Backrooms Review: Creepy, Clever, Too Short

Clark (Chiwetel Ejiofor) is a low-key warehouse manager at a sprawling furniture showroom - think IKEA but with more shadows and fewer meatballs. One evening, after a kid goes missing in the store’s basement, Clark discovers a strange, pulsating doorway that wasn’t there before. It’s not a portal to Narnia; it’s a gateway to the Backrooms - a labyrinth of identical, yellowed corridors, humming fluorescent lights, and a sense of wrongness that clings to your skin. He’s joined by Mary (Renate Reinsve), a skeptical journalist, and a ragtag crew of survivors: Bobby (Finn Bennett), Kat (Lukita Maxwell), Phil (Mark Duplass), and the enigmatic Naren Warne (Avan Jogia). They descend into the maze, hunting for answers and a way out, only to find that the Backrooms aren’t just empty - they’re occupied by things that mimic humanity. Oh, and there’s a guy named Pirate Clark (Robert Bobroczkyi, who is absurdly tall and terrifying). The plot doesn’t reinvent genre wheels, but it builds tension like a slow leak in your tire - you know you’re going flat, but you can’t stop the car.

Let’s talk about the vibes. Kane Parsons understands that fear isn’t about monsters - it’s about space. The Backrooms look exactly like your brain’s worst memory of a high school hallway: beige walls, flickering tubes, a carpet that smells like institutional despair. The cinematography traps you in that liminal emptiness, and the sound design is a chef’s kiss of hums, creaks, and dead air. I literally found myself holding my breath during a twenty-minute sequence where the characters just walk through identical rooms. That’s horror.

Chiwetel Ejiofor brings a weary gravitas that makes Clark feel like a real guy - not a hero, just a dude who’s lost and desperate. Renate Reinsve is a revelation as Mary; she’s the audience’s voice, asking the dumb questions we’d all ask. Mark Duplass plays Phil as a profane conspiracy theorist who’s oddly endearing - his banter with Avan Jogia’s Naren is the film’s only real laughter, and it’s welcome. The cast feels like a D&D party where half the characters have terrible stats, and that’s the point.

The movie stumbles when it tries to explain too much. There’s a subplot about “level 16” that feels like DLC for a game you never played, and the entity that chases them - a lanky, faceless thing called “The Smiler” - loses impact after the third time it pops up. The second act drags, weighed down by exposition dumps that feel like a Wikipedia article on liminal space lore. And while the ending is satisfyingly bleak, it also leaves a few characters in the lurch (sorry, Finn Bennett’s Bobby, you deserved better). Still, when this movie works, it works. That final shot? Chef’s kiss.

Pros

• Atmosphere so thick you could cut it with a nerf bat.
• Chiwetel Ejiofor gives a grounded, emotionally resonant performance.
• Practical effects and makeup for the “entities” feel creepy and tactile, not CGI mush.
• The mystery keeps you guessing, even if answers are sparse.

Cons

• Pacing issues in the middle act; you’ll check your watch once or twice.
• Some lore dumps feel like fan service for the YouTube crowd, alienating newbies.
• The supporting cast gets shortchanged - Lukita Maxwell’s Kat deserved more screen time.
• The finale feels a little rushed, like the movie hit its runtime limit.

Backrooms is a rare film that turns internet folklore into genuine cinematic tension. It’s not Hereditary, but it doesn’t try to be. It’s a quiet, ugly, sprawling nightmare that respects your intelligence and rewards patience. If you’ve ever stared at a wall and felt like it was staring back, this movie is for you. Just don’t watch it before a trip to the store. Trust me.