, but our knowledge did not go further than this. One would definitely benefit from being familiar with this concept. Because we weren’t, it still delivered a psychological thrill and horror experience, but left us asking a whole lot of questions.
The theater enhances the experience for sure. Kane Parson fans will want to watch this in theaters. Horror/thriller fans will appreciate the sitting in a third space such as a cinema, but those go in blind, even the genre lovers, might be pissed off by this one. It’s not for everybody, but what a feat by the 20 year old director. We do tip our hat and was not mad contributing money to someone taking big swings.
Josh Jump Scare Count: 16
Primetime by Lance Oppenheim
Letterboxd Description:
A journalist takes on an underworld of crime and changes television forever.
As you all know - if you’ve ever read the newsletter even once - we are all HUGE Robert Pattinson fans. Well, this trailer is CHILLING and RP’s voice is unrecognizable. He loves a weird accent, and so do we. Beyond just that, we can’t wait to see him play Chris Hansen in the upcoming Oppenheim’s narrative feature film debut.
September GET HERE ASAP PP.
-Eric, Kelly, & Josh
Tune in next week for | Scary Movie 6
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