For all the discussion surrounding The Backrooms and its young director, Kane Parsons, the film’s greatest strength isn’t its mythology or worldbuilding—it’s its emotional psychology. Beneath the liminal spaces and existential dread is a surprisingly human story anchored by two strong performances from Renate Reinsve and Chiwetel Ejiofor. Both actors bring a relatable vulnerability to their roles, grounding the film’s stranger elements in genuine fear, uncertainty, and loss. Their work gives the movie real stakes, creating a palpable sense of threat and consequence that keeps the tension alive even when the narrative begins to wobble.
Parsons undeniably knows how to move a story forward. At just 20 years old, his command of atmosphere and visual momentum is impressive, and he consistently gets us from scene to scene with confidence. The problem is that he doesn’t add much else to the storytelling beyond that. The film often feels content to rely on mood rather than developing the deeper thematic ideas it gestures toward.
That becomes particularly noticeable in the second act. As the mystery begins to unfold, the answers we’re given feel less mystical and more like psychobabble. What starts as an unsettling, unknowable phenomenon gradually becomes something more explainable—and unfortunately, far less interesting. In trying to define the mystery, The Backrooms strips away some of its weight. The result is a film that becomes a little too blasé about concepts that were far more effective when left unexplained.
Still, there’s enough here to recommend. Like Curry Barker’s Obsession, The Backrooms feels like another example of a filmmaker successfully leveraging the personality and online presence behind the project to generate enormous interest. That’s not inherently a criticism—both films demonstrate real talent—but they also reveal the gap between creating compelling buzz and creating truly great storytelling. The storytelling here is enough. The atmosphere works. The performances work. The mystery works—until it doesn’t.
If Parsons can devote as much attention to narrative depth as he does to crafting memorable images and building anticipation, his next film could be something genuinely special. As it stands, The Backrooms is an effective, often engaging horror experience that never quite becomes as profound as it wants to be.
