Panic Fest 2026 Coverage
Babybacks review
A meal worth eating…even when you know the ingredients.
Festival reviews will not contain spoilers.
Babybacks
Directed by Geno Marx
Written by Geno Marx and Kent Rodricks
Starring Viridiana Marquez, Ryan Rathbun, Melissa Chambers, Peter Lucas, Ray Acevedo, Alfred Gonzalez and AB Phoenix
Babybacks Review
I’ve mentioned before that the first movie you watch at a film festival can really set the tone for how your experience is going to go. I’ve had a lot of luck in that regard. I can think of a handful of movies that would have soured the opening salvo of the experience greatly. Babybacks is the first movie I watched, and subsequently the first movie I’m reviewing, from this year’s Panic Fest. Babybacks turned out to be a great way to kick off 2026’s festival. It features memorable antagonists…and devolves into a bloody third act that lets their freak flag fully fly.
This is my third year covering Panic Fest’s online portion of the festival. It’s housed some very good stuff. Cannibal Mukbang, Super Happy Fun Clown, The Rebrand, Mother Father Sister Brother Frank, The Lost Episode and Haunted Ulster Live stand out among the highlights. I wouldn’t put Babybacks quite at the level of those movies…but it delivers some delicious meat to the genre by leaning into what makes genre movies fun. Wild eyed performances and blood. A recipe for success if there ever was one.
Babybacks is the story of a couple attempting to flee Mexico with a bag full of stolen cash. While they think they’re running away from danger…they end up walking right into it instead. Now…the first thing you’d probably suspect with a set-up like that is a story about the horror migrants crossing into the United States can face. Babybacks isn’t really about that. At least, not outwardly. The couple doesn’t wander into a place of racism and hatred. They wander into a horror movie featuring two old crazy coots and their prize winning barbecue. You can probably guess what the ingredients are.
I found the distinction interesting. What draws the couple, after Mateo (Ryan Rathbun) steps into a bear trap, to the home is the belief that the couple is friendly to their cause. In their own messed up way…they kind of are. They certainly don’t alert the authorities about their illegal crossing or anything. Of course, that would have been preferable to what the couple does have planned…but I digress.
Zoe (Viridiana Marquez) and Mateo suspect trouble almost immediately. They have a murderous man on their tale looking for his money…and something seems off about the old couple who has taken them in. Just not the kind of off two illegals crossing into the country might expect. Peter Lucas and Melissa Chambers play the old couple. They are tremendously unsettling in Babybacks. Set aside that we suspect they’re using people to make their award winning meat…they’re just inherently creepy characters. The best thing about their performances is how little they choose to hide it. Too often horror movies play the “this character is crazy, but they manage to hold it together for the first two acts and pretend not to be” card. Carol and Wayne…they’re crazy. And they’re also in control.
Babybacks works as a locked door thriller before it ever gets to its appropriately gory climax. Carol and Wayne are great antagonists. Zoe and Mateo are likable protagonists. The dynamic simply works. From the missing bag of money to Mateo’s inability to walk…Babybacks makes sure that the old couple has the upper hand in every way it can. It makes the moments of defiance from Zoe stand out as truly tense. There’s also the matter of the psychopath coming for that money…something that feels more inevitable to happen the longer Zoe and Mateo are trapped in one location.
The inevitable convergence of those plotlines kicks Babybacks into another gear. The third act of the movie, complete with prize winning cookoff, is a strong way to pay off the more suspenseful build. Things get violent and wild…and it’s all fun to watch. Even when it’s happening to people you like…the vibe is that fun throwback style horror that you watch with a smile on your face. This is a well-constructed nightmare for Zoe and Mateo…and an equally well-constructed narrative for viewers to enjoy. When the blood and body parts start to fly…you’ll have already enjoyed a full meal. And the dessert is just as good.
Scare Value
In a lot of ways, Babybacks is a very simple movie. Young couple ends up at the mercy of an old couple…and the danger inside may be worse than the danger they were trying to escape in the first place. What makes it work is simple. Strong performances and a total understanding of where genre movies should go. There are some sick moments here…some sad moments…some wild moments. All of which is delivered assuredly and in a way that entertains. As this year’s Panic Fest coverage kicks off…Babybacks provides a filling meal.
