“Scariest movie of the year.” Studios love to toss that one around with ease, but this time it’s absolutely true: Babak Anvari’s feature-length debut, Under the Shadow, is a terrifying, spooky ghost story that will rattle your mind.
One of the best things we saw out of Sundance earlier this year, the Iranian filmmaker’s war-torn horror spectacle is essential viewing when it finally lands on Netflix this October — just in time for Halloween.
Set in 1988, the story follows a small family in Tehran trying to cope with the tail-end of the Iran-Iraq War. Things go awry, however, when a calamitous poltergeist — specifically, a Djinn — descends upon the household.
As I wrote in my A- review, “The wartime chaos adds a significant element of tension; at one point, there’s an attack on the building, and any expectations go out the window — will we see an explosion or a spirit or what?”
It’s an experience, alright. Watch the trailer above and plan to pee your pants come October 7th.