Backrooms

Watched this movie because of how popular it has become on the Internet. A young director taking on some »internet folklore«, and it not being met with ridicule, is interesting enough by itself. The most similar case I can think of is Five Nights at Freddy's, which I have had the pleasure of never re-watching. Backrooms come from the same place of the Internet, however I lump it together with stuff like SCP and FNAF, just lower down on the totem pole. Associated with kids writing their first SCP article on the Backrooms wiki and »scary« YouTube videos.

The film is surprisingly good. It actually works as a movie by itself and without all the lore and references from the Internet. The hand-held horror sections were definitely my favorites, it was truly unnerving to look at. The characters were alright, but did not really speak that much to me. I think it was well-executed, and that Clark is written well. He is obviously unstable in his daily life, and seeing him lose himself to the Backrooms is a good concept. Mary, the therapist, is also interesting, but feels half-baked. She ends up coming to terms with some of her trauma, but I feel like we barely got to know her.

The feeling I get from the movie is very much the same I got from watching Pearl. The movie is good. The acting is good. The characters are (mostly) good. The music is good. The story is good. But it just does not feel satisfying, like I got anything out of it. The horror scenes from the Backrooms will actually stick with me, however both films left me feeling kind of »meh«. Clinically great, but somehow still missing the mark in a way I cannot put my finger on.