A24’s new thrillerOpusis pretty disappointing, but the story it sets out to tell has been pulled off by a handful of much better horror movies in recent years.Opusstars Ayo Edebirias a young journalist who’s invited to the remote compound of a reclusive pop star, played by John Malkovich. Upon her arrival, she quickly learns that the pop star has a literal cult following and something sinister is afoot.
One of the reasons whyOpushas bombed at the box officeis that audiences have seen this kind of movie a lot lately. It belongs to a specific subgenre of “all is not what it seems” suspense thrillers about an unsuspecting protagonist being lured into a cult and having to figure out a way to escape. But the comparisons aren’t favorable, becauseother films in this genre have been much smarter, scarier, and more satirically substantial.
Zoë Kravitz’s directorial debut,Blink Twice, stars Naomi Ackie as a down-on-her-luck young woman who’s swept off her feet by a billionaire tech magnate, played by Channing Tatum, and invited to his private island. When she gets to the island, it initially seems to be a carefree paradise tucked away from the worries of the outside world. However, it soon becomes apparent that something really dark is going on.
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Blink Twiceis far from a perfect movie. Its tone is all over the place, flitting between broad comedic beats and really shocking sequences of sexual violence, and its final message is a little muddled. But on the whole,it achieves the slow-burn mystery effect much better thanOpus.
Mark Mylod’s horror comedyThe Menuseems like the template forOpus’ plot; just swap out pop music for food. Instead of going to the remote compound of an eccentric pop star,The Menu’s cast of charactersgo to the remote restaurant of an eccentric celebrity chef, played brilliantly by Ralph Fiennes. Anya Taylor-Joy’s Margot, much like Edebiri’s Ariel, is the outsider who doesn’t buy into the cultism and sets out to bring down the whole shady operation.
Opushas some vague ideas about the cult of celebrity and the power of attention, butThe Menuis a razor-sharp critique of high-end cuisine and the surrounding industry.
The Menuhas a much clearer satirical message thanOpus.Opushas some vague ideas about the cult of celebrity and the power of attention, butThe Menuis a razor-sharp critique of high-end cuisine and the surrounding industry. Plus, Fiennes gives an unforgettable turn as a sadistic villain.
Radio Silence’s comedy thrillerReady or Notstars Samara Weavingas a young bride who is ritualistically hunted by her husband’s wealthy devil-worshipping family on her wedding night. LikeOpus, it’s a darkly comic subversion of the final girl trope. Butit’s much more successful in empowering its protagonist to outsmart her captorsand become a badass.
Not only isReady or Nota delightfully diabolical slasher movie that turns the tables on the villains; it’s also a surprisingly astute satire of socioeconomic disparity. There have been a lot of eat-the-rich satires lately, but they’re rarely as much fun asReady or Not. Weaving gives a star-making turn as a put-upon hero who’s easy to root for, and the movie builds to one of the most gruesomely satisfying final scenes in recent horror cinema.
The Levelists cult inOpusis tame compared to the Hårga cult inMidsommar. ThisWicker Man-style folk horror epic stars Florence Pugh as a grieving young woman who accompanies her emotionally distant boyfriend to a nine-day midsummer festival in rural Sweden. At first, it’s a magical journey — but then, the bodies start piling up.
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There are some images inOpusthat are clearly trying to evoke the shock factor ofMidsommar, like puppets made out of rotting rat carcasses and a dying woman stuffed into a beanbag chair. But no other filmmaker is quite as twisted as Ari Aster.Midsommaropens with a murder-suicide and only gets more and more disturbing from there. It features a sledgehammer mercy kill, a couple of bad mushroom trips, and a human corpse splayed out like a blood eagle.
The current trend of social thrillers that led toOpuswas initially started by Jordan Peele’s debut featureGet Out.Get Outrecontextualizes the sexist suburban horror ofThe Stepford Wivesto tackle America’s racial tensions. Daniel Kaluuya stars as a Black photographer who visits his white girlfriend’s parents’ predominantly white gated community. After some initial awkwardness, it dawns on him that the Stepford whites have an unsettling ulterior motive.
It deftly conveys a timely message about an important social issue without ever slowing down its perfectly paced horror story.
Peele earned a much-deserved Oscar for his fiercely original screenplay.Get Outworks beautifully as both a nail-biting conspiracy thriller and a poignant social commentary. It deftly conveys a timely message about an important social issue without ever slowing down its perfectly paced horror story. In other words, it’s everythingOpuswants to be (but isn’t).
