There’s Something in the Barn review.
2023 Christmas horror season is in full swing. A look at horror/comedy There’s Something in the Barn.
New movie reviews will not contain spoilers.
There’s Something in the Barn
Directed by Magnus Martens
Written by Aleksander Kirkwood Brown
Starring Martin Starr, Amrita Acharia, Kiran Shah, Zoe Winther-Hansen, Townes Bunner, Henriette Steenstrup and Paul Monaghan
There’s Something in the Barn Review
Christmas horror is one of the stranger subgenres when you think about it. Alright…maybe it isn’t body horror or cosmic horror strange…but the combination of a saccharine holiday and spooky or violent stories is an odd one. It’s why so many holiday horror movies feel the way they do. The two concepts are more at odds with each other than they can work in congress. Obviously, there are plenty of quality Christmas horror movies out there…so it can be done. God knows we get enough tries at it every year.
Enter There’s Something in the Barn. A movie that exemplifies the biggest issue that Christmas horror has to contend with. Yes…there is some death and mayhem on display. Yes…there is a heartwarming familial story at the center. No…it doesn’t blend all that well together. But is that really the fault of the movie? Trying to meet the demands of two opposing ideals rarely leads to anything great. There’s Something in the Barn manages to deliver a good time despite the usual issues. It’s a fine example of what good holiday horror so often is. Not quite enough of either thing it is trying to be.
The family story at the heart of There’s Something in the Barn involves a move to Norway. The out of place Americans bring along some extra baggage in the move. New stepmother Carol (Amrita Acharia) is trying to connect to Lucas (Townes Bunner) and Nora (Zoe Winther-Hansen). She feels that Nora, in particular, won’t accept her. Their father Bill (Martin Starr) thinks the move is just the thing to bring them closer together.
The horror aspect of There’s Something in the Barn involves…well…something in the barn. Lucas is the first to encounter the elf that lives there. He befriends the elf, but things soon fall apart. The family (the rest of whom don’t believe Lucas) can’t abide by the elf’s three rules. He hates bright lights, noise and change of any kind. Yes…a Christmas horror movie about a little monster has three rules you need to abide by. Like the Peltzer family in Gremlins, the Nordheim family immediately breaks every one of these rules.
There’s Something in the Barn starts slow. It’s funny enough…but it holds off on the fun for a bit longer than it needs to. When it does unleash its wicked elf, we start to have fun. It never reaches the level of bloody mayhem that you’d like it to. Especially after revealing that there are many barn elves out there. What we get is entertaining and, of course, plays into the family story as well.
There’s Something in the Barn is a fine addition to the little monsters category of horror. It’s no Gremlins but it is better than a lot of the knockoffs that followed. The elves are funny and deadly. When they get together to trash the family’s house or chase down fleeing potential victims…the movie really hits its stride. There are some fun side characters too. Usually providing comedy in the form of cultural differences with the American characters. A very nice but equally unhelpful sheriff steals more than one scene.
When we use terms like Christmas horror and little monsters you pretty much know where this movie is coming from…and where it’s heading. This isn’t a movie about shocks or gruesome kills. It’s about delivering that mix of holiday cheer in a horror movie package. If you are desperate to celebrate both this time of year…There’s Something in the Barn will give it to you. It just feels like a double feature of It’s a Wonderful Life and A Nightmare on Elm Street will do the same job better.
Scare Value
There’s Something in the Barn doesn’t get as much out of the concept as it could. What’s here is still a fun movie…at least once the elves are let loose. A slow buildup and comedy that doesn’t always land keeps it stuck in neutral for a bit too long. Still, there are some fun holiday hijinks to be had. A worthy addition to the Christmas horror genre. But only just.
3/5
There’s Something in the Barn Links
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